Switching tanks, have question on re-using sand!

[scuba_steveo]

Now is a good time to go bare bottom or very little sand. My next system will have less than 1" of sand.

[Tim Marvin]

FSU, I would scoop the top, and after you move the rest pour your scooped portion back on top. Let it settle for a couple hours and go.

Dow, Scoop the top, dump in the old sand, pour the new on top of the old and top it with the sand you scooped off.

[dow]

Dow, Scoop the top, dump in the old sand, pour the new on top of the old and top it with the sand you scooped off.

Thanks, Tim. I'll do that. You just saved me a bunch of work and effort. BTW, should I rinse the old or just dump it in and run the carbon?

[GaryP]

If you have some way to stir the old sand and filter it with something like a Magnum I think it would be a good idea to do so. That would remove a lot of the detritus and other stuff trapped in the sand. I think a lot of nutrients get released during a tank move from this source. If you can minimize it, more the better.

I also run the sand through some really big plastic collanders to remove all the snail shells and other larger stuff that accumulates in the sand bed.

[Tim Marvin]

If there is no water in the tank yet, I'd stir the sand a little and get some of the crud out of it. Then dump it in and cover it with the new sand, then the top layer of the old sand. Put a bowl in the tank and pour in your new water on that or a cookie sheet. This will keep the sand from getting all stirred up, and I'd still run some carbon for a couple hours just to be safe.

[FSU]

Great ideas! Thanks guys!