Question:how do i clean sand that is really fine grained and i cant gravel vaccum because when i tried it it just sucked up all the sand.
Answers:
Is this a marine tank? If not, just vaccuum out the sand, rinse it and put it back in. It will not hurt your fish to have the sand removed for a while and replaced.
If it is a marine tank, you need some little critters to live in the sand and keep it clean for you. See your local salt water expert for them.
The marines get all the glory!
Just stir the sand. This will release all the debris into the water in suspension As long as you are running a good filter it will clear up in a few hours. Stir it at night before you go to bed and it will be clear in the morning. If it is a deep sand bed that has not been regularly stirred be careful - you could release trapped chemicals (part of the anaerobic waste breakdown cycle) that can wipe out your tank.
in a marine tank you shouldn't gravel vac. just let the sand stay by itself, if there is sufficent current in the tank it shoud turn the sand on it's own.
stirring the sand or vacuuming it if the sand is more than 2" deep can release harmful hydrogen sulfide into the water, killing everything in your tank.
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