# Difference between a 1 inch or a 3-4 inch sand bed



## burlybear (Mar 18, 2009)

I know that either a 1 inch or 3-4 inch sand bed is recommended but what is the difference between the two? Are there any advantages or disadvantages to either setup? Also I have heard that 1 pound of sand per gallon of water is good ratio, would you agree with this?
Thanks for taking the time to answer my questions,
BurlyBear 
:notworthy:


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## burlybear (Mar 18, 2009)

Bump


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## froglady (Apr 12, 2009)

I dont know much about the sand beds. I think if I was using it. Id go with one inch, but maybe others on here might have a better idea. is this is freshwater tank?


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## onefish2fish (Jul 22, 2008)

your going to want LESS then one inch or 4-6 inches. anything else will trap debris and detritus causing issues. sand grain is of importance too, fine grains will sometimes blow around in the flow but to large of a grain ( like crushed coral ) tends to trap things too. 
there is also the option of having no sand and going bare bottom. 

IMO you should have a 4-6 inch sand bed somewhere in your tank, either the display or the refugium. a deep sand bed should be undisturbed (besides the little that your critters do) because different bacterias grow at different depths. infact disturbing it kicks up these bacterias and could cause a spike in ammonia from the die off. a deep sand bed is beneficial because its another thing that helps to keep your nitrates at 0. having just the less then one inch sand is just for looks.


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## princesuhaib (Apr 1, 2009)

I have aprox 4-5 inches in my saltwater tank


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## burlybear (Mar 18, 2009)

Thanks everyone,
BurlyBear


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## whitedevil (Apr 24, 2009)

I have about 7/8" of an inch in mine, but i did the pound per gallon rule and thats what it came out in depth.



What is this now about a deeper sand bed in the tank? like I should maybe add a few more pounds to a section of the tank? My sand gets moved around all the time, between the kuhlis and cories, this shouldnt matter,right?


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## onefish2fish (Jul 22, 2008)

the sand bed i mentioned is talking about saltwater aquariums.


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