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DSB vs BB
- Thread starter stonepilot
- Start date
A DSB provides an anaerobic enviroment for anaerobic bacteria to develop. Those bacteria will remove the Nitrates in your tank. Some of those same bacteria grow also into live rock. So a combination of DSB + LR + Protein Skimmer is a good way to go. It's called Berlin system... an old school technique that still works quite well. Other new approaches are making their way into the hobby, like a refugium with growing macro-algae to denitrify the tank. Some like it that way, some, like me, go for the old fashion way.
In either case, some have advantages and disadvantages. So it's really a personnal choice and I can not advise you on what system is better for you. I know I'm satisfied, so far, with my berlin system.
HTH
In either case, some have advantages and disadvantages. So it's really a personnal choice and I can not advise you on what system is better for you. I know I'm satisfied, so far, with my berlin system.
HTH
stonepilot":2v2fm3ia said:so the next tank will be very large and I want to know why a DSB is better than a BB. can anyone please help with your opinions. thanks
Not better, different. Both styles work as long as you know the requirements and limitations. For me I'm going bare bottom. When I tore down my 110 after a couple years of a DSB I was sick by all the crap that was in the sand. Lots of flow, heavy skimming and regular water changes is all I use.
I read a study about diffrent substrates and their effects.
They tested a variety of substrate ranging from very fine grain deep beds to shallow coarse grain beds and found that for the purpose of the amonia/ntrogen cycle they all performed exactly the same. Very little diffrence between all the diffrent types of setups.
The finer grades did have slightly, and that is slightly, lower nitrates than the coarse grain. The only major diffrence was that the finer grades had a lot lower phosphate readings.
Now what peaked my interest was the fact that the one bed they didnt give a common label like deep/fine shallow/fine was the one that had a medium deep medium-large grain (crushed coral about 1-2 mm in size) bed....it had the lowest death rate of all the tanks tested. (30 tanks in all).
They lumped fish snails and crabs together as animal life so the death rate was for any of these creatures that died.
So...if you want a substrate for looks and have a way to deal with slightly higher phosphate readings (sump with refuge etc) then 3-4 inches of coarse crushed coral will do the trick. Of corse if you have animals that you want to keep that require fine grain sand then you are kinda stuck using that.
What Im getting at is you dont have to have 6 inches of fine grain sand to get the benefits of a dsb, 3 or 4 inches of crushed coral will do the trick with a slightly lower nitrate reducing capability.
They tested a variety of substrate ranging from very fine grain deep beds to shallow coarse grain beds and found that for the purpose of the amonia/ntrogen cycle they all performed exactly the same. Very little diffrence between all the diffrent types of setups.
The finer grades did have slightly, and that is slightly, lower nitrates than the coarse grain. The only major diffrence was that the finer grades had a lot lower phosphate readings.
Now what peaked my interest was the fact that the one bed they didnt give a common label like deep/fine shallow/fine was the one that had a medium deep medium-large grain (crushed coral about 1-2 mm in size) bed....it had the lowest death rate of all the tanks tested. (30 tanks in all).
They lumped fish snails and crabs together as animal life so the death rate was for any of these creatures that died.
So...if you want a substrate for looks and have a way to deal with slightly higher phosphate readings (sump with refuge etc) then 3-4 inches of coarse crushed coral will do the trick. Of corse if you have animals that you want to keep that require fine grain sand then you are kinda stuck using that.
What Im getting at is you dont have to have 6 inches of fine grain sand to get the benefits of a dsb, 3 or 4 inches of crushed coral will do the trick with a slightly lower nitrate reducing capability.
BB is only good if you vacume it. Regularly.
DSB I think was a conspiracy started by sand vendors to get hobbist to spend more money on sand. Which hobbist do!
Sand needs to be taken care of, vacume it when doing water changes. 2 inches of sand max is needed for any purpose.
Fine sand is better because it lets ditritus sit on top, rather sinking to the bottom of the tank where it can not be broken down, vacumed, or consumed by detrivores. There it will rot and funk up the tank.
_________________
Mercedes 350
DSB I think was a conspiracy started by sand vendors to get hobbist to spend more money on sand. Which hobbist do!
Sand needs to be taken care of, vacume it when doing water changes. 2 inches of sand max is needed for any purpose.
Fine sand is better because it lets ditritus sit on top, rather sinking to the bottom of the tank where it can not be broken down, vacumed, or consumed by detrivores. There it will rot and funk up the tank.
_________________
Mercedes 350
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