Help Please!

[myenigmaself]

Ok, I've got these figure 8 puffers. They're great! I love them so much!! Everyone is happy and healthy, water parameters are great, but I have to siphon and do partial water changes every other day. To make things worse I have a lot of rocks/caves that aren't easily siphoned, so basically every time I do it I have to move everything around which stirs up a bunch of crap and is generally just a pain. I have a sand substrate. I'm thinking about getting rid of the sand in favor of gravel, but I think that's just going to mask the problem. I don't think I'm over-feeding them, it's just that they're messy and leave scraps that they won't eat all over the place. This weekend I'm planning on trying to rearrange the rocks, breaking them up and trying to make an ampatheatre-esque formation with large holes. This should give me plenty of open space in the middle where I can clean trouble free, and plenty of hiding spaces (I also have a bunch of bumblebee gobys in there too). Maybe I'll put some water sprite in the middle to break up lines of sight? I'm not sure if this is the right forum, but I figure since this problem is kind of specific to the puffers/gobys it made sense (I have molly's in my sump with no such problem). I can post some pictures if you like.

I don't think I'm over-stocked, as this setup was recommended by others in the forum, and for all intents and purposes my tank looks empty. I'm way below the 1inch/gallon and 1inch/10inch^2 surface area rules.

Setup
55 Gallon Main Tank:
6 Figure 8 Puffers
16 Bumblebee Gobys

29 Gallon Sump:
3 Mollys
6 (or so) Ghost Shrimp
2 Large Water Sprite
1 Small Anubias
12 Anacharis
4 Small Java Fern
1 Large Rock Covered with Java Moss

Water Params:
SG: 1.005
Ph: 8.1
Ammonia: 0ppm
Nitrite: 0ppm
Nitrate: 5-10ppm

So I guess, in short, my question is has anyone solved this problem, or is it just the nature of the beast? Am I being neurotic by cleaning so much? Should I just put up, clean up, and shut up?

Thanks!

 

[wackystarfish]

im not the best person to talk about stocking, but if it is the physical detritus that is bothering you, then maybe you could try a carpeting plant? They absorb the detritus a lot quicker than normal, and break it down. Puffers are very messy fish Im afraid you will have to live with some of it!!! Hey, they are worth it though Sand will probably be worse as the lighter colour will show it up more. Perhaps a darker substrate might help here?
Finlay

 

[myenigmaself]

Yep, it's the physical detritus that I'm talking about I like your idea of a carpeting plant! Any ideas for a brackish carpeting plant? I'm assuming I'd have to lay down another substrate for this to grow on, or would it cover the sand? I really like that idea: thanks!

 

[AdAndrews]

Yep, it's the physical detritus that I'm talking about I like your idea of a carpeting plant! Any ideas for a brackish carpeting plant? I'm assuming I'd have to lay down another substrate for this to grow on, or would it cover the sand? I really like that idea: thanks!

the turnover of your filter isnt high enough, you should get a powerhead or new filter and swap media over

 

[myenigmaself]

Thanks AdAndrews. You know, you're probably right that I don't have enough current at the bottom of the tank. I don't think I actually need a powerhead, as right now I've got my return nozzle (DIY) pushing water at the opposite corner of the tank. e.g.

The return is in the top left of the tank and I aim it at the bottom right.

This creates a decent current through the tank (I'm figuring about 450-500GPH) but most of that is focused on the top of the tank. I've tried aiming it at the bottom, which kicked up all the crap like I wanted, but unfortunately also kicked up all the sand too. As I don't want all my sand ending up in the sump, I had to adjust it to aim a little higher. It's definitely a pretty strong current, as on the right side of the tank there are blank patches where it's blown away all the sand.

It really sounds like I need to get rid of the sand. It's a pain when siphoning too.

Here's a picture for reference:

 

[AdAndrews]

just try a smaller powerhead, or alternatively, you could change to gravel that has small pieces, if you want to keep it looking pretty much like sand

 

[wackystarfish]

Very nice tank! Looks pretty pristine to me You could always try adding a small canister filter to help with things?