The Pros And Cons Of A Bare-Bottomed Marine Tank

By Jeff Kurtz

If you’re in the process of planning and setting up a new saltwater aquarium, you’ll need to give some thought to the type of substrate you’d like to use. It may seem counterintuitive, but one of your options in this area is to dispense with any sort of substrate altogether and go bare-bottomed (BB). To help you decide whether the BB approach might be right for you, here are some of the pros and cons to consider:

Pros:

• Very easy to vacuum up uneaten food, fish waste, and other detritus that has settled to the bottom without siphoning up sand in the process.
• Allows you to aim the effluents of powerheads and other sources of water movement in any direction desired to maximize water flow throughout the system and behind rockwork without creating an underwater “sand storm.”
• Detritus more readily remains suspended in the water column so it can be filtered/skimmed out efficiently.
• Cost savings from going sans substrate can be significant depending on the …read more

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