sand, rocks, rays?

[HarleyK]

Howdy,

I will be setting up my 220 again in the near future. Don't want to rule out rays in the not-so-distant future. So I need to take that into accout:

I have a few rocks from 10-30 lbs, planted and to-be planted with Anubias. I assume best substrate for rays is sand. I am hesitant to rest these rocks on the glass bottom, because if only a few grains of sand find their way between rocks and glass, that means an aweful lot of pointy stress on the glass. My previous set-up included 4'' of sand, which nicely distributed the rocks' weight. But then, I didn't have big diggers ...

Thus my question: Does anyone of you use big rocks and sand with rays in a glass tank? Experiences? Set-up suggestions? Do rays dig under such rocks?

Thanks,
HarleyK

 

[Nic]

don't think they would dig under the rocks you could always cut a piece of egg crate for the rock to sit on would eliminate the stress

 

[Miles]

Rays might mess up your plants and unroot them from the rocks.. They are pretty active.

The rays also produce alot of fecal matter so keep that in mind maintenance wise.. When I first started my 180g ray tank I thought some natural driftwood with plastic plants would be simple and easy to clean around.. That lasted a week. It seem that I spend alot of time syphoning poop, thankfully it blows all into the same spot now with the tank being nearly empty.

Barebottom is really the best way to go, unless you are super dedicated or have a good way to filter out large wastes that lay on top of a sand bed.

 

[csx4236]

If the rocks are large the rays will not dig them up or move them, But having rocks and sand makes cleaning your tank much more difficult. I like the natural look but it takes alot more effort to clean them.

 

[HarleyK]

Thanks, guys. True words of wisdom

HarleyK