Bubbles Raising from Sand Bed

[ZeroKoolNYC]

Hello everyone... I'm using a Sugar Grain Aragonite sand bed which is approximately 4 to 5 inches deep and I just installed a 436 watt T5 High Output lighting fixture and I come home and noticed tiny bubbles raising out of different parts of the sand. Could anyone clue me in as to what is going on here? :confused:

[Rob]

this is likely normal, how long has the tank been up?

[ZeroKoolNYC]

Three or four months but I've never seen it do this before. I'm confused.

[Rob]

well this happens for one of two reasons.

first of in a new tank, its the air pockts that are getting worked out as the sand bed settles.

but in your case, its more likely that the DSB is actually starting to work. as explained in the substrate shows i did, the DSB functions to convert nitrate into nitrogen, completing the nitrogen cycle. this nitrogen gas gets releases in bubbles, most of them are so small you dont notice then, but if they get a chance to build up they are released as larger bubbles that you can actually see.
this is something you should continue to see, and its a sign your DSB is doing well

[ZeroKoolNYC]

well this happens for one of two reasons.

first of in a new tank, its the air pockts that are getting worked out as the sand bed settles.

but in your case, its more likely that the DSB is actually starting to work. as explained in the substrate shows i did, the DSB functions to convert nitrate into nitrogen, completing the nitrogen cycle. this nitrogen gas gets releases in bubbles, most of them are so small you dont notice then, but if they get a chance to build up they are released as larger bubbles that you can actually see.
this is something you should continue to see, and its a sign your DSB is doing well

My tank is healthy. I feel very happy now! :D

[DJGonzo69]

Same thing is happening to my tank. good to know that it's a healthy sign.

[ZeroKoolNYC]

Same thing is happening to my tank. good to know that it's a healthy sign.

Two Aquariums with good signs. The weekend is going to be great I see. :-)

[pham411]

this nitrogen gas gets releases in bubbles, most of them are so small you dont notice then, but if they get a chance to build up they are released as larger bubbles that you can actually see.
this is something you should continue to see, and its a sign your DSB is doing well

yups, i notice my sand bed holding on to large bubbles when i get home from work each nite. i guess its hard at work, i thought it was due to the algae in my tank letting off oxygen or something. thanks rob

[fat walrus]

sounds like everything is good, but been told before that the large bubbles are actually the release of methane, hence never to stir the dsb in case of releasing large amounts of said gas

[ZeroKoolNYC]

sounds like everything is good, but been told before that the large bubbles are actually the release of methane, hence never to stir the dsb in case of releasing large amounts of said gas

Talk about killing my good time before it started. It's bad enough I'm going to be getting rid of my fish to convert to a reef tank.

That abouts 1 grand down the drain.

[Rob]

methane is a natural by product of life, so im sure its there.. but so are MAN other things.

but just like plants convert CO2 into O2, these bacteria will convert nitrate to nitrogen gas.

and regular minor sand bed disruptions are actually not a bad idea in a tank with a DSB. you dont want to disrupt alot, but a little bit here and there is a good then to help keep your DSB stable

[fat walrus]

i agree with Rob. i myself have been using deep sand bed and recommend it to all my friends. what i was trying to say was that methane was also a by-product of dsb. as methane builds up, it like nitrogen at some point needs to be released. i've been told that nitrogen are more apt to be released as a finer bubble while methane tends to build up into bigger pockets until it own pressure pushes it out as a larger bubble. with that theory in mind, major disturbance of the dsb at the wrong time may lead to problems.