Syphoning live sand

Question
QUESTION: Can you syphon live sand like you would gravel in a fresh water tank?

ANSWER: Yes you can! You may have to adjust how quickly the water flow is by pinching off the hose a bit. Live sand is usually pretty fine and you don't want to suck up too much of it. You also don't want to dig down too deep with the siphon. Just turning over the top layer with the syphon is sufficient and you'll gravel will look a little brighter and you should be able to get plenty of the debris that collects with in this layer.

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QUESTION: I use marine snow...do I remove the carbon and shut off the skimmer when feeding?  Some people say I should...some are saying I don't need to.  

Answer
The directions say to turn off all mechanical filtration and protein skimmer for about one hour after feeding with marine snow. I would follow the manufacturers' instruction to get best results. You don't have to remove the carbon(carbon is considered chemical filtration, mechanical would be anything that captures small matter like a filter sponge or some sort of fiber) just turn off your filter for an hour. However you will want to maintain a good water movement with a powerhead. You have a prizm skimmer right? Just connect the small tube to the no air port on the skimmer cup like you do when you need to get it started. Your skimmer won't be mixing with air and therefore will only be turning water over and not actually skimming or collecting anything. You want the food to circulate through the tank but you don't want it all taken up by your skimmer or filter fiber. Those who tell you to leave it on are just wasting the marine snow and their corals aren't getting the full benefit of this nutritious food.