Sand vs Crushed Coral

[Robertshadow]

I have very little experience with sand, someone told me that it buffers ph better than crushed coral. I've mostly had my cichlids with cc bedding, it seems to hold the ph ok if I make a filter cartrage with some. (about the size of your typical gravel grain, maybe smaller.) Personally I like the look of sand though.

Ph buff wise, sand or crushed coral?

[rba718]

Not sure on either, I've always stuck with the regular cheap gravel. =\ I have heard though that crushed coral helps the water stay crystal clear.

[Onion01]

crushed coral is a better buffer

[JamesRiggs]

Crushed coral is a better buffer, most fish tend to like sand more though.

[Robertshadow]

Crushed coral is a better buffer, most fish tend to like sand more though.

Thought so :thumbsdow Oh well. I kind of feel sorry for my sand sifters, and the front. They are always scooping up cc and and then spitting it out later. I think they want sift.

[Robertshadow]

Not sure on either, I've always stuck with the regular cheap gravel. =\ I have heard though that crushed coral helps the water stay crystal clear.

Probably from the salt it releases.

[JamesRiggs]

Thought so :thumbsdow Oh well. I kind of feel sorry for my sand sifters, and the front. They are always scooping up cc and and then spitting it out later. I think they want sift.


You will see different fish with sand!

[jhutch]

I would use sand. Crushed coral doesn't really do much to buffer the ph unless you have an undergravel filter. The water needs to be pulled through the crushed coral to cause it to leach otherwise if you don't have an undergravel filter in the tank the crushed coral is just there for looks.

[dodgeman68]

Probably from the salt it releases.

clarity of your tank has little to do with what substrate you chose...like jhutch said if you arent running a ugf it will not buffer the water...crushed coral is better suited to be placed in your canister filter where water is constantly passed through it so it leeches into the water thus buffering your ph to a consistent level. you will find your fish will be much happier with a sand substrate as they love to play with it and dig in it...I use aragonite sugar sized oolitic sand and the mbuna I keep love it and so do I

[mike dunagan]

I love my PFS (pool filter sand) 3m is great too

[jhutch]

I have started to change all my tanks over to sand. It's easier to maintain, I think it looks nicer and fish love it. My blood red parrot in my 100 gallon hexagon digs in it and throws it around with his fins. Once I have sand in all my tanks that aren't breeding setups I won't ever use gravel again. I agree with putting crushed coral in the filter too. Then it is actually serving a purpose. In my opinion it doesn't really look very nice as a substrate.

[eyezak-g]

I created my own substrate by mixing Playsand,PFS,and Crushed Coral. I got to say putting Crushed Coral as a substrate has risen my ph up to 8.2 from 7.6.
Here is a pic
http://i7.photobucket.com/albums/y253/EYEZAK-G/100_6564.jpg

[mike dunagan]

Looks nice, have a pic that is more clear? Might give that a try.

[Muske]

Yea, that mix of sand and cc looks very natural....

[Ash]

I also love sand. You dont really need a buffer if your water is already hard but crushed coral is a better buffer. I just use sand b/c my water is naturally hard. I love the natural look with sand. My fish love the sand too. I use 3M its great stuff and doesnt clog filters =]

[dirtyblacksocks]

Assuming you've got a decent turnover rate in your aquarium using CC as a substrate will buffer your water - you don't need to place it directly in a filter if you're turning the total volume of your tank over say 6 times an hour or more, though you won't get the dramatic results you do from putting it directly into a filter (this holds true for any buffering substance).

You can always go old school and find the bags of #0 crushed coral, which is pretty close to the same consistency as sand - or if you're not worried about keeping a buffered pH just use sand.

I've used sand, gravel, coral, river rock ect. and prefer sand over almost anything else for most fish - though my Tan***ikan setup has #1 grade crushed coral in it.

[Robertshadow]

Thanks for the info guys.
What about this idea, sand with lots of shells? someone told me that sea shells buff ph too, I've used shells for decorations before. I know they bring up hardness from the calcium, but yeah.

As far as filtration I try to keep at least double the recomended filtration on my tanks, since they are somewhat overcrowded.

[Robertshadow]

I have started to change all my tanks over to sand. It's easier to maintain, I think it looks nicer and fish love it. My blood red parrot in my 100 gallon hexagon digs in it and throws it around with his fins. Once I have sand in all my tanks that aren't breeding setups I won't ever use gravel again. I agree with putting crushed coral in the filter too. Then it is actually serving a purpose. In my opinion it doesn't really look very nice as a substrate.

no astheticaly it dosen't, still looks better than coloured gravel lol.

So, how do you clean your sand? gravel syphon?

[mike dunagan]

Here is a video of how I do it, not me...

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/videos/cleaning_sand.php

[dirtyblacksocks]

If you seed the tank with malaysian trumpet snails prior to putting a lot of predatory fish in it along with some cleanup crew such as cory cats or synodontis it's a lot easier to keep sand properly cleaned.

Usually the leftover waste will pile up in one area of the tank to syphon if you've got strong circulation with a lot of decor in the tank, rather than having to go over the entire substrate.

[Robertshadow]

If you seed the tank with malaysian trumpet snails prior to putting a lot of predatory fish in it along with some cleanup crew such as cory cats or synodontis it's a lot easier to keep sand properly cleaned.

Usually the leftover waste will pile up in one area of the tank to syphon if you've got strong circulation with a lot of decor in the tank, rather than having to go over the entire substrate.

Thanks, I have a big syno and a walking catfish in the tank I want to convert to sand. Thinking of adding some loaches.

[Robertshadow]

Here is a video of how I do it, not me...

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/videos/cleaning_sand.php

Thanks mike, that really helps. Aside from that, all I need to know is were to buy. I know they sell little packs of sand in my lfs for like 5 bucks a pound, seems over priced. What would happen if I just drove down to my home depo and picked up a big bag of sand? (anything I should avoid using?) Oh and I only have about 1 inch of bedding in the tank currently, 3 filters, changing the sub shouldn't cause any kind of cycle right?

[mike dunagan]

Pool FIlter sand of 3M color quarts is great!

[Robertshadow]

Pool FIlter sand of 3M color quarts is great!

Thanks for all the info, pool filter sand sounds like a great idea

[dirtyblacksocks]

Loaches are pretty messy eaters, not a good choice for a cleanup crew, FYI. Cory cats are really the way to go if you don't mind them - aenus especially are like vacuum cleaners.

[jhutch]

I have a 100 gallon hexagon tank with blue sand and its seeded with a lot of snails. It's just a show tank with a bunch of angelfish, a long finned oscar, an oil cat, a parrot fish, a spotted raphael cat, a royal pleco, a king tiger pleco, 2 L-114s, a whiptail and a jet black upside down cat. I run one filter on it that is rated for a 60 gallon tank and an air stone under the sand. I ran the gravel vac through it last night and didn't really suck anything out but small snails. I have to change the filter cartridges once a week but other than that now that I put sand in it it is pretty much maintenance free. And everyone knows oscars are messy. Crystal clear water too.

[Robertshadow]

Loaches are pretty messy eaters, not a good choice for a cleanup crew, FYI. Cory cats are really the way to go if you don't mind them - aenus especially are like vacuum cleaners.
oh really? I find that they do a good job picking up the things the bigger fish don't get because of their small mouths. Everyones experience is different, for me at least a group of loaches works pretty well in most tanks, for getting rid of snails, eating extra food and what not. I have an 7 inch weather loach in with a 2 foot long tire treck eel, and the eel is a really messy eater the loach always gets peices of food that the eel rips apart and leaves.

[dirtyblacksocks]

Put an oscar and some loaches in a bare bottom tank and you'll see how much the loaches leave behind - they're good at rooting around and getting food out of cracks, but they're still messy eaters.

Cory cats on the other hand eat just about everything but poop. Just my experience - if you like the look of loaches then they're fine for a cleanup crew, it's not like they'll be making things worse. Just thought I'd throw that out there =)

[TheFanatic]

I clean my sand a little differently. I put the gravel vac tube down into the sand. The crap comes up, the gases are released, and the sand starts to rise. I then kink the hose. The sand drops but the crap stays put. Once the sand drops I unkink the hose and the waste is whooshed away...

I used a combo of crushed coral sand and black sand. I mixed it about 2 to 1, crushed coral sand to black. It's a lot more expensive than pool sand but I wanted that black and white look. The added black sand also hides the crap that sits on top of the sand. It basically camouflages it.

[TheFanatic]

Oh, and I will never set up another tank with anything other than sand as substrate. I absolutely love it. I've been keeping tanks for more than 20 years. I will never go back to gravel...

[Robertshadow]

Put an oscar and some loaches in a bare bottom tank and you'll see how much the loaches leave behind - they're good at rooting around and getting food out of cracks, but they're still messy eaters.

Cory cats on the other hand eat just about everything but poop. Just my experience - if you like the look of loaches then they're fine for a cleanup crew, it's not like they'll be making things worse. Just thought I'd throw that out there =)

I know as a fact that loaches don't like bare tanks though. They spend most of their time picking around the gravel and like you said trying to uproot plants. I used to have a little 15 gallon tank with just different species of little loaches, I never saw a spec of food when I did water changes ever two weeks. Thanks for your imput though, I think bare tanks are interesting, never tried one myself.

[TheFanatic]

I know as a fact that loaches don't like bare tanks though. They spend most of their time picking around the gravel and like you said trying to uproot plants. I used to have a little 15 gallon tank with just different species of little loaches, I never saw a spec of food when I did water changes ever two weeks. Thanks for your imput though, I think bare tanks are interesting, never tried one myself.

I think bare tanks suck except for breeding and grow out tanks...

[Robertshadow]

Oh, and I will never set up another tank with anything other than sand as substrate. I absolutely love it. I've been keeping tanks for more than 20 years. I will never go back to gravel...

cool

[mike dunagan]

If I get a tank with gravel, I throw it away now...

[Robertshadow]

I hate gravel too, I think were talking about crushed coral though LoL

[Robertshadow]

I think bare tanks suck except for breeding and grow out tanks...

To each his own I guess

[TheFanatic]

To each his own I guess

I just think that the aquascaping is equally important as the fish. I want to show the complete package. I want to see territory boundaries and defense of such, breeding zones, natural behavior in terms of hiding and feeding.

My fave fish are plecos and Synos. Putting them in a bare tank just isn't right...

[Robertshadow]

I just think that the aquascaping is equally important as the fish. I want to show the complete package. I want to see territory boundaries and defense of such, breeding zones, natural behavior in terms of hiding and feeding.

My fave fish are plecos and Synos. Putting them in a bare tank just isn't right...

I don't really think there is an objectively right or wrong way, I've seen catfish do well in bare tanks.

[mike dunagan]

They can make in bare bottom. It is really what you like. Now when it comes to what to use then the fish can change what is best.