What type of sand is best for substrate?

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Ninjakiller08

Feeder Fish
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Mar 29, 2013
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I was thinking of switching my 34 gallon tank from gravel to sand because I heard sand is much easier to clean. I know that I must put the intake tube higher to avoid any sand getting sucked into my canister filter. (Eheim 2213) I also know that I must stir it weekly to let off any air bubbles trapped inside.
I was just wondering what type of sand would be best. Many recommend pool filtration sand. I was thinking of going with silica sand. Is silica sand and pool filtration sand the same thing? If not which would work best?
 
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Ninjakiller08

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Mar 29, 2013
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Ontario, Canada
Also pool filtration sand is a medium sized grain, so would it be sucked up by a gravel vac? Also because it is medium sized, will any debris get under it like debris gets under gravel?
 
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Skittle

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Aug 26, 2012
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The trick with sand is that since its smaller and more compact than gravel it packs together tightly then almost all waste sits on top. It takes a little gettin used to but not too long before you know how far away to hold your vacuum so you clean up the debris but suck up minimal amnt of sand. I stir my sand up after vacuumin. I use pool filter sand. Hope this helped


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Deubie Doo

Gambusia
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Mar 18, 2012
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Try 3mm grain
 
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Ninjakiller08

Feeder Fish
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Mar 29, 2013
187
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Ontario, Canada
Skittle said:
The trick with sand is that since its smaller and more compact than gravel it packs together tightly then almost all waste sits on top. It takes a little gettin used to but not too long before you know how far away to hold your vacuum so you clean up the debris but suck up minimal amnt of sand. I stir my sand up after vacuumin. I use pool filter sand. Hope this helped


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What color is your pool filter sand and what is the label? Thanks for the answer btw. Also could i just take the larger diameter part of the siphon off for more suction power from the less diameter tube?
 
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Skittle

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Ninjakiller08 said:
What color is your pool filter sand and what is the label? Thanks for the answer btw. Also could i just take the larger diameter part of the siphon off for more suction power from the less diameter tube?
Click to expand...
Mines a pretty light tan color. Yes you should take the large diameter part of the siphon off that part is more for gravel for you to get down into the gravel. You'll notice if your gravel is small enough it'll get sucked right into the tube, while if you have the large part on it only sucks up water and waste without enough power to suck up the gravel. To siphon waste off sand what I and many others do is just hover around the tank with the hose a inch or 2 above the sand. You'll find out how far the hose should be after you've siphoned once or twice. Good luck


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Ninjakiller08

Feeder Fish
MFK Member
Mar 29, 2013
187
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Ontario, Canada
Skittle said:
Mines a pretty light tan color. Yes you should take the large diameter part of the siphon off that part is more for gravel for you to get down into the gravel. You'll notice if your gravel is small enough it'll get sucked right into the tube, while if you have the large part on it only sucks up water and waste without enough power to suck up the gravel. To siphon waste off sand what I and many others do is just hover around the tank with the hose a inch or 2 above the sand. You'll find out how far the hose should be after you've siphoned once or twice. Good luck


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Thanks. Also because pool filtration sand is medium sized, does any debris get under it? I know because gravel particles are large the debris can easily get under it. I am looking to have the debris on top only. Does debris ever get under your sand? Also when I go buy the sand should it be 100% chlorine free? Btw with all the black specks in the pool filtration sand, do you ever get confused with it being poo? And one last thing, with sand being easier to clean, will that ensure a better water quality because nothing is hiding and the aquarium can be super clean? Thanks in advance! :D
 
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Skittle

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Realy minmal waste gets under it. Like i said evry once in a while, like maybe evry other vacummin i stir the sand with my hand. Ive never seen pfs with chlorine alredy in it, but yes it definetly should be all chlorine free. I normaly dont get confused between the dark grains of sand and fish waste, my fishs waste is bigger and stringier than the grains


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