3M Colorquartz question

[Camphilophus]

both time I used colorquartz I turned my hand black washing the bag. It took at least 45minutes to wash a bag. Pool filter sand gets 1 rinse per bucket but that takes about 5 minutes to wash a whole bag.

I have good water pressure and use a python. If I hold it at an angle, it works well or...if I swirl it above the sand it will stir up all the crap on top and suck it up.

What do you use substrate?...because PFS and playbox sand is lighter than the S or T Grade.

I have it in the same tank as the male sagittae in my avatar. I can't clean it because of this fish. He swims up to the python and kicks back and fourth and sends everything up into the water. When I try to clean it on the females side of the tank I can get some of the junk but not poo. The poo will stay on the bottom of the tank and all the sand goes up the python. Its your choice if you want to deal with it. Like I said its probably good for eartheaters and other small fish but its terrible for glass bangers.

Cape, you have no idea what you're talking about if you think pool filter sand is lighter than the s-grade. If you want I can take a picture of the s-grade next to my pool filter sand. My pool filter sand is like small pebbles.

 

[terd ferguson]

If your water changer has any pressure to it it will siphon up the s-grade. Having big fish who take big ****s in your tank will be a problem because you won't be able to siphon it out. If you've got small/boring fish it won't be a problem. My fish can't even swim across the tank without kicking the sand up. If you have a python and intend on using it DO NOT BUY S-GRADE.

Every time I clean my canister filters and HOB's they're filled with this stuff. As soon as my python touches the water my fish go crazy and stir everything up. It's is not a good idea to keep with big cichlids. I could see it working with smaller/mellow (geos/eartheaters) but don't expect this to be good for glass bangers. I paid $25 each per 50lb. bag.

I have the Sgrade and don't have this same problem. My python will pull some sand up if you bury it and hold it, but if you lift it out of the sand, the sand falls right out. I can skim the surface of the sand with the python and pull up all but the largest poop. For bigger poop, I just remove the large part of the python and hold the skinny hose about an inch above the sand. I also don't have the problem of it being stirred up too much by fishes. You must have some nutty fishes, lol.

 

[terd ferguson]

both time I used colorquartz I turned my hand black washing the bag. It took at least 45minutes to wash a bag. Pool filter sand gets 1 rinse per bucket but that takes about 5 minutes to wash a whole bag.

As far as I'm concerned, this is the only downside with ColorQuartz. It takes forever to clean and will stain anything until clean. I spent over an hour per bag and it still left rings on my acrylic as I filled the tank. Luckily these rings came off with the mag float. But it is messy for sure until it's clean.

 

[capefeartarheel]

It takes forever to clean and will stain anything until clean. I spent over an hour per bag...

Yea, it did take forever, but it really didnt seem too much longer than it took me with PFS either. That stuff I get from Home Depot is dirty.

Camph, you using a firehose to clean yours?

 

[teqvet]

If your water changer has any pressure to it it will siphon up the s-grade. Having big fish who take big ****s in your tank will be a problem because you won't be able to siphon it out. If you've got small/boring fish it won't be a problem. My fish can't even swim across the tank without kicking the sand up. If you have a python and intend on using it DO NOT BUY S-GRADE.

Ok well I'll just disagree with you. Pertaining to the python issue itself, I use a python as well and have never had an issue where it just sucked so much of my s-grade out. Maybe it's the method in which we siphon? (I am not saying there is no problem with it, just that I have never had an issue with it before)

Even if you have fish feces so big you need to plunge the intake of the python down on to it, you can cut the feces in half and pull the python up again and suck both pieces out. Even when plunging the python in to 2-3" of S-grade, at the deep points of the tank, the sand never fully siphons. It goes in to the intake and circles around before falling back down again. I find that if you plunge the intake of the python where you need it to go and lift after plunging, the sand falls right away and the feces sticks inside the intake and goes through the siphon.

That's just been my experience with it though. I will agree it definitely stirs very easily but it falls down just as quick as t-grade does. Take some t and s grade in each hand and drop them in your tank simultaneously.. they'll both fall at the same rate.

If a persons fish is so big and powerful it causes S-grade to fly everywhere, they'll have the same issue with T-grade... basically meaning they should steer clear of 3mCQ period and look for a larger, heavier substrate.



Also, as I initially said, and do so myself, if you are worried about your fish stirring up the bottom, or if you are keeping cichlids it doesn't matter if they stir the bottom or not, they're going to be picking it up and spitting it out from halfway up the tank anyhow... you can take some mesh netting or even panty hose and attach/fix it to your filter intake. Also, you can attach a sponge to the intake as well, acting as a pre-filter sponge.

 

[Camphilophus]

As far as I'm concerned, this is the only downside with ColorQuartz. It takes forever to clean and will stain anything until clean. I spent over an hour per bag and it still left rings on my acrylic as I filled the tank. Luckily these rings came off with the mag float. But it is messy for sure until it's clean.

It never stained my tank but always my arm and my wash tub. S-grade will scratch your glass up bad if you're not careful with it. If you accidentally trap some between your glass and your algae scraper you'll end up with big scratches in your glass or acrylic tank.

Cape, home depot doesn't sell pool filter sand. The stuff they carry is just regular play sand and that stuff is nasty. Play sand comes pre-washed. It's used to filter pools so they can't sell it dirty.

 

[teqvet]

maybe I was thinking about the horrors of playsand or playbox sand instead of PFS

 

[teqvet]

It never stained my tank but always my arm and my wash tub. S-grade will scratch your glass up bad if you're not careful with it. If you accidentally trap some between your glass and your algae scraper you'll end up with big scratches in your glass or acrylic tank.

Yup, have this problem every time I get a new bag in. I'll have my forarm clean where I had the glove tied off at and my upperarm will be dyed brown/black/red from being plunged in to the container while hosing off.



What are you guys doing with this stuff that it is taking so long to clean? 1 50 lb bag takes me 15 minutes with a sprayer attached to a hose on the 'jet' mode. I fill the container up to full and use a stick to stir the sand and submerse the nozzle underneath the sand so the whole thing is being churned while rinsing. I'll bow the container in every so often to let out some of the dyes/residues that accumulate at the surface. 15 minutes of that and it's good to go.

 

[capefeartarheel]

Cape, home depot doesn't sell pool filter sand. The stuff they carry is just regular play sand and that stuff is nasty. Play sand comes pre-washed. It's used to filter pools so they can't sell it dirty.

I think they might at the Home Depot where I live, or if not now, they did. I always purchased Pool Filter Sand and I know Ive been to Home Depot for it in the past. It might have been yrs ago though. We have a Lowes and Home Depot within walking distance of each other. Regardless, the PFS I buy takes me a while to get clean.

I used the playbox sand when I first switched over to sand about 6 yrs ago and I agree...its a mess.

 

[solchitlins]

Here is a pic I found on a different forum

I think I will use the T grade if it's fine with Cory cats and geo's then. I hate how my pfs gets into my filters, hopefully t-grade wont.