I wanted to post my experience with this so far, hopefully it can save someone else the headache its causing me... I also had a question for the Lapis Luster buying community.
For those of you who want the readers digest version: Kleenblast is having complaints of certain grades of Lapis Luster being a gray color lately, instead of the normal beach sand color.
Longer version:
I decided I wanted Lapis Luster for my new 210g. Based on another build thread here, I went with the medium aquarium gravel size. I got really lucky -- I called the Portland OR location and they had it in stock, total for 400 lbs was 64$ - BONUS, the guys wife was driving to Boise to visit her Aunt and would meet me with it so I didn't have to pay shipping. It gets here, it looks like this:
So I am thinking ok, maybe its just reallllly dirty -- so I wash some of it, still really gray (almost like it was cut with gravel). I toss it in a little 10g to see how it will look, it looks like this:
Which is not, this:
I talked with the Portland office, they said they could not take it back since I had opened the bags (understandable)...
Then I called the Hayward, CA office and asked them to send me samples of their Lapis Luster. They did, and their medium aquarium sample looks like what I wanted, not like what I got. So I called them back, and asked them about it. The guy said that recently they started having complaints that their medium aquarium gravel size (and larger) is more of a gray color than a beach sand color (the sample I was sent was from older stock in the office). He said they did not know why, maybe because of storms, but its been happening so they can not really guarantee a certain color anymore.
So now, I am thinking of going a smaller grade and getting what I actually want, biting the bullet and paying the shipping cost. I am thinking either #3, #2/12 or #1C - so now my question is, has anyone purchased any of these grain sizes RECENTLY and gotten the color they wanted?
For those of you who want the readers digest version: Kleenblast is having complaints of certain grades of Lapis Luster being a gray color lately, instead of the normal beach sand color.
Longer version:
I decided I wanted Lapis Luster for my new 210g. Based on another build thread here, I went with the medium aquarium gravel size. I got really lucky -- I called the Portland OR location and they had it in stock, total for 400 lbs was 64$ - BONUS, the guys wife was driving to Boise to visit her Aunt and would meet me with it so I didn't have to pay shipping. It gets here, it looks like this:
So I am thinking ok, maybe its just reallllly dirty -- so I wash some of it, still really gray (almost like it was cut with gravel). I toss it in a little 10g to see how it will look, it looks like this:
Which is not, this:
I talked with the Portland office, they said they could not take it back since I had opened the bags (understandable)...
Then I called the Hayward, CA office and asked them to send me samples of their Lapis Luster. They did, and their medium aquarium sample looks like what I wanted, not like what I got. So I called them back, and asked them about it. The guy said that recently they started having complaints that their medium aquarium gravel size (and larger) is more of a gray color than a beach sand color (the sample I was sent was from older stock in the office). He said they did not know why, maybe because of storms, but its been happening so they can not really guarantee a certain color anymore.
So now, I am thinking of going a smaller grade and getting what I actually want, biting the bullet and paying the shipping cost. I am thinking either #3, #2/12 or #1C - so now my question is, has anyone purchased any of these grain sizes RECENTLY and gotten the color they wanted?
