Beach sand vs store bought sand.

[CUBAN_ROCK]

I live near the coast and bought crushed coral to start my tank. After i started to cycle the tank, i found out that its not a good idea to have crushed coral if i wanted to have live coral. so instead of buying sand and spending all that money, i was wondering if beach sand(in water) would work.
At about 10 feet of depth.

 

[Weylin]

That be a great idea... Y 10ft dept ? Not directly from the shore..?

 

[CUBAN_ROCK]

i just didnt know if the sand close to the shore would be as live due to the surf and tides drying it up. so you think that would work? would i have to change the water?

 

[Reefscape]

i would not take sand from the beach...it can harbour all manner of parasites and nastys....remember, the beach is the oceans protien skimmer...

 

[CUBAN_ROCK]

has anyone tried this before?

 

[Zoodiver]

It's illegal, so don't do it. Going to jail is not worth saving money on substrate.

Aside from that, you'll introduce a LOT of crap you don't want in your tank.
Who told you crushed coral is bad if you do a live coral tank?

 

[CUBAN_ROCK]

im new to marine aquariums but an owner of a strictly salt water shop told me that it well cause nitrate problems in the long run. is it really illegal?

 

[Zoodiver]

Yeah, you need a special permit to take things out of nature in the US.

I would just let the store bought stuff do the trick, and let the tank mature on it's own.

 

[CUBAN_ROCK]

................

 

[Reefscape]

im new to marine aquariums but an owner of a strictly salt water shop told me that it well cause nitrate problems in the long run. is it really illegal?

I know many people who have used it before from area's in the world and they have "not" experienced any other nitrate issues than a normal reef tank would...And Zoodiver is spot on about the legalities of it...