I use Estes' medium broadcast quarts granules. You can vac it without getting much in the bucket I just dump it back in when I'm done cleaning. They have 18 colors and a few premixes. It is also very clean and dustless. They also have an aquarium grade sand but is more expensive. You will have to find a flooring dealer in your area, here is their web site GL http://permacolorquartz.com/services.html
cichlids and sand
- Thread starter bigbrad73
- Start date
I use black sand in 3 tanks. The poop and stuff just sits on the top of the sand. Kind of a pain in the @$$$$$ because I end up doing small waterchanges almost every day just sucking the stuff off the sand because its so visable. I wouldnt have it any other way as it really looks good. You could get by this with more water movement but I dont really mind.
I think most chichlids would prefer sand as its easier to move around and makes a pretty comfy bed lol. If you are sucking up too much sand try holding the tip of the siphon a little farther from the substrate. I suck up some but it is just heavy enough to fall right back out.
I think most chichlids would prefer sand as its easier to move around and makes a pretty comfy bed lol. If you are sucking up too much sand try holding the tip of the siphon a little farther from the substrate. I suck up some but it is just heavy enough to fall right back out.
bigbrad73;4619804; said:
Try hovering about an inch or two above the sand to pick up the poop rather than the sand. Begin hovering at about 3" above the sand and gradually go down until you get the desired effect, poop being lifted but little or no sand.
I had the same problems when I tried aquarium specific sand as it is very fine and light. I now use pool filter sand and it is so heavy that I can actually dig the gravel vac in and 99% of the sand falls away plus I have strapped a 3000 l/h pump to my vac.
I wouldn't stir the sand before vacuuming as that has the potential to trap poop and food particles under the sand bed which is what you need to avoid.
interesting... i've always used gravel thinking that sand is more difficult to maintain... but after reading all the posts here, i'm contemplating on switching to sand for my cichlid tank... my current issue with gravel is when i feed them pellets, they just fall all the way to the bottom of my tank...
The only potential drawback with sand is you need to make sure your filter intake is far enough away from the bottom. You dont want fish moving it around and getting it sucked into your filter. I havent had a problem with this but others may have.
i use pool filter sand and 3m colorquartz and i can gravel vac both of them just like gravel,they are both heavy grade sand.
