Fine Silica Sand: particular cons?

[Andyroo]

What are the downfalls or pitfalls of finer silica sand?
Does it eat pump impellers or burrow under silicone?
Does it lodge into & irritate gills, cut eel/loach faces or clog plant roots? Lock MTS at surface?

The only light colour silica sand I've been able to source (without breaking bank) is golf course bunker sand (from Guyana, I think). It's heavy & appears to sink readily, but it's much finer than what I've got experience with. The first bag is rinsing, and taking forever to run-clear in part as there were/are clay contaminants.

 

[Rocksor]

I've used play sand before. It's easily sucked up by the gravel vacuum. I had no issues with the filter sucking it up unless it were a sand sifting species of fish going through the sand. You would then need a pre-filter sponge on any filter. I did have to comb the sand weekly so that it would not develop anaerobic dark spots and accidentally release methane into the water column.

 

[twentyleagues]

I've used play sand before. It's easily sucked up by the gravel vacuum. I had no issues with the filter sucking it up unless it were a sand sifting species of fish going through the sand. You would then need a pre-filter sponge on any filter. I did have to comb the sand weekly so that it would not develop anaerobic dark spots and accidentally release methane into the water column.

Hydrogen sulfide.

What are the downfalls or pitfalls of finer silica sand?
Does it eat pump impellers or burrow under silicone?
Does it lodge into & irritate gills, cut eel/loach faces or clog plant roots? Lock MTS at surface?

The only light colour silica sand I've been able to source (without breaking bank) is golf course bunker sand (from Guyana, I think). It's heavy & appears to sink readily, but it's much finer than what I've got experience with. The first bag is rinsing, and taking forever to run-clear in part as there were/are clay contaminants.

Pool filter sand would be better. Really fine sand can and will do all those things you said.

 

[Kput]

High silica content = big diatom blooms. Run Phosguard after adding it for a while.

 

[Andyroo]

So, to sum-up: pop down to the shore & get what you know
That's fine with me, thanks.

I've got a client I need to visit with a nice course beach (0.5~1mm rounded reef/coral particulates), and will get a couple of buckets to make timeline. I can swap out his old filter charcoal & foams for new while I'm there to kickstart nutrient processing. I can swap out to high-white Halimeda oats once I put the boat back in the water, if at all... easy bridges to cross. I like snails and was a little worried that they may suffer in rainwater & silica, too.

Thanks again,