the fine particles got into their gills and litterally shredded them up... i lost 3 fire eels, a royal pleco and a ornate bichir... the eels went the same night... the pleco held out the longest... my 2 florida gar managed to survive the whole ordeal.... it was a nightmare.
Forget Play Sand, Use Pool Filter Sand
- Thread starter plecostic
- Start date
the fine particles got into their gills and litterally shredded them up... i lost 3 fire eels, a royal pleco and a ornate bichir... the eels went the same night... the pleco held out the longest... my 2 florida gar managed to survive the whole ordeal.... it was a nightmare.
The price of PFS pushed me toward play sand. I know it's not a huge price jump, but every little bit counts! It certainly took longer to clean, but after taking my time and cleaning the play sand, I'm quite happy with it. I don't know about everyone's technique in washing sand, but I like to add just a very little bit at a time to a bucket and rinse repeatedly until the water is clear, constantly stirring the sand with my hand or the water stream, then transfer to a bucket for clean sand only. I just find that cleaning the sand in small bunches is more effective and will reduce the frustrations of a cloudy tank down the road.
Ive always had luck with cement mixing sand with smaller species and it was only cloudy for 1 day for me, it gave it a very natural look because of the large variety of grain sizes. But when I used it with larger fish sand was everywhere, ill definitely try pool filter sand for when I can get a big tank with big fish again.
Sent from my SPH-D600 using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
Sent from my SPH-D600 using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
The first bag of playsand I bought was a finer grain but not too thin. The second bag I got was thick grain and I love it. I actually mixed all my sand and it works well. At first yeah the sand made the water cloudy after water changes but it stopped. That was over a year ago.
I've heard great things about pfs and plan on trying it out eventually.
I've heard great things about pfs and plan on trying it out eventually.
The main problem with play sand, is grain size, very small. It is easily stirred up, into filter intakes and can work its way into equipment, where it can pit the impellers and ruin pumps. This can be costly. Pool sand or "water purification plant sand", is chemically inert, and heavier, so it is not easily stirred up.
I use water purification plant sand, and have for 15 years without a problem, it's worth the extra few bucks.
I get it from a company that sells abrasives, and filtration sand to water, and waste water plants.
I use water purification plant sand, and have for 15 years without a problem, it's worth the extra few bucks.
I get it from a company that sells abrasives, and filtration sand to water, and waste water plants.
