Gravel v Sand what are pros and cons
- Thread starter beerad555
- Start date
No vacing, filters run more efficiently, looks better. More natural. Here's mine.
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http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?504763-Cheap-plants-less-nitrate!-POTHOS
*Go S. Vettel #1 rb8--2 MORE RACES LEFT! SEE YOU IN TEXAS BOYS! LET'S MAKE IT 3 BACK TO BACK WDC!* :beer:
_________________________________________________________________________
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?504763-Cheap-plants-less-nitrate!-POTHOS
*Go S. Vettel #1 rb8--2 MORE RACES LEFT! SEE YOU IN TEXAS BOYS! LET'S MAKE IT 3 BACK TO BACK WDC!* :beer:
+10No vacing, filters run more efficiently, looks better. More natural. Here's mine.
_________________________________________________________________________
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?504763-Cheap-plants-less-nitrate!-POTHOS
*Go S. Vettel #1 rb8--2 MORE RACES LEFT! SEE YOU IN TEXAS BOYS! LET'S MAKE IT 3 BACK TO BACK WDC!* :beer:
sand is awesome!
here is one of my tanks with sand
Play sand from home depot is a pain in the butt to clean initially and can get stirred up and get into your filters. But all the fish poop stay on top unlike gravel. Pool filter sand is great though. It's heavier than play sand so it's less likely to damage your filters.
There's a sticky on this subject
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/f...-Cons-Problems-and-Solutions-Cause-and-Effect
I personally mix my substrate. It's PFS, sand, and pea gravel and its a whole lot cheaper then the ones marketed toward aquariums. There's a thread where you can buy very nice and cheap substrate from home depot but its not available where I'm at
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/f...-Sustrate-Money-Can-Buy!!&highlight=Quickrete
There's a sticky on this subject
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/f...-Cons-Problems-and-Solutions-Cause-and-Effect
I personally mix my substrate. It's PFS, sand, and pea gravel and its a whole lot cheaper then the ones marketed toward aquariums. There's a thread where you can buy very nice and cheap substrate from home depot but its not available where I'm at
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/f...-Sustrate-Money-Can-Buy!!&highlight=Quickrete
can you use saltwater aquarium sand for a freshwater tank? I know it sounds stupid but never tried it.
+1Play sand from home depot is a pain in the butt to clean initially and can get stirred up and get into your filters. But all the fish poop stay on top unlike gravel. Pool filter sand is great though. It's heavier than play sand so it's less likely to damage your filters.
There's a sticky on this subject
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/f...-Cons-Problems-and-Solutions-Cause-and-Effect
I personally mix my substrate. It's PFS, sand, and pea gravel and its a whole lot cheaper then the ones marketed toward aquariums. There's a thread where you can buy very nice and cheap substrate from home depot but its not available where I'm at
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/f...-Sustrate-Money-Can-Buy!!&highlight=Quickrete
do not get play sand
get white pool filter sand ... if you want white sand
get black diamond blasting sand ... if you want black sand
i did a mixture of both sands in my tank (^my pictures above^) i think the mixture looks best in my opinion
The african cichlids keepers use crushed coral sand to help buffer. I'm not sure on this but I think you can use aragonite sand too. I think you want to stay away from live sand.
eghh that sucks I tore down my nano sw and now i got a bunch of sand i paid $20 for, any use for it?
Sand can go anaerbic on you.. Thus it needs to be stirred up to avoid getting anaerobic bubbles under it.
You still need to vacuum it (unless I am missing something) because the fish will still poop and that needs to be removed. When vacing it, you will suck up some of the sand (not a huge deal).
I did sand for a few years.. On a large tank, I didn't feel like it was worth the trouble.. Stirring it up every week is more difficult than occasionally doing a gravel vac in my opinion, especially if you have a lot of rock work.
I prefer gravel.. I get Red Flint gravel from a local rock place.. they sell it by the ton.. so it's unbelievably inexpensive, even on a large tank. Many public aquariums use Red Flint.
Anyhow, I do large water changes (I have a drain on my tank, so it's fast and no syphoning).. About every 2-3 months, I pull all the rocks and do a monster gravel cleaning.. That system works well for me.
I guess if I was syphoning weekly, sand would be less of a disadvantage.
You still need to vacuum it (unless I am missing something) because the fish will still poop and that needs to be removed. When vacing it, you will suck up some of the sand (not a huge deal).
I did sand for a few years.. On a large tank, I didn't feel like it was worth the trouble.. Stirring it up every week is more difficult than occasionally doing a gravel vac in my opinion, especially if you have a lot of rock work.
I prefer gravel.. I get Red Flint gravel from a local rock place.. they sell it by the ton.. so it's unbelievably inexpensive, even on a large tank. Many public aquariums use Red Flint.
Anyhow, I do large water changes (I have a drain on my tank, so it's fast and no syphoning).. About every 2-3 months, I pull all the rocks and do a monster gravel cleaning.. That system works well for me.
I guess if I was syphoning weekly, sand would be less of a disadvantage.