I am changing the substrate in my 125 gallon from gravel to sand. I am trying to figure out how much sand I will need to get it a couple of inches deep. I googled sand bed calculators but they are giving me different answers. A few of them said that I would need 105LBS of sand to make a 2" sand bed, another couple said 135LBS, and one other one said 149LBS. I am confused on which one is right. Also is there a recommended depth for a sand bed or is it just personal preference? And my last question is will changing to sand add to the weight of my setup? I don't want to make the setup much heavier than it already is. I currently have about an inch and a half of gravel in my tank.
How much sand do I need????
- Thread starter D Realist
- Start date
If the sand weighs more than the gravel yes it will add more weight. 
and if you are adding more depth to the base layer in the tank most of the time the weight will go up. I have 300 pounds in my tank that is 10x4' and it is about an 1.5 inches deep. So 100 pounds sounds like a good start to me.
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and if you are adding more depth to the base layer in the tank most of the time the weight will go up. I have 300 pounds in my tank that is 10x4' and it is about an 1.5 inches deep. So 100 pounds sounds like a good start to me. Sent from my DROIDX using MonsterAquariaNetwork App
The depth of a sand bed is all personal preference unless you are trying to get a DSB going, if I were you then I would start off with 100#s of sand to see how it looks and add more if needed. It is always easier to put sand into an established tank than to remove it.
I was told one pound per gallon, but that's obviously a generalization
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Also depends on the type of sand. What are you going for, african cichlids or amazon setup. Personally I have 150-200lb of black tahitian moon sand and cichlid sand (60black/40white). This is in a 125, and a 2in sand bed
I have added only 80lbs of sand and I have a decent sand bed of an inch and a half. I like the way it looks how it is, but was wondering would it be a benefit to add more sand?