will i have to rinse it? or is pool filter sand aquarium safe out of the bag. i think im going to pop a few small holes in the bottom of the bag, cut a hole in the top, and run the hose until the bagwater runs clear out of the holes. this way i can just carry the bag inside and add the sand to the aquarium. i wil turn off the filter for sure
NLS grow formula is SO small need advice
- Thread starter matt1129
- Start date
Feeding 0.5mm food to 3" fish might be the real problem here. You should probably be feeding 1mm. It would be easier for them to see and worth their time to eat.
Pool filter sand is nice but it isn't as fine as the sand you can buy from home depot or lowes, your smaller fish will have a hard time mouthing the substrate. I had the pool filter stuff for about a year in 30+ tanks, the fish like it but I noticed that the substrate would eventually become stiff and eventually need to be rotated when I did water changes. Its also like $15-$20 a 50lb bag compared to $3-4$ for the home depot play sand. I would pour the sand into a bucket about half full and rinse at least 10x before adding it, if you skip out your tank will be cloudy for some time. Its ok to keep your fish in the tank, use a cup and scoop it out of the bucket. Your tank will be much cleaner once the sand is settled, no more food or poop falling between the rock, everything makes it to the filter if you have good water movement.
Pool filter sand is like 5 dollars at home depot and lowes for a 50lb bag and it barely needs rinsing I have heard play sand is a pain to rinse and not worth trying to save 2-3 dollarsand is more likely to get caught in your filters never heard of pool filter sand getting stiff.
I was thinking the same thing although the op poster stated his fish were all under 3'' which could still mean they are 2.5'' which imo is still too big for grow I assumed most people feed grow to fry until they get a inch or so then 1mm.
I feed grow to my smaller tangs as well, but play sand is not nearly as fine as play sand. At least the good pfs is not. I have bought some that was super fine and yes it hardened up. Leslie's pool filter sand has never done this. I had it for years without issue.
In my fry and juvie tanks the grains were too large to ever be moved by the fish, over time the substrate will become stiff on the top. My breeders had no issues with it. It could just be the stuff I managed to get my hands on, I bought it all at once from Leslees. I only use sponge filters so I dont usually have a problem with the filters. I didnt know depot carried it but thats good to know. Its personal prefrence I guess, I really like how fine the play sand is and it works out better for my setup.
im going to exchange half my food for half my friends 3mm pellets also NLS. He has fry and i have juvenile cichlids so this will work well. Now i only have one problem. My pleco is digging MONSTROUS holes in the sand,leaving huge mountains, bare bottom, and sand in the canister. Im going to take this pleco to the lfs as i was going to originally. pics will come once hes out
i bought home depot play sand, 50 lbs for $4. i bought 100 but 50 was all that i needed. the sand took a very long time to wash, and even after vigorous cleaning my tank still clouded but not that bad. its clearing up
i bought home depot play sand, 50 lbs for $4. i bought 100 but 50 was all that i needed. the sand took a very long time to wash, and even after vigorous cleaning my tank still clouded but not that bad. its clearing up
