playsand.
- Thread starter iAndrew
- Start date
Haha just looking up this same topic...
So far I have the following info...
Play sand is great, but requires a lot of rinsing before use.
Silica sand is good and very bright, but I'm worried about filter problems from loose silica killing pumps and it's silica, silica is sharp, not to sure how this will impact fish life, I am stocking with goldfish/koi and 3 Plecos(most intimidate stocking) so I am sure the sand will be ingested.
Quickcrete fine sand was as cheap as playsand and it's supposed to be ready to put in the tank...
I am using black sand from Petsmart,the 20lb bag was $17 and it barely coved the bottom of a 75G (48x18x22), a 50lb bag of playsand will cover about 2" deep for 1/2 the price.
Doing an advanced search for 'home depot sand' and go for threads and not post, as posts are the ENTIRE diatribe, sometimes 20+ pages deep!
So far I have the following info...
Play sand is great, but requires a lot of rinsing before use.
Silica sand is good and very bright, but I'm worried about filter problems from loose silica killing pumps and it's silica, silica is sharp, not to sure how this will impact fish life, I am stocking with goldfish/koi and 3 Plecos(most intimidate stocking) so I am sure the sand will be ingested.
Quickcrete fine sand was as cheap as playsand and it's supposed to be ready to put in the tank...
I am using black sand from Petsmart,the 20lb bag was $17 and it barely coved the bottom of a 75G (48x18x22), a 50lb bag of playsand will cover about 2" deep for 1/2 the price.
Doing an advanced search for 'home depot sand' and go for threads and not post, as posts are the ENTIRE diatribe, sometimes 20+ pages deep!
I used it in with my turtle so she wouldn't eat gravel. It works fine but its super dirty so really have to clean it good you you will have brown water for a month.
get pool filter sand if you can bud..its heavier and doesnt get sucked into your filters as easy...settles in the tank way faster, is less cloudy and murky when stirred up, and is heavy enough not to get vacuumed up when cleaning. also is a cooler white color then playsand IMO..worth the effort Ive tried playsand its a holy mess and ruined multiple impellers. Have not lost one with PFS
I've done both, and pool filter sand is MUCH better. I can use my gravel cleaner with pool filter sand, it is heavy enough to not get sucked up. With play sand it sucked up way too much sand to be worth it, so it was a pain to keep clean. Also the play sand stays suspended in the water longer when disturbed, which can be annoying. Play sand does work after thorough rinsing but I think you will be much happier with pool filter sand. Try and find pool filter sand, it will be worth it.
POOL FILTER SAND >>>>>>>>> PLAY SAND (as the name states only use it for playing and you will be doing alot of playing if you wanna get it aquarium ready).......
After all the hits on how dirty it was, I went with $7.25 a bag silica sand (geen writing on bag) and I just siphoned off a little tiny bit of dust floating on the surface, the rest sank like most described. It is pale yellow and looks fantastic, I won't be using any mechanical filter at the moment, just corner box filter and a sponge filter, this is mainly for Pleco's and goldfish to start with...This is a 75gallon tank and a 100lb bag filled about 1.5" worth(48x18).
whats the best way to actually fill the tank up with sand in it. I actually just picked up 4 bags of pool filter sand today for my 125. First rinse it and stuff, put it in the tank still wet, and jsut fill it up? How long does it stay cloudy for?
Just got a bag of playsand today. Ive rinsed it about 50 times and its still mud. Not worth the hassle imo. I need to find some pool filter sand now....