Question about Crushed Coral in a Freshwater Setup, possibly "Pavestone Play Sand"?

[PaiLum92]

Hey guys, so I have a few questions concerning Crushed Coral and Play Sand..

1, Is it ok to use Crushed Coral in a fresh water setup? I know nothing of it, other than hearing that it really helps out with keeping the Ph levels balanced, but then again I may be confused with something else. Also, will it hurt any of the freshwater fish, like, digestively (picking some up with any sunken food, I know most fish spit out substrate if they take in any, just being cautious) or chemically?

2, If I cannot use Crushed Coral in a freshwater setup, can I use a thing called “Pavestone Natural Play Sand”? I got it a while back for a B.O.B., but I did not need it. I know PFS works well, as I have used it before, but what about this stuff? It says it is natural sand, not fake or anything, but on the back of the bag it says “California Proposition 65 Warning; This product contains a chemical known to the State of California to cause cancer.” I’m pretty sure anything bad enough to cause cancer in humans is not very safe for fish either…
Anyone know if this is safe and ok to use, no chemicals and not deadly, or should I just dish out a couple more $’s for some PFS?

(Also, if I use sand, how thick/deep should it be? Before I only had it at around 2 inches, but I have seen some tanks with the sand nearly 1/4th the way up the wall, not sure if it’s their personal preference, or how it should be done...)

Thanks for any help and info!

(Some Pcitures of the sand);

 

[wantokeeptrout]

crushed coral is fine as long as you don't need a lower ph, i have some in my 75 hap tank 6 months running and have a stable ph of 7.8 as a result. but it may damage bottom fish and glass as many shards can be sharp.

depth depends on personal preference and possibly your stock

 

[PaiLum92]

Hmm, yea, I’m thinking of getting a few bottom dwellers..

So what is the possibility of the sand I have hurting my fish/contaminating my water? Should I be fine after washing/rinsing it and letting it cycle a little? Or should I just dish out the $ for PFS or LFS Sand?

 

[wantokeeptrout]

it's more against really sensative bottom fish like loaches and elephant nose that root around and lack tough skin

 

[krichardson]

In freshwater tanks, crushed coral is mosty used in African cichlid tanks,it helps keeps the PH somehat alkaline as mentioned earlier.I'm not famiiar with the types of sand that was mentioned above.

 

[F1 VET]

Id say the sand has an additive that help binds it when used, maybe lead or alluminium oxide??! Cant really guess based on the warning label, get pool filter sand, it is 100% safe and many mfkers use it!

GL



#1 S. Vettel

 

[Huero.stevo]

I've used pavestone play sand for years and have never had any problems. I put the whole bag in a 10 gal bucket and rinse it well, with a hose into the bucket mixing and stiring out any debris..(let it flow over and pour over). Then I pour it in cup at a time as close to the bottom as I can to avoid to much sediment floating around.

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[MonsterMinis]

i get fine grain gravel from quarry.. my lfs sells it in bulk 50lbs for like 20$ ... a quick rinse and its great for my planted tanks and bottom dwellers. red flint stone. i like the natural look too it as well. i would beware a deep sand bed unless you have burrowing species, or alot of mts to stir it up. imo a "light dusting" of sand is good for a majority of tank setups.

oh and crushed coral buffers your kh raising your gh ... if you need tomdo this to help stanilize your ph inwould use it in bags in your filtration if you have bottom feeders that would get cut up otherwise.

 

[PaiLum92]

Would it be possible to just lay some in my filters? I have 2 Emperor 400 HOB power filters, I could maybe place a little in the bottom and between the two media inserts?

Or, what if I do a layer of crushed coral, then put sand on top of that? Or will that just counter the Crushed Corals effects altogether?

Just trying to think of some good ways to balance out my Ph levels, seems that is what gave me the most trouble right before I had to shut everything down last time. Got everything right, finally figured out how to keep fish alive, heal all their health problems, and then the Ph just kind of sucked for a while, was too low, never figured out what was causing it, and no Ph Up stuff worked... Figure if I can somehow add Crushed Coral without my fish getting hurt (primary fish will be Bichirs), it may help a little..

 

[wantokeeptrout]

it takes a large amount of crushed coral to buffer ph. the recommendation on the package I have states roughtly 1 pound of coral for every 2-3 gallons for a higher ph though it depends on what ph you want, but using an amount that is small enough to be put in any filter aside from a large canister will not make any noticable change in water chemistry whatsoever unless you really skimp on media. most people who want crushed coral butnot in the main tank put in in their sump