which type of sand??

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fishingaddict

Fire Eel
MFK Member
Jul 25, 2006
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houston, texas
i have a setup in my tank which has gravel and i decide i was going to replace that with sand. ive been reading around the forum and people seem to use Silica sand because they say its clean. with all this in mind i went to home depot and asked them for that sand and they said all the have is this.....

"pavement sand"
sand.jpg


is this okay for the fish? is it clean or safe?
 
home depots here in canada sell "target" brand play sand. right on the package "play" sand. 8$ gets you 55lbs. says it's been pre-cleaned and sterilized and such. i believe they also make a "target" brand pool filter sand that is similar but costs more and can be found at pool supply stores. a dream to rinse and use. tank ready quicker than any other gravel or sand i've ever purchased.

not to certain about the stuff you grabbed-looks heavy duty, but it is noted as play box sand so.....rinse well??
 
Play sand has an antimicrobial agent in it (or so I was told), and it's ususally very dirty, needing alot of time and effort to clean. Although people I've talked with have used it and it worked well for them.

I'd recommend Silica sand, not just any though, the kind from a pool shop.
This stuff is prewashed and has nothing in it that would cloud the water, it's 100% inert, and it should be nice and round, without any jagged edges.
I keep silica sand in a 75 with loaches and plecs, and a banjo cat, it's done nothing to harm barbs or the slime coat of any of them. It was $8.60 USD after taxes for a 50lb bag.

I tried the silica sand from a hardware store, it had alot of dust, and wasn't worth the effort to clean IMO.

Pavers sand might raise the PH and KH, I'd stick it in a cup of water with a healthy scoop of that stuff and an air stone, test the PH and KH after a week or two and see if it's changed.
 
If your going to spend the money on actual aquarium sand, I went with the black fiji sand from big al's and have been very happy with it. Just rinse and place. Looks awsome and cleans great! Stay away from really fine white sand tho, not a pretty sight when it gets dirty, never comes clean. And beware that if the sand is too fine, when stirred up it will go into your filter and ruins them. My first experince was not a good one. I am actually suprised I went with the black stuff when I did but was very happy with it when I did.

http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00025YRRA/102-6665679-6113754
This is the sand I like.
 
Black fiji sand looks great, nice recommendation sudz. It costs an arm and leg though, or I'd of gotten that myself.
 
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