switch to sand from cc

[morgan24]

I wanna switch from cc to sand but none of my lfs provide kive sand so im going to by some play sand. whats the best way to make the sand live?

 

[morgan24]

sorry about the spelling bad typer

 

[AR15 guy]

The sand will eventually come alive with bacteria. Seeding the sand with cured live rock will help make it "live" quicker. If you don't use rock bacteria will eventually grow anyways. It will take awhile for it to become live. I have been searching for playsand myself. It is much much cheaper. I just can't find the right brand.

 

[morgan24]

what is the right brand

 

[RMPD109]

yardright or southdown are most common

 

[morgan24]

thank you im new to the site my first post. i wanna take my cc out and put sand what is the best way?

 

[AR15 guy]

I picked up some pavestone today. Not sure if I am going to use it or not. I read up online and it appears that some people are using it. But I am going to research some more before I put it in my tank.

I have been looking for southdown but cannot find it. I think my local HD may have had yard right. I can't remember. I went in looking for southdown or "tropical" play sand. Local Lowe's only carries quickcrete brand.

The pavestone looks very good. But I still don't know if it is usable or not.

 

[Abemas]

What is the advantage of playsand over the cc?

 

[AR15 guy]

Sand is easier. Large particles of food/waste can get wedged between the CC and cause high nitrates. And most inverts may not be able to clean it good. With sand you never have to touch it. Just let the cleaning crew do its job.

 

[xerobob]

I went to my local Walmart and bought sterilized play sand. It was not expensive at all, Home Depot cost almost 2 times for the same amount of sand, and it didn't say sterilized. Up here in the Northeast (USA) we don't have much argonite sand, which I guess is preferred. I bought some live sand to add to it from Petco. When I changed from cc to sand base, I did 1/2 of my tank at a time. This allowed my cc to act as a helper to get the bacteria in the new sand. I did 1/2 one month then another a month later, and if you have a ugf I would suggest removing it. Also, do not rinse the the sand, all of the little particles help with the filtering. It was a bit cloudy for a day or 2, but it cleared up just fine. Just remember, do a little a time, don't rush and I think the transition will go fine.. Mine did! I recently added some sand sifting starfish to help with keeping it from packing down, narcissa snails are also a great benefit to the sand (I have 30 of them in there).