Thinking of switching to sand!

[Mrs.h2012]

I've been thinking about switching from gravel to sand for a while. I've had two of my cories die in two days, one died yesterday and I woke up to another dead one this morning. Someone mentioned switching to sand. I have a 55g tank, no live plants (I would like to try them eventually but just not yet). I looked online for sand and found some but for as much as I think I need, on the website I found the sand on had a calculator that I used, I put in that I wanted 2 inches of sand and the calculator said I would need 72lbs of sand (is this correct?), but to order the sand from the website as much as I would need was more than I would care to pay; the bags were 3lbs bags at $3.00/bag and $0.50/lbs shipping, the price was way more than I wanted to pay at 9 bags of this. Is there a cheaper way to do sand? What would your recommendations be on how much sand I would need?

 

[Matteyecus]

Have a look at pool filter sand or playground sand they will be way cheaper. I have playground sand in both my tanks and love it.

 

[djfox]

silver sand

can i use silver sand for my 12 g tank if so can i just go to wickes get some and give it a good wash and put it in my tank ?

 

[Mrs.h2012]

Have a look at pool filter sand or playground sand they will be way cheaper. I have playground sand in both my tanks and love it.

Would Walmart even have sand this time of year? Or should I just go to a hardware store? I've read you have to rinse the sand, what's the best way to do this and how should it be done so it's done properly?

 

[djfox]

the best way to rince the sand is to first in a 5 gallon tub put 5kg of sand and put some warm water in up to about 3 gallon give it a good move around then rince the sand out do the same about 3 or 4 times till the water stays clear them i would put boiling water in just above the sand leave for a min or two then its done.

 

[Matteyecus]

I got mine from bunnings (Australian hardware store) once I had the sand I put it in an old pillowcase and ran water through that till it was clear

 

[Mrs.h2012]

I got mine from bunnings (Australian hardware store) once I had the sand I put it in an old pillowcase and ran water through that till it was clear

Ill check my local hardware stores. Thanks for the info everyone!

 

[tamtam]

I've been thinking about switching from gravel to sand for a while. I've had two of my cories die in two days, one died yesterday and I woke up to another dead one this morning. Someone mentioned switching to sand. I have a 55g tank, no live plants (I would like to try them eventually but just not yet). I looked online for sand and found some but for as much as I think I need, on the website I found the sand on had a calculator that I used, I put in that I wanted 2 inches of sand and the calculator said I would need 72lbs of sand (is this correct?), but to order the sand from the website as much as I would need was more than I would care to pay; the bags were 3lbs bags at $3.00/bag and $0.50/lbs shipping, the price was way more than I wanted to pay at 9 bags of this. Is there a cheaper way to do sand? What would your recommendations be on how much sand I would need?

I switched over to silica sand. Basically it's PDFs or sand blasting sand. I got mine at an auto store but it shouldn't be hard to find at most places. Ts light coloured and cheap! 10 bucks for 25 kg. I've done my 30 gal and barely put a dent in it. If you want plants though I wouldn't go a full 2 inch, a lil less would prob be better.

 

[tamtam]

Would Walmart even have sand this time of year? Or should I just go to a hardware store? I've read you have to rinse the sand, what's the best way to do this and how should it be done so it's done properly?

I took sme big mixing bowls a buckets and rinsed it in small amounts. I found this to be much faster than large amounts. I used the pressure from my hose to stir it up at then empty the water as much you can and then refill. Do that a few times till it starts to rn clear or the sn is settling well in the bucket. The better you rinse the less clouding you generally gt in your tank when it is disturbed

 

[Aquastrategist]

I got 50 pounds of sand for $10 at my home depot. When adding sand, I mixed mine in water and washed out floating junk and put it in the tank. Also, not advising you too do this, but I kept all 30 fish in my tank while switching from gravel to sand, not one died. Good luck!

 

[Mrs.h2012]

I got 50 pounds of sand for $10 at my home depot. When adding sand, I mixed mine in water and washed out floating junk and put it in the tank. Also, not advising you too do this, but I kept all 30 fish in my tank while switching from gravel to sand, not one died. Good luck!

I have a 30g I could put them all in while I do the switch, i also have another 30 I could split them
Between if I had too, I have 4 Rams, so that's covered! Hopefully I can get some this week. I'm excited to do this!

 

[Aqualady40]

I have a 55 that I started with gravel then switched to pfs from home depot (less than $10 for 50 lb. bag). I took all fish out and put them in 5g buckets with bubblers to buy me time. I like the thought of having the tank clear of fish so I can just do it without dodging the fish nor will they be breathing in the sand and debri particles that will be floating till things settle. I actually done this twice...first time was gravel to sand then I wanted to have live plants so this last time was about 1 month ago I emptied tank and removed all sand EXCEPT around the edges, added potting soil, then capped with the pfs I had taken out.....
Oh cleaning the pfs was a breeze...I placed some in buckets, used pressure hose out side but you can use sprayer on sink full force, then repeated as needed...my bag was a pretty clean bag..yay for me....but I still rinsed it a few times...
I didn't just dump my sand in either, I gently placed it in where I wanted it and slowly smooth in place which made less floating debris....when I filled my tank I added the water slowly but also had placed the python syphon on top of my dw so the water ran down the dw decreasing the chances of disturbing the sand....
BTW...that 50lb bag was way more than enough, I was able to sand 2in in the 55, 2 inches in my 40b, gave enough for a 10g to a friend, and I still have 1/4 or lil more of the bag left....
Good luck with your switch

 

[Mrs.h2012]

I have a 55 that I started with gravel then switched to pfs from home depot (less than $10 for 50 lb. bag). I took all fish out and put them in 5g buckets with bubblers to buy me time. I like the thought of having the tank clear of fish so I can just do it without dodging the fish nor will they be breathing in the sand and debri particles that will be floating till things settle. I actually done this twice...first time was gravel to sand then I wanted to have live plants so this last time was about 1 month ago I emptied tank and removed all sand EXCEPT around the edges, added potting soil, then capped with the pfs I had taken out.....
Oh cleaning the pfs was a breeze...I placed some in buckets, used pressure hose out side but you can use sprayer on sink full force, then repeated as needed...my bag was a pretty clean bag..yay for me....but I still rinsed it a few times...
I didn't just dump my sand in either, I gently placed it in where I wanted it and slowly smooth in place which made less floating debris....when I filled my tank I added the water slowly but also had placed the python syphon on top of my dw so the water ran down the dw decreasing the chances of disturbing the sand....
BTW...that 50lb bag was way more than enough, I was able to sand 2in in the 55, 2 inches in my 40b, gave enough for a 10g to a friend, and I still have 1/4 or lil more of the bag left....
Good luck with your switch

Thank you so much for all this info. Did you not have a problem with the potting soil leeching through and making your water brown?

 

[Gatewaylabs]

Can I ask why so many people switch to sand? Keeping different fish, or cleaning issues, or???

Hope that's note a silly question!

 

[tamtam]

Can I ask why so many people switch to sand? Keeping different fish, or cleaning issues, or???

Hope that's note a silly question!

I did I for the look and because its easier to clean but there are people that prefer it for certain fish types as well.

 

[Fresh2o]

Can I ask why so many people switch to sand? Keeping different fish, or cleaning issues, or???

Hope that's note a silly question!

Not a silly question. Sometimes its done for maintenance: waste and debris tend to stay on top of the sand where they can be removed during partial water changes or the filter. For fish health and security: Sand might be more friendlier to the barbels of bottom dwellers and is easier to burrow into than gravel. Or simply for aesthetics.

 

[nwsharksfan]

I recently switched from gravel to Caribsea Tahitian Moon substrate. Little more expensive that PFS, but I am happy with my choice. It is heavy enough that it settles quickly if kicker up and won't clog filters as long as you don't create a typhoon in your tank. Also falls out of the gravel vac if you get too close to the bed and suck some up. I wouldn't recommend the blasting sand as it is abrasive (to serve it's primary purpose) which won't make your cories happy. If you do go with Caribsea - make sure you get the dry sand. They sell 20 lb bag of dry or 20 lb bags of "live" sand. No sense paying for 15 lbs of sand and 5 lbs of water. Don't know about PFS - maybe that's the better choice but I have no experience with it. In my 92 gal I left the fish in the tank when I changed out the gravel for the sand. Just made sure to lower the sand to the bottom before dumping it and all made it through ok.

 

[Aqualady40]

Thank you so much for all this info. Did you not have a problem with the potting soil leeching through and making your water brown?

Yes I did. I changed 50-60% everyday for about 1 week, then, I got purgen and carbon..whaaalaaaah...no more tannins...water is crystal clear and has been for about 2 weeks now....and I still do my weekly water changes.....

 

[Aqualady40]

Not a silly question. Sometimes its done for maintenance: waste and debris tend to stay on top of the sand where they can be removed during partial water changes or the filter. For fish health and security: Sand might be more friendlier to the barbels of bottom dwellers and is easier to burrow into than gravel. Or simply for aesthetics.

+1 agree

 

[TOMatt]

I switched from gravel to silica sand a couple of weeks ago, and am glad I did.
I paid a fortune and bought it from my LFS, with all the Xmas shopping and parties I didn't have time to shop around. $50 for 55lbs... ouch!

I washed the sand the evening before the switch, using two 5gallon buckets. It might have taken an hour to wash it all properly.

I vacuumed 10 gallons of current tank water into 2.5gal buckets, and put the plants and fish into them. No bubblers or heaters required, it was only for a couple of hours.
I vacuumed the rest of the current tank water into other buckets, then swapped the aquariums and poured in the sand. It would have been no different if i'd just scooped out the gravel and replaced it with sand.
Then filled it up with the old tank water, put in the plants, put in the fish, then added the new water that I'd treated beforehand to fill it up.

It was maybe a 2-hour experience for the fish, and doubt it traumatized them much. The sand is nicer to look at, but the dirt and poop are more visible. And I'm finding that I vacuum sand up each time I clean it. I might have to add 1lb or so every few months to keep it at a good level, no big deal.

I hope your switch is as good as mine.