sand from the river - Help???

[Jman5254]

i have a curious question and ive never ran a saltwater aquarium before, so here it goes... down by the river there is some really cool sand its all kinds of colors, if i were to take some home and boil it would that sterilize it enough so that i could use it as the bottom for my saltwater aquarium?

 

[54seaweed]

i have a curious question and ive never ran a saltwater aquarium before, so here it goes... down by the river there is some really cool sand its all kinds of colors, if i were to take some home and boil it would that sterilize it enough so that i could use it as the bottom for my saltwater aquarium?

sand out of a river or stream most likely have minerals like copper and other medals ,
It's not worth risking , you would have better luck with pool sand