Is sand ok for fresh water?

[Elle2]

Hi,

I am very confused. Today I tried to buy sand for my tank and the two different places I went to, both aquarium shops, told me that I cannot use sand in my fresh water aquarium. When I was about to buy the sand that I had chosen I was told that it would raise the ph of my water and that there was nothing I could do to fix it once this occurs.

I asked if there is a sand that I could use for fresh water and they said no (well one place said I could use 'fake' sand but neither carried it).

Can anyone confirm this for me? I was surprised because neither bag said anything on it about being strictly for saltwater, and one said that certain elements make raise to ph but to monitor it periodically with a test kit.

Any advice?

thanks,

elle

 

[nitrous]

i use it and many other ppl here have used it with success, just go to our nearest pool store or hardware store and ask for pool filter sand, make sure its not ditamous earth though. it is usually cheap, around here just 5 dollars for a 50 lb bag and im going to use that in my 55 gallon tank, the sand comes in very handy when you need to substrate big tanks

 

[Purrbox]

Unfortunately most LFS don't carry sand, except sand that is meant for Marine tanks. These usually buffer the water which raises the PH. In marine tanks and certain freshwater tanks this is a good thing, but for most freshwater tanks it isn't. The Pool Filter Sand that nitrous suggested is an inexpensive option that will work well and won't affect your water chemistry. You could also check out Tahitian Moon Sand as some LFS will carry it.

 

[Fishyfanatic]

The lfs in our are all carry Estes sand which is made for freshwater tanks. But it is too expensive compared to Pool Filter sand. $5 for 50 lb.

 

[PsiPro]

All Generalizations are false

All LFS's lie.

 

[PsiPro]

Oh ya, I use PFS all the time, woks great.

 

[Elle2]

Thanks everyone! I hadn't heard any of this and i thought I had done my research.

elle

 

[JodiMartin2003]

I personally think that black moon sand looks like potting soil when it is in a tank. I prefer the PFS. Be glad that the LFS dont stock it, because thats where you would probably buy it and it would cost twice as much as it does at the hardware store.

 

[chabooky386]

Yeah i have a 72 gallon fish tank and i had a saltwater tank 1st with sand and when i switched to freshwater i still used the same sand just rinsed it out