sand or rock?

[ahollland92690]

so just got my aquarium and im going to start it soon hopefully this week. im going to buy all my decor hopefully by this weekend... some fake plants and probably some sort of thingy the fish can swim through like fake drift wood or a castle of some sort, but i can't decide whether i want to do sand or small pebbles as a substrate...any body know the pros and cons to sand and/or pebbles?

 

[bmg07]

i would definately go with pool filter sand .its heavy enough were u can gravel vac it and it looks great

 

[ahollland92690]

do they sell that at pet stores?

 

[mfdrookie516]

no, but i got mine at meijer for $1.99 a bag, and they come in 50lb bags... one of the big advantages of pfs is that it is small enough to keep alot of stuff from going down in it, but is heavy enough to not get sucked up by gravel vacs... It is also cheaper than most gravel and imo looks alot more natural

 

[ahollland92690]

so its at pool stores, did a lil research and i see that its safe...and personally i think it looks better but or there any bad things about pfs? like cleaning wise, or if its ingested by the fish?

 

[mfdrookie516]

no, its easier to clean than gravel, and fish wont eat it lol...

 

[ahollland92690]

haha jus checking cuz my betta likes to pick up his rocks and move them with his mouth i just didnt want my new fishys in my very first aquarium to get impacted with sand lol...that would be a fail

 

[mfdrookie516]

my mbuna will pick it up and sift through it trying to find leftover food (like any makes it to the bottom lol) but they just spit it back out. they wont swallow anything they dont want to

 

[spoonman]

+1 on the PFS. Have it in 2 of my tanks and love it.

 

[JPKeenan]

I just added some to the 29g I am starting to cycle... have the driftwood soaking in it as well... figure kill two birds with 1 stone.

 

[ahollland92690]

ok so i went to the pool store yesterday to get pool filtered sand...is it just regular pool filter sand? or sumn diff? and should i make sure some things are NOT in it?

 

[dkpate]

I just put my pfs in my tank with all of the other new stuff, then tap water. Sit for 1/2 hour, then add the dechlorinator. Then a fishless cycle! PFS is wayyyy cooler than gravel!

 

[mfdrookie516]

yeah just plain ole pool filter sand. nothing special about it.... just make sure you rinse it out several times before adding it in the tank and you'll be fine

 

[Etunes]

It is really up to your preference. Pool Filter sand is a great substrate, i have used it and it is great. But me personally like black sand so i just use black sand because i like it 10 times better. I know people that really like gravel as well. It is all up too you and what you prefer. Just remember that if you get gravel try not to get gravel with sharp edges. I prefer sand. You would have to buy pool filter sand at a pool store, i have seen it at Home Depot once.

 

[ahollland92690]

is pool filter sand only white or can you get it in black...i like the black sand too....but idw to spend like 30$ on just sand at a fish store so its either white pfs unless they have another color, which i dnt think they do.

 

[mfdrookie516]

pfs is usually a tan color... not bright white, but not dark dark brown either... mine looks just about the color of the sand in myrtle beach if youve ever been there... and if you have a meijer close by, id check them first as i only paid $1.99 for 50lbs there

 

[JPKeenan]

I'm really digging the sand after watching it settle in the 30g I am setting up. I am going to order another bag and split it between my 2 established tanks.

 

[ahollland92690]

the pool store near me charges 8.99 for pfs (lesli's pool store) so i might check other place, but hey its better than what the lps charge! lol

 

[JPKeenan]

and compare the price with a 50lb of gravel the PSF is way cheaper .

 

[ahollland92690]

the 8.99 was for 50lbs :/...so im guna c if there are other pool stores near me so i can check all there prices so i can see if i can save even more money. but im cool with 8.99