Using non-aquarium dry sand in tank

[fulinn]

Ok, went sand shopping today at my local Home depot.

They have "play" sand, white in color. I did the vinegar test and it bubbled away just fine ! Passed a magnet across the the sand, NO sand stuck to the magnet. I was overjoyed as its only 4.95 per 40 # bag.

However, on the bag it stated "Not for use in Aquariums".

This product does contain small amounts of silica.

So, has anyone had the opportunity to use this sand ? Have any thoughts on the warning not to use in aquariums ?

Although I do live in the Northeast, when I asked my local HD for Southdown sand, he said they don't carry it. They only have the brownish "play sand" and this white, red or blue KolorScape Sand.

Thanks for your thoughts

Bonnie

 

[noteworthy]

That sand will be fine. I'm using 160 lbs of all-purpose sand. Its a mix of silica and aragonite.

 

[Brenden]

Sounds good to me.

 

[fulinn]

Thank you to everyone for your help. I have decided I will buy 4 bags of kolorScape Sand.

Any good suggestions for how to rinse so much sand ?

I will post a picture of the bag as soon as I buy it sometime this week, this weekend at the latest.

Bonnie

 

[noteworthy]

Some people say fill up a bucket half full.. and fill with water... the small particles will wash off.. do this several times to get most particles out of the sand. Myself I just dumped my sand in the tank. It wasn't cloudy very long. Cleared up in 1 day.

 

[fulinn]

Noteworthy,

Glad to hear this. I think thats what I'm going to do as well, just dump ( gently ) all the sand in the tank, add my DI water and skim as much "stuff" off the top as I can and let
the rest settle to the bottom.

Thanks !

Bonnie

 

[cmor1701d]

Are you starting a new tank?
The sand will not settle until it is coated with bacteria. You will have sand storm until then. It will be a few days to a week before you can see anything in the tank. As the cycle continues the sand will settle. Be prepared for that.

 

[hackteck]

when i first started my cycle my sand storm lasted about a day or 2

 

[BillyZ]

Are you starting a new tank?
The sand will not settle until it is coated with bacteria. You will have sand storm until then. It will be a few days to a week before you can see anything in the tank. As the cycle continues the sand will settle. Be prepared for that.

But that really shouldn't be a concern as there shouldn't be anything you need to see during your cycle. Just be patient and let it settle down. Once it has settled take a new recently purchased from the dollar store turkey baster and use it to flush off what has settled on your live rock, etc. It will make things cloudy again for a maybe a day, but again, nothing you're really obscuring.

In terms of rinsing, I would not rinse your sand. A variety of particle size in your substrate is usually considered beneficial to the bacteria and fauna that live in your substrate.

 

[john0087]

when i first started my cycle my sand storm lasted about a day or 2

Really...I was going to use this method when I transfer to a larger tank. I was going to mix my current LS with play sand.....oh well, good to know..