sand air problem

[liberator123]

i got a new 5.5 gallon that i will be putting my betta in. i decided to mix sand and gravel (to make it easier for plants). problem is, when i added the sand, a lot of it becomes little balls either floating or in the bottom collecting. its air filled sand. How do i get rid of it?

 

[Fishdude3233]

It just takes time or you could hit it with a net

 

[liberator123]

Yeah, i waited 2 days while raking with a fork and picking up with net. Its not really working and the sand just looks awful. So i removed it and im probably going to just buy a small smooth gravel instead. Unless anyone have recommendations with what sand to get that doesn't instantaneously collect air and turn into floating sand air.

 

[Mebbid]

Just try being more violent towards the little sand balls. I swiped up the floating ones with a net and they popped letting me dump them back in the tank as just plain sand.

 

[jlk]

Pool filter sand is a heavy, larger grain sand that will not do this and is very inexpensive. It just needs to be well rinsed before using. If you still plan on 'mixing' sand with gravel, just keep in mind they will not 'mix'. In no time, you will wind up with all the gravel migrating to the surface and the sand beneath. It makes cleaning quite difficult, too. Plants do perfectly fine in just pfs as long as you use root tabs for heavy root feeders.