Sand or Gravel

[fishyb]

I don't know if its just the picture or what is their really that big of a noticeable difference between the two. As far as texture goes.

 

[aqua_holic]

Huge difference, similar to the difference between gravel and pool filter sand.

 

[fishyb]

Well, Im really wanting to get the fine stuff. I know it will cost money but I'm willing to go the distance to make it look good...What kind of filtration did you recommend again. I ask this because I plan on a huge tank shortly. I have had my current tank for about a year now. I know I want sand. Im bond and determined to go that route now. I would like to have something big enough for a fresh water sting ray eventually

 

[aqua_holic]

The moonlight sand is really nice. And expensive - $20 to $25 for a 20 lb bag.

My suggestion is to switch to a canister. Because of the way they are designed, they are impervious to sand. The moonlight sand is light enough to get kicked up into the water column by fish swimming on the bottom, like pictus. These suspended sand particles make their way to the strainer and can get deposited in the HOB motor, causing it to make all kinds of noise and possibly stop the impeller. I run an AC70 on that tank. It's really such a pain to keep the thing quiet. I have it in my extra room so I let it go making some noise. Just recently the metal piece that holds the impeller broke. Luckily I have extra motors on hand and just swapped it out. If you go with an HOB filter I would highly suggest jus buying a second motor. That way, when one gets noisy you can just swap it out for the other. Once the fouled motor dries out it's much easier to clean. It's very easy to swap out motors on aquaclear filters - for some brands it's not so easy, or even possible.

But a canister will provide you with peace and quiet.

Big tanks are awesome. How big were you thinking?

 

[Mebbid]

I got the two pictures I took that best represent the difference between silica sand and pool filter sand.

Pool filter sand

Silica Sand

Personally, I prefer pool filter sand. It's a little more coarse, easier to clean, and doesn't get stirred up as much. The silica sand in the bottom picture ended up destroying the impellers on both of my HOB filters, but that was just because the dumb cichlids decided to pick the sand up and spit it out right near the intake.

The silica sand will release silica into the water which could fuel an ongoing diatom bloom.

 

[Ricky 1]

Is that a lemon mbuna, M; it is stunning......

 

[Mebbid]

Is that a lemon mbuna, M; it is stunning......

Yeppers. He's just a little guy there, still a juvenile.

 

[Ricky 1]

Really good photo, look how he shows up against the rock.........

 

[aqua_holic]

Pool filter sand is also silica sand.

 

[HooKooDooKu]

I say rocks, When u do a water change u will lose sand, plus sand is harder to clean...

One key to using sand is to wash the sand very well to get any light particles out of it. With either new sand or "dirty" sand I'm recycling from an existing tank, I place it in a bucket and fill the bucket with water. I then starts stirring the entire contents of the bucket to the point I have all the sand spinning around in the water column. Then quit stirring for a moment, then pour off everything that is still in the water column. Do this several times and you'll be left with just heavy sand that, even if stirred up in the tank, quickly settles back down. You have to wash the sand like this several times, and if you have lots of sand, you might have to do it in batches. Best done outside with a garden hose rather than getting sand down you drains inside the house.

 

[seove]

I agree! I switched to sand and can't figure out why I didn't do it a long time ago. Leftover food stays on top, making it easier for bottom feeders to find. Food doesn't fall below the substrate to go bad. Waste stays on top and if you slope the substrate it should accumulate towards the front. Also easy for a planted tank. When I do water changes it is always clear. I also like the natural look. I used Quikrete Commercial Grade sand.

If I had Oscars I'm not sure what I'd use. Since they like to dig you wouldn't want them stirring sand that could get into your filter impellers.

Sorry but anyone with sand would disagree with you on both points there. Only way one would lose any appreciable amount of sand during a water change is if they don't know how to vacuum. And as for being harder to clean, nothing could be farther from the truth - sand keeps waste on the surface where it will often collect in certain areas, making cleaning a breeze.

 

[trennamw]

If you want bright, fine sand without silicates, and don't mind the cost, try Carib Sea. I use that and like the crisp white color a lot. Play sand and the rest look a little bland to me.

I mixed gravel with mine, for a sandy riverbed look. Red brown stone gravel (also made for aquariums) and some smooth rocks in the same color. The mistake I made was using equal parts sand and gravel, should have used half as much gravel.

I'd post a pic but my attachments are full.

But watch our for the a Nat Geo sand at PetSmart. It's not real and is very light. I used it to cap ADA aquasoil In a nano tank and it is quite hard to clean without sucking it up.


Sent from my iPhone with three hands tied behind my back.

 

[dragon14]

You bring the end of the hose or tube to about a quarter inch above the sand and make a swirling motion. That will stir up any waste which will then be sucked out. It's finesse, whereas vacuuming gravel is brutish, jamming the vac to the bottom of the tank through the gravel. Often in a sand tank there will only be a few places that you ever have to vac because the water movement collects it there.

Sand only opens up your options. No limitations.

Ahhh we need to start doing this, we lose a little sand each water change.

Thanks for the explanation!

 

[sinibotia]

I used exclusively gravel in my fish tanks for 11 years. The 3 fish tanks I set up in the past few months- two 20 gallon highs and a 29 gallon long- are the first tanks I've used sand for. To be honest, I only used sand in one tank because it would help with water quality (aragonite sand for shelldwelling cichlids) and in the other two because it was insanely cheap (Less than $5 for a bag of play sand that was enough for a 20g and 29g). I had been convinced up until then that sand was a terrible option for freshwater tanks.

I have to say, so far, you could definitely consider me a convert. Cleanliness aside, it really seems like most of my fish prefer the sand. I've had countless corydoras since I started keeping fish but I don't think I've ever had any that seemed so happy or active. They love to root through the sand for tidbits. And of course keeping multifasciatus in anything but sand is criminal because of how much they dig and move sand around. And it seems plenty clean to me.

And the best part is how cheap play sand is by comparison to aquarium gravel- two tanks worth of substrate for less than $5!

Honestly, my only issue at all with sand so far is that it drives me crazy filling the tank back up- no matter how careful I am or what decoration I aim for, I always end up making a crater in the tank. Of course, this is only an issue if you still lug buckets around like me.

 

[TigerFusion]

I just ordered Caribsea Sunset Gold Sand from Dr.s Foster & Smith. Cost about $18 for 20lbs. Supposed to be fine sand that is supposed to be well received by bottom feeders. I should get it tomorrow afternoon for a new 30 gallon breeder. Upgrading from a 10 gallon. Moving my rescued Goldfish from the 10 gallon Hospital Tank to the 30 soon.

 

[aqua_holic]

Sunset gold was my favorite sand. It went with the tank when I sold it :-( It's fine and very soft but not quite as fine as the moonlight sand...which is a good thing IMO. Minimal amount of sand is kicked up into the water column from fish, as opposed to a cloud with the moonlight.

For a 30 breeder I think you will need more than one bag.

 

[fishyb]

The moonlight sand is really nice. And expensive - $20 to $25 for a 20 lb bag.

My suggestion is to switch to a canister. Because of the way they are designed, they are impervious to sand. The moonlight sand is light enough to get kicked up into the water column by fish swimming on the bottom, like pictus. These suspended sand particles make their way to the strainer and can get deposited in the HOB motor, causing it to make all kinds of noise and possibly stop the impeller. I run an AC70 on that tank. It's really such a pain to keep the thing quiet. I have it in my extra room so I let it go making some noise. Just recently the metal piece that holds the impeller broke. Luckily I have extra motors on hand and just swapped it out. If you go with an HOB filter I would highly suggest jus buying a second motor. That way, when one gets noisy you can just swap it out for the other. Once the fouled motor dries out it's much easier to clean. It's very easy to swap out motors on aquaclear filters - for some brands it's not so easy, or even possible.

But a canister will provide you with peace and quiet.

Big tanks are awesome. How big were you thinking?

Big tank like 200 gallons a 48 *48* 24 length *width* depth custom built wooden pallet stand. Will prolly start next summer. Will post pictures when I do it.

 

[TigerFusion]

Sunset gold was my favorite sand. It went with the tank when I sold it :-( It's fine and very soft but not quite as fine as the moonlight sand...which is a good thing IMO. Minimal amount of sand is kicked up into the water column from fish, as opposed to a cloud with the moonlight.

For a 30 breeder I think you will need more than one bag.

Thanks for the info on the Sunset Gold. I did order 2 bags. Hope 40 lbs is enough. Since it is a new tank, I am getting the "Instant Aquarium" which has the bacteria to Jumpstart the Nitrogen Cycle. It works Great!! I used the "Peace River" fine Gravel in my 75 Gallon and I have a Weather Loach that digs under and sticks just his head out. No problems or damage to his barbels. I had my first fish in the tank within 24hours and Never had a problem with Amonia or Nitrite Spikes.

 

[aqua_holic]

Big tank like 200 gallons a 48 *48* 24 length *width* depth custom built wooden pallet stand. Will prolly start next summer. Will post pictures when I do it.

If you intend to get stingrays then you should get a round tank. Or perhaps there's a way to round out the corners in your proposed tank. Corners are bad for stingrays.

 

[fishyb]

Good advice I didn't know that. Appreciate it. I don't wanna hurt any critter. I espically don't want to hurt one thats gonna cost me about a 120 dollars. The big tank is still in the planning phase. I'm really open to suggestions. I would like to have some decent size fish in their. I don't want stuff thats gonna just kill eachother. You know. I even thought of a doing a big chiclid tank.