Sand Substain

[Wes910]

Im going to buy a 55gal tank today i want to setup for chiclids. I want to have a sand bottom, and i was looking at petsmart and substains and the only sand substain i saw cost 18 bucks for 15lbs!!!! i was wondering i can use maybe playground sand or somthen like that?

 

[krap101]

depends on which cichlids you want. if you want rift lake they sell aragnite for 50 lbs for 7$. if you want like rams etc just get playground sand.

aragnite is a imo nicer sand but it raises ph. thats bad for some but great for others. play sand makes the tank look desertish imo.

 

[Wes910]

im prolly going with either african cichlids

 

[Wes910]

also where do you get aragnite

 

[Wes910]

also where do you get aragnite

 

[TankGirl]

Caribsea offers a wide variety of sand substrates specific for different setups. I have used their African Cichlid Mix and am very happy with it, and Sahara Sand is also good.

Often the sand at Home Depot used in laying bricks for outdoor walkway applications (sometimes rust colored) is aragonite and all you have to do is rinse it outside in a bucket and you have yourself some cheap substrate. I am also partial to pool filter sand (again, cheap) but it does not buffer so if you already have tap water on the hard, alkaline side then that is a great alternative.

 

[Wes910]

i picked up some stuff it florida crushed coral...i came in a 40lb bag and was 36 bucks