I have sand in all of my tanks except for the 5
gal and have never had any problems with cloudiness after vacs. In fact, it seems alot easier to maintain the sand.
pros and cons of sand are?
Pro- fish waste doesn't shift through the sand like it does gravel. You don't get build up in the sand like you do gravel. It looks natural. It is easy to landscape. Cichlids love it.
Cons- You have to mix the sand around in the tank to prevent gas pockets. This can also be done with the use of
MTS snails. They burrow in the sand and do the mixing for you.
Nope.
IMO,
UGF are outdated and only cause problems. A
HOB or canister would be a much better option.
what colour of gravel (for landscaping) would go with plain sand or can u landscape with sand?
You can use any color of rock to landscape. I use a pinkish orangish colored rock and built little huts. The fish then dig out under the rocks and landscape it themselves. Then again, I have cichlids that love to do that.
I don't think I could go back to gravel after sanding the tanks. The 55 will be sand and any future tanks will also be sand. You can get pool filter sand pretty cheap if you go to a pool supply store or play sand from
HD. I got 50 lbs of pool filter sand for $15, that's a heck of a lot cheaper than gravel or sand from the
lfs.