now sand

[mathewkofalk]

What would be a good choice for sand bed i used the carib sea in my nano just want to keep asking so i know what to do from the start. And with the sand i want cheap but good looking too andd i dont mind the real fine grain stuff the cloud will go away eventually. Plus the tank will be cycling .

 

[Craigar]

now sand

Ill be following this to see what everyone else says cause I need to get sand for my 270 I have a mix of medium and fine granular sand in my tanks now

 

[jda123]

You can probably forget cheap.

I mix the sugar sand with the Carib Sea Argonite. Sometimes 1:1, sometimes like 3:1 - It depends on what i am doing. I used 200lbs in my 240 (8x2x2) - 2 bags of aragonite, 3 bags of Southdown sugar.

Now that I am using a wavemaker, I might go to more sugar since it doesn't want to blow around anymore.

I would avoid silica at nearly all costs.

 

[FishTV]

now sand

I would avoid silica at nearly all costs.

+ 1

 

[Smiley]

Re: now sand

The only cheap way is to find dry sand and seed it. And when I say cheap, figure at least a buck a gallon. Stay away from any play sand unless you can find the Florida aragonite play sand. Home depot used to sell it but not sure If they carry it anymore.

Sent from my C771

 

[mathewkofalk]

I'm thinking I'll do mostly this http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=11164166&f=PAD/psNotAvailInUS/No and top it with a bag of this http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=11147296&f=PAD/psNotAvailInUS/No . this should cycle the tank nicely.

 

[asn-naso]

I just bought (and used) 4 bags of the aragalive special grade. I was feeling lazy, and didn't want to wash, and wash, and wash the dry stuff.

 

[jda123]

If you put the dry stuff in first, and then slowly add your water - like RO-line slow, then it will not cloud up initially. After a month, or so, then bacteria and stuff gets on it and it will stay put. If you want super-flow from day 1, then it will blow all over the place.

I don't know about around here, but my store in KC would always discount substrate if you bought enough to do a tank with. Ask around.

 

[asn-naso]

If you put the dry stuff in first, and then slowly add your water - like RO-line slow, then it will not cloud up initially. After a month, or so, then bacteria and stuff gets on it and it will stay put. If you want super-flow from day 1, then it will blow all over the place.

I don't know about around here, but my store in KC would always discount substrate if you bought enough to do a tank with. Ask around.

But the dry stuff also has a bunch of "junk" in it too.

 

[High Plains Reefer]

I just set up a 210 used about 60 lb of the aragalive natures ocean then i mixed it with about 80lbs dry/recycled reef sand that I rinced and to get some bacterial diversety I used a cup of sand from my 120 a cup of sand from the old columbine reef and some microbelift special blend bacteria it only took 3 days till diatoms bloomed and at 5 they are dying off with no noticeable ammoinia spike

 

[bmb527]

I would avoid silica at nearly all costs.

So what is your tank made of? My bet is glass, which is silica.

 

[jda123]

I hadn't occurred to me to mention it, but you are right. Plates of glass won't make good substrate either. I doubt that it will be able to buffer, bond phosphate and off the same level of deep denitrification as aragonite will.