purple lobster
Member
any new thoughts on this? how about the durascape, is it good to use? I was only able to find quickcrete at lowes but have not tried kmart or walmart.
Aragonite sand from Home Depot?
- Thread starter dstruked
- Start date
bang guy
Moderator
After this thread I bought some and tested it as a base for live sand. The grains are not smooth so it was months before it could sustain a decent critter population. That seemed to eliminate it as a good sand for deep sand beds.
Recently I tried soaking the sand in RO water for about a month prior to using it. The RO water seemed to partially dissolve the sand and that was enough to round out the edges. I tried using some and sure enough, the sand bed infauna flourished.
So, my suggestion is to soak the sand in fresh water prior to using it and it will work fine. I doubt that many people have the time nor patience to do this but that's the only way I would recommend it.
Caution - do NOT soak it in tap water. Make sure it's pure water.
I have not tested it yet but I predict that a bottle of white vinegar would cut the soaking time down considerably. If anyone wants something to do maybe you could test this theory for me.
Recently I tried soaking the sand in RO water for about a month prior to using it. The RO water seemed to partially dissolve the sand and that was enough to round out the edges. I tried using some and sure enough, the sand bed infauna flourished.
So, my suggestion is to soak the sand in fresh water prior to using it and it will work fine. I doubt that many people have the time nor patience to do this but that's the only way I would recommend it.
Caution - do NOT soak it in tap water. Make sure it's pure water.
I have not tested it yet but I predict that a bottle of white vinegar would cut the soaking time down considerably. If anyone wants something to do maybe you could test this theory for me.
purple lobster
Member
what is the problem with soaking it in tap or distilled water? Bang guy, I am guessing that since you are suggesting possilbly soaking it in white vinegar that you could just rinse it after and it'll be ok in the aquarium. Thanks.
chutneyjh
Member
I wouldn't suggest using this sand. I used the same kind from Wal-Mart and had all sorts of problems from low pH to nasty stuff growing on it. I've had no problems so far since I switched to the CaribSea aragonite. Save yourself the trouble down the road and just go with the good stuff.