I'm going to buy quikrete for substrate. Should I?
- Thread starter nasukan
- Start date
h2o
Member
there is been debate about using quikrete sand and tropical play sand. I also wonder if it's ok to add some of those to my existing araganite nature ocean ls. For those of you who have used the quikrete, ? how well did you wash it before you put it in, as some of those sand are sugar size like.
@knight
Member
can you use it as a substrate?
yes
can you use it for a DSB?
no
the sand is a silica sand (glass) it is theorized that with this type sand you might as well use crushed coral. The particle size is too large and the ed will harden and the sand will not disolve. it will just be there. The particle size is also not suitible for bacterial colonies.
The reason Southdown sand works is it is the right type of sand. Quickrete is not the right type of sand. If you want a sucessful tank, I would suggest making sure the sand is aragonite. Aragonite does a LOT more than buffer pH. It replenishes trace elements, calcuim, and ensures a healthy tank.
I would hate to see you save $100 now, just to loose $1000 when your tank crashes later down the road due to a bad decision. Please, if your going to be cheap, do it right. If you need help getting cheap aragonite, e-mail me and i can give you pointers. see my profile.
[ November 14, 2001: Message edited by: @knight ]
yes
can you use it for a DSB?
no
the sand is a silica sand (glass) it is theorized that with this type sand you might as well use crushed coral. The particle size is too large and the ed will harden and the sand will not disolve. it will just be there. The particle size is also not suitible for bacterial colonies.
The reason Southdown sand works is it is the right type of sand. Quickrete is not the right type of sand. If you want a sucessful tank, I would suggest making sure the sand is aragonite. Aragonite does a LOT more than buffer pH. It replenishes trace elements, calcuim, and ensures a healthy tank.
I would hate to see you save $100 now, just to loose $1000 when your tank crashes later down the road due to a bad decision. Please, if your going to be cheap, do it right. If you need help getting cheap aragonite, e-mail me and i can give you pointers. see my profile.
[ November 14, 2001: Message edited by: @knight ]
wally
Member
I got it at lowes. Its the quickcrete playsand not the sand they sell for mixing concrete. I wonder why people say its too big to use for a DSB? They have never seen it obviously. I was worried at first about it being to small. Its about the size of table salt if not smaller. I have never seen the true southdown sand so I can't compare it but I have seen the Caribsea sea floor sand, and special reef sand and this sand actually has smaller sized grains and is whiter in color. And there is zero reason why bacteria won't live on this sand as well as it does on any other sand, and it is a FAR better choice than crushed coral. I have some setup in a small 10 gallon tank right now just to see how it would work, cloud the water etc. Its working great! The water was a bit cloudy for a few days but all has settled down now. I have heard many people say the same things happens from southdown and caribsea sands so I am not too worried about it. All in all I am very happy with it. And at $2.50 for 50lbs the price can't be beat.
I am also not worried at all about it not being Aragonite. You can buy aragonite rocks quite cheaply or you can use "aragamilk" or "aragamite" if you want to have dissolved aragonite in your water. Also since its not aragonite and does not have a ton of calcium in it, it won't turn to a big solid piece of limestone like aragonite sands can do quite easily.
I am also not worried at all about it not being Aragonite. You can buy aragonite rocks quite cheaply or you can use "aragamilk" or "aragamite" if you want to have dissolved aragonite in your water. Also since its not aragonite and does not have a ton of calcium in it, it won't turn to a big solid piece of limestone like aragonite sands can do quite easily.