Question regarding Sandbed

[dredstarr]

Hello,
So living in MN I have given up all hope in finding Southdown or Yardright so now I am looking for an alternative that won't cost me a kidney. Has anyone heard of Aragamax Sand? The descriptions I've found online state the following:
Aragamax Sand
This super-fine sand (.2 to 1.22 mm grain size), is ideal for shallow static beds and bottom covering of up to 1" in depth. Also known as "oolitic" sand, this sugar-sized sand naturally aids in the reduction of nitrates. Its fine grain size can pass easily through the gills of gobies and other sand sifting organisms. The smooth, round grains are gentle to soft-bellied sharks and rays. Pure and safe; it is white in color, metal, ash and silica free.
I'm going to be doing a FOWLR tank and was thinking of 150lbs of this coupled with 50lbs of live sand. Does that sound good or is there another type of sand I sould be looking for to use as the bulk of my sandbed?
Thanks,
Dred

 

[arkey.d]

What I did was use 40lbs of PlaySand from Ace Hardware then 30lbs of LiveSand on top for my 55gal.
The sand you describe sounds great, if it's in your price range.

 

[dredstarr]

Originally posted by arkey.d
What I did was use 40lbs of PlaySand from Ace Hardware then 30lbs of LiveSand on top for my 55gal.
The sand you describe sounds great, if it's in your price range.
Thanks for the reply arkey.d. I'd love to use playsand to save the $$$ but the only type we have in MN is the dark brown, silica based Qucikcrete stuff. My wife and I would both like the white tropical sand so I think I'll end up going the more expensive route. Ah well, no one ever said this would be a cheap hobby...none ever are!
Hey arkey, I know they say sand beds up to an inch deep but I should be able to go deeper than that right? I didn't know if that was some sort of disclaimer on the 1 inch thing or not.
Thanks,
Dred

 

[arkey.d]

For a deep sand bed some say up to 4". My sand bed is 2 and a half inches. Some reef tanks go with a bare bottom too. Here's info on different types of sand beds.
1.5"- 3" Medium Grain Substrate
The 1.5"- 3" deep, moderate particle size (1-2mm) coral or aragonite sand substrate is probably the most common and has been around for some time. Finer sand beds over about 1 1/2" start to have the ability to act as nitrate reduction areas. My tanks mainly rely on this type and there are many successful tanks constructed around this type of substrate. This setup also has the advantage that it does not consume excessive amounts of the tank depth like the following two options can. This is probably the easiest, safest and cheapest route to take. Of course reef keepers hardly ever take that route since there is always a better way of doing things right around the corner (or so we hope).
Deep Sand Bed (DSB)
DSB's are the newest thing to hit the substrate scene. These consist of one more layers of fairly fine sand that is piled deeply in the bottom of the tank. In some ways, it is similar to a plenum system, but without the plenum and the sand depth is usually deeper. The only known downside to the DSB system is that it occupies a lot of the tank depth and can be somewhat unsightly when viewed from the front. The benefits are reputed to be many. The major one is that it’s depth encourages a wider range of biological processes to occur in the tank than you get with thinner sand beds. This mostly relates to the substrates ability to reduce nitrates to harmless compounds. There are no known long-term problems with DSB substrates yet, unlike plenums, but the technique is still fairly new. To minimize the cosmetic impact, some reef keepers are implementing DSB's in external tanks or sumps. Whether you should use a DSB is mostly dependent on what kind of reef keeper you are. If you want a fairly easy, nice cosmetic setup, I would recommend staying with option ‘b’ above. On the other hand, if you’re a tinkerer and want to be leading edge and you have the tank depth to accommodate it, then DSB is worth looking into. The article 'Muddy Waters' by Dr. Shimek in the Further Reading section below is excellent reading on this topic.
Live Sand
There is one last spin to the substrate question and that is the topic of 'Live Sand'. Live sand is sand that comes from the ocean presumably with all the varied sand dwelling organisms still in it. The idea is to use some amount of live sand to 'seed' the remaining substrate with sand dwelling organisms. In concept, live sand makes perfect sense to create a thriving sand bed with a myriad of organisms in it in the reef tank very quickly. Many current hobbyists swear by the value of live sand. I am somewhat doubtful as to exactly how much benefit there is to be gained by its addition for two basic reasons. First, any 'dead' substrate seems to quickly be populated by organisms from the live rock. Second, much of the live sand I have seen appears to be pretty sterile looking sand which is stored in conditions that would preclude much of the larger life forms from surviving. If you decide to go this route, make an effort to get as fresh of sand as possible to get the most value for your money.

 

[dredstarr]

Once again thanks for the info. Looks like I've got some decisions to make on which route I'm going to go. I thought of going with the really fine agra sand but it looks like If I go over 1 1/2 inches that could potentially cause some nitrate problems?

 

[bang guy]

Aragamax is repackaged Southdown Sand so it's fine.

 

[dredstarr]

Originally posted by Bang Guy
Aragamax is repackaged Southdown Sand so it's fine.
Thanks Bang Guy. Now if I could only get it at southdown prices I'd be set.

 

[salty cheese]

Have you tried a local reef club?

 

[dredstarr]

Still trying to find one in my area. Closest one I've heard of is a couple hundred miles away. I live in the middle of nowhere.