Sand types

[airforceb2]

OK, no laughing here but I had to ask. Can I get a 60lb bag of sand from a local home imprivement store and then put LS over the top of it to seed it or does it have to be marine sand whether it is alive or dead? Thanks for the help.

 

[mr_bill]

I read a thread on this today, can't remember who said it. The answer was yes, you can get argonite sand from Home Depot or whatever and combine it with live sand.

 

[airforceb2]

Awesome, thanks. I did a search on sand but it returned way too many threads to sort through them all.

 

[shiby1510]

keyword was ARGONITE ! not just any sand... i hope you didn't waste your money on toxic sands

 

[airforceb2]

Alright, so it has to be argonite sand? I haven't spent any money yet. I'll have to go check tomorrow. Thanks.

 

[evieb]

The playsands you can use are Old Castle, Yardright, or Southdown. Some Home Depot or Walmart stores carry them depending on where you live. Couldn't find any of them here in S. TX. Hope you have better luck. :yes:

 

[airforceb2]

Thanks guys. I'm going to get the brand of the sand tomorrow and see what I can do. Is there a specific chemical that these don't have that other brands have? Does anybody actually have experience of putting play sand in their tank?

 

[chainsaw5vent]

Thanks guys. I'm going to get the brand of the sand tomorrow and see what I can do. Is there a specific chemical that these don't have that other brands have? Does anybody actually have experience of putting play sand in their tank?[/QUOTE
if you can find "yard right" playsand, you have just scored big. this is the same stuff that aqua store will sell to you for outrageous prices. you may be able to find it on the east coast for about $5/40# bag (compared to $20-40 for Aquarium sand!)
i have heard that the company has new owners/name change.

so it may be a little harder to find.
but it works fine in the tank.

very dusty to begin with, but once your tank has been established and the associated things start growing in your tank, the dust calms down. :yes: i have some in my tank and it works great. the biggest thing is the cost factor.

 

[airforceb2]

Yeah, here in Missouri at any LFS...sand is $1/lb. LS is twice that. I will look at the store for any of the three listed and see if i can get a cost break. Thanks for the update.

 

[monalisa]

Whoa...I got on this bandwagon too late...paid good for my sand!! But on the upside, I'm very, very happy with it. It looks great... :yes:
Great advice though for my next tank

Lisa :happyfish

 

[airforceb2]

I do have to admit though. It was my wifes idea, not mine. I had already planned on spending about $125 for sand but if I can get away with a figure closer to $50 it would be awesome.

 

[1journeyman]

Many of us have play sand in our tanks. I've got about 650 Lbs of Southdown in my 210 gallon right now. (average 6 inch sand depth). I topped it off with 100 Lbs of various live sand from online vendors.
Do you want a deep sand bed? Do some reading up on the differences. You need to decide what you are trying to accomplish with your sand bed before you install it. Otherwise you might be disappointed.
You want aragonite sand as it will buffer your water without adding metals or silicates to your tank. (Southdown, now owned by Yardright, is gathered in the Carribean)

 

[airforceb2]

I was going for about 3" deep. I don't want too many sand critters. Mainly want have a tank for looks. I'm going to get ~100lbs of LR and a few fish.

 

[1journeyman]

You might want to go a bit shallower then. Maybe 1-2 inches. The 2-4 inch range can get you into some issues with the sand bed. It's too deep for surface cleaners, but not deep enough for denitrification. This leads to "dead" areas of sand that can mess with your water parameters

 

[shiby1510]

Airforce I see that you are going to try to save as much money as possible just like the rest of us.... if you haven't bought your lr yet.... which costs a lot more than ls .... you should look into making your own rocks!!

its great fun, its cheap, and best of all you get the shapes you actually want!! :happy: :joy:

 

[mr_bill]

you should look into making your own rocks!!
Are there any threads on this subject? Sounds like fun to me.

 

[bang guy]

Hey Airfore,
Off Topic but I wrote most of the original EWIR software for the B2
Sorry, just reminiscing
Bang

 

[shiby1510]

yes there are many threads go into the diy section they even have pics!! you can also search for agrocrete.... you'll find a lot of other ways to make it also.... such as the founders

 

[mudplayerx]

I don't think they make Old Castle anymore :/

 

[1journeyman]

Yardright stills makes it, at least that's according to their webpage.