Support my LFS?

Y

yoshii

Guest
I really love my LFS, it's a small store, but with the best livestock I have seen in my area, very beautiful!
I'm pretty sure I'm going to buy 20lbs of live sand for my 20gal(too much?) and I want to support my LFS by buying it from there, but it's probably been sitting there for a while :/ If I go to some other pet store(like *****/petsmart) and buy the sand from there, I'm guessing it would be "fresher"
So does live sand die after being on the shelf for a while? Should I buy it from my LFS or try to get "fresher" sand from some other large chain store?
 
noah's nemo

noah's nemo

Member
First off,good for you
.I always but from my small family owned LFS.I would buy from him in exchange for a couple cups of sand from his established system
 
Y

yoshii

Guest
I'm going to go there in a few days, I'll check the date on the bag Meowzer :)
I'll ask for a few cups of sand from their display, although I'm not really sure how he would reach in there all the way to the bottom of their 750gal display..he might have to go swimming
 
king_neptune

king_neptune

Active Member
just remember if your getting sand from the LFS's tanks, your now introducing any bad stuff it has. even if you set up a new tank and cycle it, your ICH life cycle can live up to 70days w/out fish.
Better to just use your own bagged LS, than trying to seed with someone elses junk.
*note:
70 days is extreme lab tests.
Typicly 4-6 weeks is accepted as the max ICH Lifespan
 
Y

yoshii

Guest
Originally Posted by King_Neptune
http:///forum/post/3269396
just remember if your getting sand from the LFS's tanks, your now introducing any bad stuff it has. even if you set up a new tank and cycle it, your ICH life cycle can live up to 70days w/out fish.
Better to just use your own bagged LS, than trying to seed with someone elses junk.
*note:
70 days is extreme lab tests.
Typicly 4-6 weeks is accepted as the max ICH Lifespan
Hmm, very true. Although I thought ich usually dies in 3 weeks without a host...well I guess that means I'll be doing my quarantine longer:)
I do have my own established tank, but the substrate is crushed coral, so I wasn't sure if that would be ok
 
king_neptune

king_neptune

Active Member
actually it typically dies within 7-10 days(the standard lifecycle)
I said Max. Having sand also keeps it alive longer, since the free floating ich dies faster than sand buried ich.
MAX lab results have been 70 days. but your talking ultra ultra rare cases.
for ICH treatment purpouses, most people do 4-6 weeks.
 
Y

yoshii

Guest
Originally Posted by King_Neptune
http:///forum/post/3269425
actually it typically dies within 7-10 days.
I said Max. Having sand also keeps it alive longer, since the free floating ich dies faster than sand buried ich.
MAX lab results have been 70 days. but your talking ultra ultra rare cases.
for ICH treatment purpouses, most people do 4-6 weeks.
thanks for the info :) Since my quarantine has no sand, is it ok if I quarantine 3weeks?
 
king_neptune

king_neptune

Active Member
most people do about 2 weeks. this is generaly enough time to see if ICH will develop. 3 weeks is a good QT. I got burned with ICH once, and now do 4 weeks. I dont ever want to have it happen again.
 
Y

yoshii

Guest
Originally Posted by King_Neptune
http:///forum/post/3269433
most people do about 2 weeks. this is generaly enough time to see if ICH will develop. 3 weeks is a good QT. I got burned with ICH once, and now do 4 weeks. I dont ever want to have it happen again.
I used to do 2 weeks, but now do 3 weeks, just in case. I don't have that many livestock yet(5 fish total, including the 1 in QT now) and only 5 corals (3 in QT now) but so far, I've never had any ich or any other illnesses :)
Well, I've kinda gotten off subject,do you think I should buy the LS from a main chain store or my LFS?
 
king_neptune

king_neptune

Active Member
the stuff has a long shelf life. its no different than what is sold online. just ask the expiration on the package and confirm your fine.
 
Y

yoshii

Guest
Originally Posted by King_Neptune
http:///forum/post/3269483
the stuff has a long shelf life. its no different than what is sold online. just ask the expiration on the package and confirm your fine.
Thank you! You've helped me a lot just on this thread, and I've actually learned a few new things today :)
I'm going probably on Tues to pick up some other stuff, so I'll take a look at the sand, get an advance on my allowance lol, and if it's good, I'll buy it :D
You would think the live stuff in live sand would die pretty quick since it's just in a bag with little-no water. But I think they put preservatives in it right?
Oh, also another question, (hehehe) should I put in the sand in with the rock while it's curing; I was thinking not too to make for easier cleaning, but I have base rock ill be seeding w/rock from my other tank(so it shouldnt be too messy). Would the sand help it cycle faster? I know I set up a tank with a giant bag of LS, put in fish, plants, CUC, anemone, starfish etc all in one day and no cycle at all. I want to be as safe as possible, but I also want to cycle faster so I can put my coral and fish in sooner! :p
 
spanko

spanko

Active Member
IMO save yourself some money and just get dry aragonite. Rinse it well and put it in the tank with your live rock. Bacteria will colonize on it after a while. Pods will move into it from the live rock. Worms will move into it from the live rock. You can also buy different packages of critters to help populate it.
To me the bagged "live" sand is just a bunch of dead material in the sand to help start a cycle in the tank. Not worth the extra dollars.
 
srfisher17

srfisher17

Active Member
Originally Posted by spanko
http:///forum/post/3269509
IMO save yourself some money and just get dry aragonite. Rinse it well and put it in the tank with your live rock. Bacteria will colonize on it after a while. Pods will move into it from the live rock. Worms will move into it from the live rock. You can also buy different packages of critters to help populate it.
To me the bagged "live" sand is just a bunch of dead material in the sand to help start a cycle in the tank. Not worth the extra dollars.
 
Y

yoshii

Guest
Originally Posted by spanko
http:///forum/post/3269509
IMO save yourself some money and just get dry aragonite. Rinse it well and put it in the tank with your live rock. Bacteria will colonize on it after a while. Pods will move into it from the live rock. Worms will move into it from the live rock. You can also buy different packages of critters to help populate it.
To me the bagged "live" sand is just a bunch of dead material in the sand to help start a cycle in the tank. Not worth the extra dollars.
:) thanks spanko, I think I'll do that. IDK if my LFS has just dry aragonite in a lb size I need, but I'll call up before I go to check. I'm thinking about getting 20lbs of sand, but most dry sand are in 30-40+lb bags...although more sand could never hurt

Would you suggest any particular brands?
 
Y

yoshii

Guest
Oh, also, do you think I should add a layer of crushed coral underneath the sand,(to save money since I have some) or will that mess up the denitratification process?
 
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