Coral Sand

[oldwhitewood]

Hey guys,

I'm planning to revampmy rio 125 using coral sand as the foreground substrate. So about a third of the substrate would simply be white coral sand.

Do you think this is going to cause problems with ph, kh and gh? My water is typically very soft so I figured I could kinda buffer the ph etc with a bit of coral sand. What do you guys think?

Neil

 

[George Farmer]

I'd advise against coral sand mate. Soft, CO2-rich water will cause the coral sand to dissolve quickly due to the low pH of the water column. The consequent dissolution will boost pH and hardness but you have no control. A possible water chemistry nightmare.

If you want to buffer your water add baking soda. You then have control.

"To raise the KH without raising the GH, add sodium bicarbonate (NaHCO3), commonly known as baking soda. 1/2 teaspoon per 100 Liters raises the KH by about 1 dH."

 

[oldwhitewood]

Gah bugger! *slaps forehead*

Back to the drawing board I guess.