Is It Ok To Put Sand In A Tropical Fish Tank

[claire2011]

Hiya i was wondering if its ok to put sand in a tropical fish tank, as the gravel gets dirty to much

 

[mattbleasby]

Alot of people use sand in the tanks, Just as i do. I use Playsand its cheaper than buying aquarium sand and with a good wash its perfect for your tank I prefer the look of sand, And find it easier too clean.

 

[KittyKat]

Yes, it is fine. Most people use play sand or aquarium sand. Whichever one you go for, make sure to wash it well, otherwise the dust will make the water cloudy.

 

[lilfishie]

As said, its fine for tanks, i have playsand in all 6 of mine

 

[claire2011]

Hiya i was wondering if its ok to put sand in a tropical fish tank, as the gravel gets dirty to much

Thankyou i didnt think u cud use playsand

 

[lilfishie]

Playsand is perfectly fine and a lot cheaper than aquarium sand

 

[eaglesaquarium]

I did. (See sig.)



A little note for when washing the sand - do it outside with a slight breeze at your back. Pour the sand into the bucket you will use to clean the sand and let the wind push the smallest particles away from the bucket. The washing will go faster that way, because you are removing a bunch of the stuff before adding water.


Then, put the garden hose in there and stir and stir and stir the sand as you add more water... Pour off the water and repeat. Eventually when you finish pouring off and refill with water, the sand will quickly settle and the water will be clear. Then when pouring it into the tank - do it slowly and gently. Wait for it to settle a bit before turning your filter back on. It will cloud up a little, but not much.


The other option is to add it to the tank empty and fill the tank SLOWLY (after still washing it of course). Using a large rock or something for the water to hit first early will keep it from clouding up much, and then once the water builds up, just keeping adding it slowly to keep everything in place.

 

[This Old Spouse]

I found the easiest way is to put the cleaned sand in your empty tank, then place a dinner plate in the middle of it, pour your water slowly on the dinner plate so the water doesn't disrupt the sand so much. You should have a nearly clear tank of water when you're finished.

 

[Mr Melt]

By the way; even if you give it a very thorough wash the water may still appear somewhat cloudy; if you have your filter running the murkiness should subside in a few days, so be patient if this does happen!

I just used sand as a substrate for my new Rio 180; best decision I've made. Its easier to clean, most fish prefer it and it brightens the colors of the tank itself!


PS - I should note that you should ALWAYS turn your filter off when adding sand; only turn it on once all the sand is in the tank; otherwise you might damage the innards with the sandy grit being sucked through the intake. Just a precaution of course!

 

[colleen0309]

Honestly, I love the playsand. 60lbs for $6. That's enough to do a 55 gallon plus. I bought plain aquarium gravel for my other 55 and it cost me $40. The sand looks better and my water quality is better with the sand. My plants do better in sand as long as I use root tabs. I wish I could find black playsand. Then I would be really happy.

 

[Athena]

I recently began using playsand in my upgraded aquarium - well, it's a mix of sand and gravel (with gravel in the centre section) and I love it. I used Argos playsand and I think it's brilliant as an aquarium substrate - it is the colour and texture of soft brown sugar - fabulous stuff!

Here's a link to the video clip that I posted on the forums, to show you how lovely sand can look (excuse my female convict for spitting it into a pile - she was nest building lol).


http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/360968-video-clip-of-my-short-bodied-pink-convicts/page__p__3008003__fromsearch__1#entry3008003

Regards

Athena

 

[Louiseness]

I changed from gravel to sand for my cories and although it helped their barbels, if I could, I'd go back to gravel.

I find sand a bit of a faff, what with the possibility of anaerobic pockets (and the stirring that comes with it!), cloudy water if you disturb it, etc etc. At least with gravel I could get in there and have a good rummage about with the gravel vac!

If anything I notice the 'dirt' on my sand much more and it feels like I'm constantly trying to siphon it all up without sucking up half of the sand at the same time.

 

[Athena]

I changed from gravel to sand for my cories and although it helped their barbels, if I could, I'd go back to gravel.

I find sand a bit of a faff, what with the possibility of anaerobic pockets (and the stirring that comes with it!), cloudy water if you disturb it, etc etc. At least with gravel I could get in there and have a good rummage about with the gravel vac!

If anything I notice the 'dirt' on my sand much more and it feels like I'm constantly trying to siphon it all up without sucking up half of the sand at the same time.

Oh, that's strange - I've never had to use the syphon on my sand yet - I think my filter must be doing a good job of drawing all the nasties towards it. As for stirring up the sand, depends on what type of fish you have - bottom dwellers will rummage around in the sand a lot, as will cichlids, like mine, well you can see for yourself that they do all the stirring up themselves LOL. Never had cloudy water either.

Regards, Athena

 

[This Old Spouse]

I'm still working up to changing over the gravel in my 55g for sand. But I just put a call out to my Freecycle friends to see if anyone is making the LONG trip to the Home Depot or Lowe's so they can transport it back here! The sand is inexpensive, but the freight or the cost of gas (3-4 hour round trip) isn't worth it.

 

[Louiseness]

Oh, that's strange - I've never had to use the syphon on my sand yet - I think my filter must be doing a good job of drawing all the nasties towards it. As for stirring up the sand, depends on what type of fish you have - bottom dwellers will rummage around in the sand a lot, as will cichlids, like mine, well you can see for yourself that they do all the stirring up themselves LOL. Never had cloudy water either.

Regards, Athena

I guess its a case of 'your milage may vary!

I find any poop/leftover food does get drawn towards the filter but never actually sucked up so I often have to get the old vac out to hoover up any rogue 'bits' quite often. And as I'm pretty clumsy sometimes I still manage to suck up half the sand into my bucket as well

I thought I'd be ok with the stirring thing since my cories are always digging around like little food finding machines! But I noticed a few grey patches showing at the front of the glass so I gave it a stir and there were lots of dark areas, especially where my wood/rocks had been resting. I've not had any problems resulting from it yet but now I try and give it all a good mix up when I change the water!