Live Sand?

[piranha_trader]

Hey Im hoping Im in the right place ....If not my apologies but I had a question about live sand.

What exactly constitutes it? I live in Hawaii and Im wondering if going out to an outer reef and grabbing some is the same thing.


An amateur question at best but Ive been having a hard time finding info on it so Im trying here.


Thanks in advance

 

[doresy]

Hi, here in the UK we have by-laws prohibiting the taking of natural resources from the country side. Things like taking shingle from the sea shore and plants from the wild are a no no.
Cant help with the live sand question but be carefull if you intend totake stuff from the sea

 

[Musho3210]

no, i wouldnt, may contain many nasties that you dont want in your tank, plus, especially living in hawaii, its probably illegal.

 

[afishdude]

as i read this im hoping that you want to put this in a marine tank and not a FW.

 

[dthoffsett]

What exactly constitutes it? I live in Hawaii and Im wondering if going out to an outer reef and grabbing some is the same thing.

Live sand, or LS is natural reef coral sand that is collected live from the ocean, or non-living coral sand that is cultured to make it live. What makes it live is the microscopic biological bacteria that grows on it, and the many tiny crustaceans and other micro and macro-organisms that reside in it. Live sand can serve as the main base for biological filtration in a saltwater aquarium, while the organisms help consume organic matter in the sand bed.

(Taken from here: http/saltaquarium.about.com/cs/livesandsetup/a/aa070198.htm )

I wouldn't suggest collecting your own LS due to the possibility of introducing parasites or pollution to your tank.

 

[loachman]

Yes, it would be. Live sand is put in a marine/saltwater tank only, and is used as a filtration mechanism to breakdown assorted fishwastes.

It's basically sand with live bacteria and some other small creatures in it.

As said though, in Hawaii it is probably illegal to do so w/o a permit. I'm not sure if they even give them though.