Sand A Good Idea?

[Zikofski]

Hello all, i have torpedo barbs and angels, we have gravel in the tank was looking at going for sand instead

is there any particular sand people would recommend?

is there anything i need to put under it and what is a gd depth for the sand?

we are not planning on getting any more fish other than the species we have and not planning on getting plants, but i may want to in the future like 6 to 8 months time get loaches and or plants, not sure on the plants as i have been told torpedo barbs nip/eat plants XD

thnx for any advice/help given

 

[fishguy2727]

Nothing underneath it. I only use and recommend Estes Marine Sand (also known as Ultra Reef and Stoney River). It is very uniform, the perfect size, and has color options. I usually use the black and white mixed together, but solid black is good too. I would do about one pound per gallon.

 

[mike455555]

you want about 3 inchs of sand for plants and if your going for normal coloured sand argos play sand is the cheapest at £3 for 15kg.

you need to wash it first though

(fill half a bucket with sand.
run water
stir sand .
let it settle for 1 min drain water
repeat until the water runs clear...)

i got mine to settle in 8 secs after stirring

 

[Zikofski]

Nothing underneath it. I only use and recommend Estes Marine Sand (also known as Ultra Reef and Stoney River). It is very uniform, the perfect size, and has color options. I usually use the black and white mixed together, but solid black is good too. I would do about one pound per gallon.

aah okay kl thnx for the quick post i shall have a look at Estes marine sand, you say one pound per gallon is that how much sand or the cost? sos I'm used to Kg and Litres

you want about 3 inchs of sand for plants and if your going for normal coloured sand argos play sand is the cheapest at £3 for 15kg.

you need to wash it first though

(fill half a bucket with sand.
run water
stir sand .
let it settle for 1 min drain water
repeat until the water runs clear...)

i got mine to settle in 8 secs after stirring

yes initially i think my Gf wants normal coloured sand but i quite like the wired wonderful colours and yes that is cheap for sand as long as its clean it won't effect the fish as its play sand i presume

 

[Zikofski]

sorry along the same subject with regards to wood? is there anything i need to do to prep it before putting it into the tank, like soaking it treating it,

its wood from our lfs i would like to get not just any random piece from the woods

but just to check can you shuv any random piece of wood into a tank?

 

[white9870]

you best bet is to go with the argos play sand, it is what im using in my tank, looks great and is very easy to maintain aswell, alot of pepole would recomend it.

and as for the wood you should soak it in a bucket of water for a while (say around 2 weeks or so) untill all the tannins have leached from it.

 

[Dieses Madchen]

I use the argos play sand and its a nice natural tan color. Its smooth and my cories love to play with it. They even roll in it like dogs. My cichlids love it too and have no problem rescaping for me. It is very cheap too and easy to clean.

 

[Zikofski]

cool sounds like gd stuff to me then, thnx all i shall invest in play sand XD its going to look so different from bright blue gravel XD

 

[white9870]

make sure you give it a good clean in the bucket first, when you think you have got it perfectly clear, do it a few more times again, as it beter to be extra perfect.

 

[mike455555]

also if you want some spare for top ups... (if you buy it at a different time the sand might be a different colour)

as for wood soak it for 2 weeks changing the water everyday. you can use wood from the woods (the twig in the right of my sig picture is one i got off an oak tree. just make sure the woods dead and don't use pine or soft woods)
you can also add salt to it... for the first few days to speed it up. or use hot water (or both) dont boil it it will break down the fibers and make it rot faster

 

[Zikofski]

also if you want some spare for top ups... (if you buy it at a different time the sand might be a different colour)

as for wood soak it for 2 weeks changing the water everyday. you can use wood from the woods (the twig in the right of my sig picture is one i got off an oak tree. just make sure the woods dead and don't use pine or soft woods)
you can also add salt to it... for the first few days to speed it up. or use hot water (or both) dont boil it it will break down the fibers and make it rot faster

ash nice ye thnx for that, spare sand may come in useful , and okay think i probably will stick to wood from the lfs just a thought tho, but it dose looks nice in your tank

make sure you give it a good clean in the bucket first, when you think you have got it perfectly clear, do it a few more times again, as it beter to be extra perfect.

thank you yes, i think with our current tank we didn't clean our gravel enough made water go very cloudy at one stage before we put fish in so we will clean allot more this time gone clean it over the course of a few days i think

another question sorry will the sand compact and go hard after time or dose it stay quite soft?

 

[mike455555]

dont know about compacting but i if you set up 2 buckets it will take half the time... run a hose into one as its settling fill the other
empty the first of the water. put the hose across repeat then your not waiting for it to settle and its done 2x as fast

 

[white9870]

i find my sand quiet soft, it looks kinda like sand you see on the beach after water has been on it, but can easly press things into it, and if the fish stir it up a bit, it sets back down quick too.

 

[Zikofski]

dont know about compacting but i if you set up 2 buckets it will take half the time... run a hose into one as its settling fill the other
empty the first of the water. put the hose across repeat then your not waiting for it to settle and its done 2x as fast

good idea thnx

i find my sand quiet soft, it looks kinda like sand you see on the beach after water has been on it, but can easly press things into it, and if the fish stir it up a bit, it sets back down quick too.

kl thnx again

 

[Aqua Tom]

+1 for playsand. Cheap as chips & does the job fine.


Tom