Sand+ Me Fish = Good?

[raeburter]

Hi i have a certain smooth white sand but once i soak it in water and remove it it became like this:

http/img215.imageshack.us/img215/4886/dsc00077bn5.jpg

Is it suppose to be like that?Can this type of sand go with my endler/cory tank and my mbuna tank?

Should i change my filter to a sponge fliter cause it will suck up the sand?

how can i suck up the dirt and the poop when i use the siphon it will suck up the sand too.

 

[geo7x]

mmmm, think it looks ok, cant really tell, when i washed my sand it kinda went 'lumpy' when damp and looked a bit like mash potato (lol). You should be ok with your current filter as long as the intake isnt actually submersed a bit, just make sure you wash it well and leave the sand to settle a bit before turning on the filter. However you dont want sand being flicked around too much or stirred up while the filter is on as sand grains could damage the filter, this is a problem some people have had when plecos get startled (you should be fine with cories though). You will probably find that a sponge filter will not be powerful enough for your tanks too. To siphon just use a regular gravel vac, and hover it about an inch or so away from the surface of the sand, this way it creates a little vortex which will suck up waste but not the sand, it take a bit of practice, but works fine.

ps: do you know what kind of sand it is?

 

[mr.dark-saint]

Looks like the "Sugar" sand from CaribSea (or another company throwing out similar stuff). If it is then Yes it's supposed to be like that . Since, it's Aragonite based stuff it'll kick up the pH. Cories and Endlers (Guppy looking thing, right?) might not do so-well in high pH but the mbunas will have a field day.

What kind of filter do you have? This is hard to say what might work and what might not since your fish will mouth the sand and dump it where they see fit. If you have too much cuurent it'll kick up the sand and it'll get everywhere . You may be able to Mod the filters by shorting the intake or placing a foam sleeve over it. But the Sugar Sand is so fine it'll get in there.

How big is the tank? If the tank is large enough you might be able to "space" the intake and out take on your filter (but this really depends on the filter you have).

You'll need a bucket to suck up the poop and sand at the same time (there is no way around this one) but you can limit the sand being taken up. Just hover over the sand since poop will not go in to the sand. If you have a good filter you may not have to do this portion (just water changes). But with the sand that "did" get sucked up you'll have to "Wash The Rice". Hose it and let the sand settle and tip the bucket to drain and repeate.

If you have a large enough tank you can aim the power head to make the poop settle at a cirtain spot in the tank. Think the whirl pool effect. Poop will swirl in the middle or get pushed behind a slow spot in the tank. Then all you have to do is Python that one spot and you're done .

 

[raeburter]

my filter is those kind of box filter that u put at the corner and my tank is onli around 13 gallon