Sand Ph?

[Plecc]

Hi all,

i have a few cat's and plecos and would rly like to go back to a sand substrate rather than gravel.
for about a year i was using standard play sand which i changed to gravel for the ease of cleaning, the play sand was so fine it was very difficult not to suck a load out each time i cleaned.
I have since been told filter sand has much larger grains and so can be vacuumed just like gravel!
Anyone else tried this? is filter sand OK for my fish?
Oh.. and the guy at my LFS tells me that using sand in a freshwater tank will send my pH of the chart! previously i only notice a very slight change in pH while using sand 0.5pH change max, i guess some can be alot worse than others?
is there any large grain aquarium sand suitable for freshwater?

 

[StandbySetting]

If the filter sand is silica sand it is inert and will not affect the water chemistry, if the filter sand is aragonite based it will affect the water chemistry.

 

[KkAaNnEe]

Do you mean pool filter sand? It is fine i believe

Play/pool filtrr sand will not buffer your ph, only aragonite sands and crushed coral will do this

To prevent sucking sand, just siphon above the sand about 2cm using just the hose - not the gravel vacuum

 

[Plecc]

Thx,

both of you, thats just what i needed to know.

is the filter sand a bit larger? the play sand was just too fine.
will my flash pleco be happy with sand?