Sand -- Will It Lighten?

[jenny6165]

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[Torrean]

it should lighten some when the lights are turned on but the main reason your sand is so much darker than other peoples is probably the type of sand you used. Many people use pool filter or play sand (silver sand) both of which are very light. Fill the tank and see is all I can tell you

 

[jenny6165]

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[Torrean]

what sand are you using now? You should try the lights and see how it looks before switching because rinsing silver sand is a PITA.

 

[jenny6165]

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[Torrean]

ah...somehow I translated washing it to it's in the tank and I have started filling with water...

Ok about rinsing. Rinsing is really not necessary. I recommend it though. If you do not rinse then your tank will be really really cloudy for days and days after you fill it. Also it will cloud some whenever the sand gets stirred up. So I rinse my sand really really well. here's how I do it.

Put a 1-2" layer in a bucket (5 gallon tanks work well) and fill with water stirring the sand with the current from your hose. When the bucket is full dump out all the water leaving only the heavy sand in the bottom. Repeat this until the water clears in 10-20 seconds. repeat until you have enough sand to put a 1/2-2" layer on the bottom of your main tank.

EDIT:The depth of the layer of sand depends on what critters you are keeping. If you don't mind malaysian trumpet snails then 2" is fine. If you don't want MTS snails then it's best to keep it to a thin layer. Then again there are lot's of critters (such as the lamprologus occelotus *spelling*) which stir up sand like crazy and actually require a fairly deep sand bed. Maybe it'll be easier if I explain why. See there are aerobic (oxygen) and anaerobic (no oxygen) bacteria. aerobic are good and help eliminate ammonia and nitrite from your tank. anaerobic are generally considered to be bad. They produce poisonous gases that some say can harm your fish. anaerobic bacteria will colonize deep sand beds if the sand is not stirred regularly by something (your hand, a fish, or mts snails) the anaerobic bacteria will release stinky bubbles of poisonous gas,

I don't really know what to tell you about the sand. Put some in a clear glass and fill it with water and see if you like the color.

 

[jenny6165]

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[fenwoman]

well its not even in the tank yet. do u mean just try a little bit cos theres no way im gonna scoop out 50kg of sand if it doesnt look right,lol.

how much rinsing do u think this stuff needs? its just sand. theres no label on it, theyve just sent it as sand and thats it.

I bought a sack of playsand from the builders merchants as I read that normal sand was too sharp for fish with barbels.

 

[nuttsaboutfish]

Bought sand from a garden centre and when got home and looked at it it was sharp sand, no good for the fish so took it back and bought a 15kg bag of playsand from argos which only cost £2.50. Looks really well.
The rinsing takes a bit of time and is a pain but done the way torrean says helps greatly.

 

[SuperColey1]

ah ok. yeh pets at home sell silver sand, its much lighter to begin with than this stuff.
i may go and buy some of that tomorrow as the substrate is important to me. i dont really want a dark sludgy substrate...

Dont buy it at PAH. They will charge £7 for half the amount as Argos sell for £2.49.

1 bag from Argos is all you need for a 125 Ltr (15Kg) If you go too deep with sand you then get the anaerobic pocket, possibility.

I am planted so I have a nutrient rich substrate underneath the silver sand (play sand).

Don't make a store like PaH rich by paying 6 x the amount others charge.

 

[Torrean]

agreed. buy your sand from a hardware store. It's cheap as dirt...in fact it kinda is dirt. check the packaging for any warning s about using it in aquariums and you should be good to go.