Switching From Gravel To Sand

[electricsin]

I have decided to switch the gravel substrate that is currently in my 55 gallon tank to sand. I also will be switching out my fake plants for real plants at the same time.
I have looked at both pet stores in my area (petsmart and petco) and I am so confused about what sand to purchase for my freshwater tank....
I read a couple other topics here in the forum and saw that a lot of people had recommended play sand. Is that the play sand I would purchase at a home depot or lowes for my kids sandbox?

Any advice would be welcomed!

 

[Aquascaper]

Yes, playsand is what the majority of people use.

You will need to wash it thoroughly and the best way is:

1) 1/2 fill a bucket with sand and place a hose or shower feed into the bucket.

2) Run the water whilst stirring the sand with the hose to bring any small particles out to the surface and allow to overflow taking the particles out.

3) Tip the bucket periodically to remove more particles

4) Keep going until the water runs clear and any sand immediately settles back down when you stop stirring

5) Add sand to the tank by lowering it in a container/mug/glass to the bottom with the filter turned off.

Continue until you have enough sand in the tank. If done correctly there should be minimal cloudiness and you can turn the filter back on.

To remove the gravel turn off the filter and just scoop it out with a container until you have a bare floor. Do a partial water change to remove any floating debris.

HTH

 

[electricsin]

Yes, playsand is what the majority of people use.

You will need to wash it thoroughly and the best way is:

1) 1/2 fill a bucket with sand and place a hose or shower feed into the bucket.

2) Run the water whilst stirring the sand with the hose to bring any small particles out to the surface and allow to overflow taking the particles out.

3) Tip the bucket periodically to remove more particles

4) Keep going until the water runs clear and any sand immediately settles back down when you stop stirring

5) Add sand to the tank by lowering it in a container/mug/glass to the bottom with the filter turned off.

Continue until you have enough sand in the tank. If done correctly there should be minimal cloudiness and you can turn the filter back on.

To remove the gravel turn off the filter and just scoop it out with a container until you have a bare floor. Do a partial water change to remove any floating debris.

HTH

Thanks so much for the quick response. Sounds simple enough! On a mission now to find play sand!

 

[elmo666]

Argos or toy r us do it, argos seems to be the most popular.

 

[IAmATeaf]

I've just changed from a slate substrate to sand today but I used pool filter sand and opted for a grain size of 1mm-2mm. The grains do look a bit on the large size but I had read of play sand being too fine and compacting so erred on the side of caution.

It has given the tank a more airy and light look.

I think I went a bit OTT with my change out, saved around 10 gallons of tank water, took out the fish, then emptied the entire tank and gave it a clean. Pool filter sand comes pre-washed but you still end up with fine dust particles as the grains rub together in transit so washed it all before hand as described above. I then wetted the sand and added it to the tank wet. Then put back the 10 gallons of water I saved, then topped it all up.

Took me 5 hours all in but this also included washing the slate I took out.

 

[dbanner]

I used to use play sand which I purchased from Argos. Iv also used play sand from asda and tesco. All is cheap and fine to use in tanks. It does have its problems though....

1. It needs to be rinsed a lot more than the more expensive purpose made sand which isn't too much of a problem really.

2. It's very dense when added to the water so it needs to be swirled around from time to time otherwise you will end up with an unsightly black line (bacteria) running through the middle of it.

3. Doesn't look as nice as most other sands.

For the above reasons I don't use play sand in any of my tanks anymore. Instead I use black Limpopo sand. It does cost more at around £20 for 25kgs but its far far better in every way... Such as the overall look when its in the tank, it's much lighter so doesn't need to be swirled around, it doesn't need to be rinsed as much before adding to the tank and as its black you can't see the waste left by the fish

My tank is 5 foot 120 gal and I used around 35-40kgs to fill it. I don't like my sand too deep. Mine is around 1/2 an inch deep which IMO is plenty.