Uberhoust
Fish Herder
I am always on the look out for alternative sands and gravel to use in my aquariums. The most recent experiment is with Silica Sand. In particular Target's Silica Sand 20/40 mesh, the source is somewhere in Northern Alberta. Traditionally this product was used for sand blasting but it now used with artificial grass to keep the plastic blades pointing upwards.
The sand is very uniform and quite rounded, I usually pre-wash my sand or gravel, I spent about 45 minutes pre washing these 100 lbs, two bags of the sand, for use in a 60 gallon tank I am setting up. Two bags would be ok for a 48 x 18" base, depending how deep you want the sand. The most impressive aspect of this sand was how clean it was, after a couple of rinses the water was running clean, whereas natural or play sand available here takes repeated rinses, with significant losses due to the silt being removed. The sand is essentially from the same source as pool filter sand but not as heavily processed.
So far the major issue I have with the sand is it is a bit light colored for my tastes but no where near as bad as pool sand. In regards to cost this is one of the least expensive substrates to purchase at under $40.00 cdn for 100 lbs. I expect others have used it but haven't seen much mention of it.
20x image showing shape and size the of the grains. Most are clear quartz but there are enough opaque particles to create a light tan color. The span marked is approximately 1 mm
Sand in tank without water (has a better color, excuse the mess it is my basement, 1st bag of substrate)
Water is very clear for an initial filling of the tank. The light is set for approximately 5500 to 6000 k. Under these conditions the sand is definitely lighter, but in my opinion still acceptable given the properties of the sand.
The sand is very uniform and quite rounded, I usually pre-wash my sand or gravel, I spent about 45 minutes pre washing these 100 lbs, two bags of the sand, for use in a 60 gallon tank I am setting up. Two bags would be ok for a 48 x 18" base, depending how deep you want the sand. The most impressive aspect of this sand was how clean it was, after a couple of rinses the water was running clean, whereas natural or play sand available here takes repeated rinses, with significant losses due to the silt being removed. The sand is essentially from the same source as pool filter sand but not as heavily processed.
So far the major issue I have with the sand is it is a bit light colored for my tastes but no where near as bad as pool sand. In regards to cost this is one of the least expensive substrates to purchase at under $40.00 cdn for 100 lbs. I expect others have used it but haven't seen much mention of it.
20x image showing shape and size the of the grains. Most are clear quartz but there are enough opaque particles to create a light tan color. The span marked is approximately 1 mm
Sand in tank without water (has a better color, excuse the mess it is my basement, 1st bag of substrate)
Water is very clear for an initial filling of the tank. The light is set for approximately 5500 to 6000 k. Under these conditions the sand is definitely lighter, but in my opinion still acceptable given the properties of the sand.