What Not To Have Wth Sand

[heavenly_d3vi1]

I'm gunna be setting up a new tank soon and prefer the look of sand rather than gravel which i've always used before. Just wondering before I do, if there are any fish that I CAN'T have with sand?

 

[Miles_hot]

I too am interested in this so if there's anyone out there with ideas this makes two people listening to you

 

[karin]

I can't think of a fish that "cannot" be on sand, but some folks with large 100+ tanks and large cichlids (e.g., oscars) do gravel because the fish like to redecorate and move things around. The sand is too easy for them to move all to one side of the tank. That is all I can think of.

 

[Miles_hot]

100 + litres or gallons?

 

[TwoTankAmin]

The single biggest reason for not having a sandy bottom is that it shows the fish poop and other tank wastes really well. If this bothers you, either be prepared to siphon your sand a lot or rethink the plan. It only took me a couple months with a temp summer tank using a lovely black sand to realize it was not for me.

 

[Caprichoso]

I've never heard of a fish that doesn't like it. One thing to consider though is if you have fish that sift the sand around a lot(like cichlids) and your filter intake tube is close to the substrate, you are going to end up with sand in your filter system. I had this issue with my FX5 and it destroyed the motor. Just make sure the intake isn't too close to the bottom.

 

[RobGoldsmith]

My apple snail didnt like it much

 

[Randi]

I just put sand in a new tank yesterday to accommodate a dojo loach. Here is what I learned: if you get play sand you will have to wash it for over an hour before it is ready. - plants don't like to root in sand - sand will get stirred up when you clean your tank (some people recommended swimming pool filter sand, which is heavier, to avoid this) - sand can create anaerobic areas where packets of gas build up, this will stink - sand can damage your filter so you will need some sort of foam over your intake - almost every bottom feeder prefers sand.
Hope this helps.

 

[Piti]

Washing sand is annoying i agree but I totally disagree with plants not liking sand! ALL of my rooting plants (as in I have floating ones too...) Have made an extensive root system undernieth my sand. A plant and a bit of water will crack a gravel sidewalk, if it can't get past some sand, then something is dearly upset with the world. I also find it easier to plant in sand as well, even the floaty annoying plants (i figure because more surface area in contact with plant vs gravel) Anaerobic pockets can be avoided by not having deep sand (or just having plants) (and fish to move the sand)

When picking up fish... Think of thier natural habbitat. What comes to mind in the sub is plants, mud, sand, and not gravel. I welcome anyone to find gravel based freashwater lakes and rivers, and then tell me the types of aquarium fish that come from them.

And I'm not sure about snails, but I was always under the impression that they prefered sand (sleeping on a nail bed with 10000 nails, vs 1 nail)

Now that being said, you have to just be careful that you dont pick up coral sand and expect to keep a low ph. Dont pick up black iron slag, and expect a soft sand, dont expect the range of colours that painted gravel comes in (although they make neon colours for reptiles but i dont know how that works in aquariums) And of course dont expect the lfs sand to be cheap. (I got pool filter sand (Silica) playsand works too for less then $10cnd ($6usd due to Canadian stuff being way overpriced) Cleaning is a task, and change is hard for some.

 

[RobGoldsmith]

I found out planting was very hard, every time i pushed them in the sand it just moved and the plant fell out, maybe because i only had it 2"s but any more causes a lot of problems with gasses, i just couldnt seem to be able to hold the plants in the sand well. Also i found it hard to put the sand where i wanted, it was always moving and trying to go flat to the bottom. I also used some medication and it all ended up in the sand, when i moved the sand a week or two later there was a horrid smell in the roots of the plants then half the fish died

I did like the look of sand more though and there always seemed to be less fish crap than with gravel!

 

[lilfishie]

i have never had any problems with sand and 'gases' all my taks have sand are planted and have fish to help shift the sand about (either Cory/ Pleco or Loach) i have nevr had a problem planting or keeping plants with sand, also having the Cory etc they also move the poo about when there swimming/digging which is then taken care of by the filter. i rarely vac my sand (have to under the wood of course) but other than that mine stays fairly clean

 

[karin]

Same here, no problems with gases and 3 tanks with sand. There is some evidence that the "gas build up" and its danger to fish is a myth. Then again I have plecos and loaches and corys that do enough stirring.

To get plants to stay in the sand initially can be tricky. I just weigh down the roots with a stone or just super glue them to a stone or use a lead weight that the "plant" venders can sell you.

 

[Gilli]

I thought about it but have decided against changing over to sand. The main reason being I have 2 fully grown BN Plecs and they produce so much poop that I could see myself having to hoover every day or it would look like the local sewage works!!

 

[lilfishie]

Gilli its not that bad, i have a fully grown L52 (same size as BNs) and don't see much poo but her cave is directly under the filter intake, carful planning and it can be done

 

[Gilli]

Sounds like a plan - but my tank is very deep and the filter only comes halfway down - so I think i'll stick to gravel!