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I do recall seeing a thread discussing sand as a substrate but it seems to have expired or some such...

I have a 55g I am making plans for. As I would like to have corys,a nd a different look, I am considering sand and some larger smooth pebbles as a substrate. Can anyone give me an idea of what kind of sand and where to get it?

Thanks!

There has been a lot of debate about sand over the years Yes it can be done but beware of the problems that can occur and usually does. The sand being very fine it is always moving around this means it is constantly going through the impella of your filter causing it to wear out extremly quick. Also many plants will not survive in the fine substrate it actually crushes the roots. I have also read that it does not actually have a good circulation of water through it because of the fine compressed sand as the tank gets older.

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Keith

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I switched to sand for my corys, it looked good for the first few weeks, but even with keeping it turned by hand and using malaysian trumpet snails to keep it moved there was still anerobic pockets that developed. Being diggers the corys stuck their noses right in the pockets and managed to die.

It also ruined two filter impellers even with a cover over the filter (which reduces flow).

Sand IME is troublesome. I used playsand from home depot. You might look around at some pool shops as I've heard that sand is a bit larger and less likely to cause some of the problems, although you can end up with excess silicates from poolsand.

^_^

Pool sand is a very, very bad idea. I've worked at a pool store for three years and seen all sorts of ruined equipment because some moron doesn't know how a sand filter works. Anyway...

The stuff is basically rough-grit sandpaper without the, well, paper. If you look at it under a microscope, the grains are all jagged and pointy (play sand is relatively smooth). Being all pointy, it is used in pool filters (although, to be honest, it's the least effective kind of pool filter) because the nooks and crannies catch all the crap in the pool water. The problem is, if any of it gets into the impeller housing, the sand will just score away at anything it can find. Your filter would be ruined in no time. You'd probably be replacing impellers monthly. Also, being so ragged, it would probably mess up the corys themselves pretty good -- I wouldn't imagine the barbels lasting a week.

On the flip side, though, if you hate neighborhood kids and aren't above cruel and painful pranks, just switch out the sand in a sandbox to pool sand.

Joe Potato

i must disagree with all of you.
I am using pool filter sand in my Mbuna tank and it has not destroyed the impellor. Nor have anaerobic spots developed

I think that a thin layer of sand will be quite good & anerobic pockets cannot develope. On the other hand, you have to use plants, like Anubias, as the roots of other plants cannot survive in the sand.

At the moment i have my Tanganijkan tank with sand & rocks & i don't have any trouble at all. As plants i onlt have Anubias attached with the rocks & 1cm of sand.

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Hi,
When most of us think about using sand as a substrate,
we generally pour it in about 3 inches thick.

The recommended depth of substrate in a planted tank is
3-4 inches thick. This provides adequate medium for the
plants to anchor and grow in. If you use sand however,
that kind of depth rapidly compacts over time, and can
actually prevent growth as well as develop large toxic
areas of anaerobic bacteria. These are areas with no
water circulation between the individual grains, that
become packed with debris and the bacteria gives off
hydrogen sulfide, a very toxic chemical to both plants
and fish.

If you are going to use sand, keep the layer thin,
an inch or less. Set any rocks directly on the glass
bottom of the tank and then pour in and distribute the
sand.

If you are going to have plants, then use plants
that have a shallow root system such as the normal
foreground plants. Don't use plants such as Amazon Sword
plants as there is not enough substrate to support/anchor
them. Plants that attach to rock or driftwood would be
an outstanding choice as well.

Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

thanks to everyone for the great information! I have lot's to consider! I may just go with a nice rounded pebble substrate to avoid any pitfalls with the sand, heck I dunno yet! I sure do appreciate the help though!

A good size for river pebble substrate is 1-3mm this does not compact and gives a good water movement also the plants will grow very well in that size substrate.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info

Look here for my
[link=Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos]http://photobucket.com/albums/b209/keithgh/Betta%20desktop%20tank/[/link

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
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VOTE NOW VOTE NOW

I had a tank planted with sand. It didn't ruin the filters or develope any anerobic pockets. But generally it was a pain in the butt. Any stir causes your tank to cloud considerabley. And while I tend to be a maitenece queen - always testing, vacuuming, lifting driftwood to find bodies... The smallest movement can send up flurry (depending on the type of sand/grain size. This annoyed me quite a lot. I just find it much easier to get smooth gravel thats not to big. Easy to vacuum, doesn't kill your sensitive plants, and no clouding.

I've used tahitan moon sand, #40?? from home depot, and aragonite. The tahitan moon sand, being a really fine grade, develops anaerobic air spots alot faster than other sands. The #40 from home depot was okay, with only tidbits here and there.
I did not notice any spots with well maintained aragonite.

To keep down the anerobic pockets, I would just gravel vac it but keep my thumb on the end to let the sand fall back down once it reaches the nozzle. Some sand still goes in but I just pour out the water from the bucket and throw it back into the tank so no biggy.

Aragonite probably won't suit you best since it jacks up the pH unless you have a ton of driftwood in it like I did, which requires you to remove the driftwood almost every time you do cleaning.