buying sand

[reef_keeper]

Best place to buy sand? The good stuff.

 

[James404]

I bought mine from foster & smith

http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.com/fish-supplies/aquarium-substrate/ps/c/3578/9805

 

[cloyd A.]

What kind of sand do you want,wet sand in a bag,live sand from sea floor,good quality play sand? Are you setting up a deep sand bed or only a 1 or 2 inch bed?

 

[reef_keeper]

Live sand. I would say up to 4 inches deep in some areas and as little as 1 inch in some aeeas I like the wavy look over the flat look. im setting up a reef whats best? i heard the bagged sand was crap how else woukd it come?

 

[dread240]

Kind of interested in this myself. Most people I've talked to have recommended the fine white sand they sell at petco (carib-sea brand) because they have it the cheapest and it's the finest grain. Really just tagging along to see what others say, as I'm about 4-5 days from putting sand in my new 75g I'm setting up

 

[reef_keeper]

I have a 75 that hasn't been set up in a while. When I did have it set up I used the fine sand in a bag and I couldnt get circulation in my tank there would only be a sand storm I wad thinking about crushed coral but I just love the sand look in a reef.

 

[James404]

I would stay away from live sand, it really isnt worth it. Any sand will become live eventually. I would go with the Seaflor special grade reef sand instead of the sugar fine sand. It is a little bit coarser and won't blow around as easy.

http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=7326

 

[reef_keeper]

That sounds cool where do I find it?

 

[The Velvet Sea]

I would stay away from live sand, it really isnt worth it. Any sand will become live eventually. I would go with the Seaflor special grade reef sand instead of the sugar fine sand. It is a little bit coarser and won't blow around as easy.

http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=7326

This is the same sand that I just got for my new 75gallon, and I got it from the same vendor too. Flat rate shipping from Dr.F&S on heavy items like salt and sand is hard to beat.

 

[dread240]

How much did you order for your 75? Is 1 40lb bag enough?

 

[widmer]

I love the Seachem meridian sand I bought from petco - nice sugar-sized oolite with a little bit of misc larger bits. It was like $25 per 40 lb bag.

Although I will admit it felt like a little bit of a gamble because it appeared to have a strange yellowish drabby tint until I got it home and confirmed it was just the way it appeared through the strange plastic bag they chose to market it in - good job making your sand look appealing on the shelf Seachem :lol:

 

[James404]

You can use this calculator to determine how many lbs of sand you need, depending on how many inches you want your sandbed

http://www.garf.org/calculators/SandBedCalculator.asp

 

[csharps42]

Live sand

Live sand

I just bought mine in the bag, the live stuff, it was called fiji pink, I am very happy with it. I think it was called arag-alive made by caribsea

 

[reef_keeper]

I think I'm going to go with the seaflor special from Dr foster smith I think I'm gonna get three 40lbs bags and only use about 2 and a half bags to give me between 2 and 4 inches. Is that considered a deep bed?

 

[The Velvet Sea]

How much did you order for your 75? Is 1 40lb bag enough?

I used 75% of a 40 lb bag and it gave me about an inch in my 75.

 

[The Velvet Sea]

I think I'm going to go with the seaflor special from Dr foster smith I think I'm gonna get three 40lbs bags and only use about 2 and a half bags to give me between 2 and 4 inches. Is that considered a deep bed?

I wouldn't consider it excessively deep compared to plenum systems that used to be more common. My guess would be that 4 inches is probably the minimum for deep bed standards nowadays. I'm a shallow bed guy though.

 

[bkvreef]

Part of the sand bed depth also can be dictated be the fish you have. Certain wrasses need sand to bury themselves in.

 

[aleonn]

I originally got Caribsea Special grade aragonite reef sand (dry). Then I exchanged it for Caribsea Fiji Pink aragonite (dry) because I want to keep gobies. IMO live sand isn't necessarily live. I got all dry sand, and will seed with a few cups of live sand from my established system.

 

[reef_keeper]

I hope it is a little more white than the picture shown its a little brown on Dr foster smith web site. The dry stuff do you have to rinse it before putting it in. Would you put the water or sand in first?

 

[jhoff]

I hope it is a little more white than the picture shown its a little brown on Dr foster smith web site. The dry stuff do you have to rinse it before putting it in. Would you put the water or sand in first?

No worrys i use it it's white it just look's brown in the pic..