Homedepot Sand?

[clevername]

Well i have been reading thread after thread about buying sand from HD/Lowes/wally-world.... and i need to get to the bottom of this.

The sand i bought (not in tank) is Silica sand made by quickkrete.

So far i heard the downside of silica sand is that it does not "buffer" well. Of course when i say "buffer" i have read threads that say regular Agrogite sand buffers at 7.2ph, which mean everything in my tank would be dead by then.

Ok so here is the golden question, what is the real difference between silica sand and agrogite sand? Im looking for facts and experiences. I rather not be responding to posts like "your cheap" or "just spend the $160"

Anyway, i hope this thread is useful to other because God knows this hobby is expensive as is, 150LBs @ Homdepot for $12.35 is alot better then $150 at the LFS.

 

[scrmbld33]

i havent seen anyone use that sand before, as for home depot sand i used southdown, 2.99 for 50lbs, heres a thread on it

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showt...thing+you+ever+wanted+to+know+about+Southdown

 

[scrmbld33]

oh and [welcome]

 

[clevername]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9244159#post9244159 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by scrmbld33
i havent seen anyone use that sand before, as for home depot sand i used southdown, 2.99 for 50lbs, heres a thread on it

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showt...thing+you+ever+wanted+to+know+about+Southdown

Thanks; i have read about the infamously southdown (which is no long being made)

Which is why im looking for alternatives. Though i would help the others out also.

 

[Snarkys]

I have used quickrete sand in a sump based DSB without issue. I think it was about 400 pounds of it spread out in two 33 longs.

Before i did it i searched high and low for anyone that had any negative results from using silica based sand and i could not find anyone that had negative results. Many of the experts even recommend it now.

I also believe the buffering issue is next to worthless . Calcium carbonate will "start to" dissolve at 7.7 . If your PH is below 7.7 you got other issues than the wrong type of sand.

Id personally save the money on the sand and spend it on something like a method to dose kalkwasser that will maintain alkalinity , calcium, raise your PH and automate your top off water.


I would rinse it really well . Take a salt bucket and wrap a garden hose around the inside of the bucket. Pour the sand in over the top and turn the hose on. stir it up every few minutes. I did each bucket for about 15 minutes each and it seemed to do an excellent job at removing all the smaller particles.

 

[pleaselaunchme]

I used regular silica sand in my tank when I set it up back in August. Despite many dire warnings about diatom outbreaks and the like, my diatoms lasted about a week. So far so good. The only thing I don't particularly like about it is the color sometimes, other than that I am happy. And, nothing in the tank seems to mind it any, tons of bugs can be seen in and around the sand.

Ben

 

[enemec1]

hey I am looking for the same answers also

 

[clevername]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9244651#post9244651 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by enemec1
hey I am looking for the same answers also

Looks like everyone anserwed/contested the myth. Thanks soooo much. Your opinions literally saved me 100+ dollars!

~$3.00 something a bag sure saves on the wallet. Its amazing how much people will spend on equipment when you can get the exact result for a fraction of the cost I.E. Mjmod-DIY Rocks-Meshmod...ect

PS: reefchilli, just bought a couple mods from your site. Thanks mate!

 

[Snarkys]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9244770#post9244770 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by clevername2000
Looks like everyone anserwed/contested the myth. Thanks soooo much. Your opinions literally saved me 100+ dollars!

I really looked hard to find someone that said they had problems with it other than cosmetic and after reading a billion threads on it i came up with none.

Calcium based sand is certainly better and I'd think about using it in a small tank but id never use it in a tank where i needed large quantities. I have better things to spend my money on : )

 

[clevername]

EDIT

 

[brackishdude]

next time you go by check out the pool care section. The filter sand is a larger sand, graded for size consistancy, and rounded not sharp. I use it in my brackish tank, and aestheticaly I love it.

 

[slandis3]

if you dont like to color just buy a bag of caarib sea floor or something like that as a top layer to hide the uguly sand.

 

[sublime250]

I was talking to one of the speakers at our "next wave"(mini macna) in dallas - he said the down fall to silica is that it may scratch the glass

 

[clevername]

As of 1hour after sand

 

[clevername]

the down fall to silica is that it may scratch the glass

Yeah i heard that also, but im not planning to rub it all over my tank to clean the algee. heheheh.

Thanks for the heads up tho, you do have to be careful, especially if you have an acrylic

 

[Keelay]

Here's a link that goes into the issue (silica vs aragonite) as far as you would likely want to go. Lots of great pros and cons for this very stuff (Quickcrete!)

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/jan2003/feature.htm

 

[clevername]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=9246216#post9246216 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Keelay
Here's a link that goes into the issue (silica vs aragonite) as far as you would likely want to go. Lots of great pros and cons for this very stuff (Quickcrete!)

http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/jan2003/feature.htm

Thanks, this helped out alot. Basically yes the sand will disolve silica in the water, helping growth of Diatoms. But correct me if im wrong, the silica eventually goes away and this is not a problem???

Did i read this wrong; silica has to be consumed by fish/corals and cannot be filtered out?

 

[clevername]

[No message]

 

[goetzc]

FWIW: Silica sand is also referred to as "media sand" or "sand-blasting sand".

I purchased a 100lb bag a few years ago for a cichlid tank at a local landscape company(Hedbergs in MN) for under $10

Chris

 

[hllywd]

Wal Mart had Kolorscape Play Snad last summer for $1.76/bag. Looks a lot like some of the Caribsea varieties. Various grain size, disolves in vinegar, very white, cheap....

Tim