Sand is Sand......right?

[RockyMtnReef]

No disclaimers that I can remember but I will check tonight when I get home. I guess the moral of this story is either risk it or go pay out the ying yang for calcium based from the LFS and be safe. I guess considering how much I have spent on the tank that is is a drop in the bucket anyway.

I mainly wanted to know because the other stuff looks so good. It is the best play sand I have ever seen.

 

[RCS]

Is it in the clear bag that's shaped like a bag of concrete and has blue/red graphics on it with a couple of kids playing? I used that in my 155 for two years before we moved without issue. Rinse it well and enjoy the savings.

 

[RichConley]

Rocky, post a picture of the bag, we'll be able ot tell you if its okay.

 

[xtrstangx]

Sand is sand. Silica sand will not break down significantly enough to cause algae outbreaks. Aragonite sand won't break down significantly enough to buffer your tank for you.

 

[RockyMtnReef]

I dont have a photo but here is a link to the company that makes it. This is the specific description for the stuff I have. I did see that it is "not for sale in CA". What does that mean?

http://www.fairmountminerals.com/interior.asp?page=PlaySand&category=Products&level1=PC_PlaySand

 

[dreaminmel]

Means that CA is lucky anything is for sale there these days... I'm using the Kolorscape sand w/ no issue and the bag says two major things: Not for use in aquariums (due to an agreement that they not infringe on the stuff bagged for sale to use IN aquariums) and a warning about not breathing in the dust as it may contain small amounts of silica (which CA has dubbed cancer causing).

Bought it at home depot, put it in the tank after it passed the vinegar test, filled tank w/ 0 Tds RO water and had a total TDS of 27. That tells me there's not as much junk in this sand as there is in my tap water, FWIW.

 

[exoticaquatix]

i just found some bags of"high desert" play sand at my Home depot and for 3dollars/50 lb bag i couldnt pass picking one up.
i still have a couple months before im going to need it so i figure ill use that time to see if its safe or not.

has anyone else used this particular brand?

steve pro mentioned it in a thread but it was a little unclear as to what his take on it was.
what tests can i do on it to see if its safe(ish) or not?

-nick

 

[oligotrophic]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7943692#post7943692 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by adw
What is harmful to children and what is harmful to our tanks are two different things. Last time I checked I hadn't heard of any children having algae out breaks.

:lol: nice humor ...

perhaps we should collect a thread of such posts

good one

 

[manderx]

i've seen plenty of tanks with silica sand. no more algae/diatoms than any other tank i've seen. but i don't like the look of it though, usually a bit yellow. plus it scratches glass and probably tears up pumps faster if it gets stirred up.