Using Sand from the beach !

[Faisal1976us]

Hi ,,,

I setting know SPS tank , can i use any dry sand from our beach , if yes how can i cure it before i using it in my tank ?

 

[elegance coral]

It is typically fine to use.

Try not to collect sand from further up the beach, near hotels. They often use hurbisides, and other chemicals.

Just rinse it really really well to remove salts, organics, and other impurities. Then spread it out, and allow it to dry.

The companies that sell bagged sand, don't manufacture the stuff in a sterile lab. They collect it, clean it, and stick it in bags. You can do this yourself, if you live close enough to relatively clean sand.

I collected several buckets of sand about 25 years ago, and I still use it today.

HTH
EC

 

[fishy888]

Most will tell you no on the beach sand but I would say yes with some caveats as I have had success with it. First take it and rinse it out. Swish it around. Make sure it is as clean as possible but do not use anything other than water. Even then it will have a lot of nitrates. Use a UV sterilizer at least until you notice your CUC getting deep into the substrate. If you do not you run the risk of green water. I went through all this with the sand I got. It is a mixture of the silica sand from where I got married and aragonite sand. I got a nasty green water outbreak. Got a UV streilizer and now I have not only a clean tank but all kinds of feather dusters and other beneficial and interesting worms etc. as well as several different colors of coralline, mostly purples but some brick red ones as well. No it is not cyano either. I have battled that monster before. Anyway go for it. Also for anyone who says silica sand causes constant diatom outbreaks that is just nonsense. I did have some diatoms like anyone else but the silica in the sand is for the most part not bioavailable. You are more likely to have bioavailable silica in your salt mix than in sand, be it silica or aragonite.

 

[Ira]

I would make sure the sand is mostly carbonate material, if it's silica based beached sand you are opening the door to having diatom problems you will never be able to control.

 

[Faisal1976us]

Thanks all for help me

 

[REEF SMAC]

I would make sure the sand is mostly carbonate material, if it's silica based beached sand you are opening the door to having diatom problems you will never be able to control.

Wouldn't your silica based glass windows of your glass tank cause the same problem if this were true?

 

[betamed]

Wouldn't your silica based glass windows of your glass tank cause the same problem if this were true?

Silaca based sand can fuel algae and does not have the buffering ability. Probably depends on where you are located but here in south FL the sand is mostly from dead coral and is great. I only collect sand that is fully submerged at low tide. Much cleaner than the stuff everyone walks all over and will have some micro organisms.

 

[Ira]

Wouldn't your silica based glass windows of your glass tank cause the same problem if this were true?

That's a good point, and if it was super mature 100% quartz sand it should not be a problem. But sand like that isn't all that common and typical siliclastic beach sand contains a significant pErcentage of unstable minerals like feldspars and micas that will slowly break down and leach silica and other metals into your tank. Unless you have mineralogy study done on the sand I wouldn't risk it.

 

[REEF SMAC]

Silaca based sand can fuel algae and does not have the buffering ability.

Sure are a lot of anti-sandbed, bare bottom reefers out there that don't really think that the buffering ability of their sandbed is really all that important.

That's a good point, and if it was super mature 100% quartz sand it should not be a problem. But sand like that isn't all that common and typical siliclastic beach sand contains a significant pErcentage of unstable minerals like feldspars and micas that will slowly break down and leach silica and other metals into your tank. Unless you have mineralogy study done on the sand I wouldn't risk it.

I've heard arguments similar to this before, so let me ask it this way.

The local public aquarium here uses seawater pulled right out of the bay. The bay here is mostly surounded with sand dunes, some over 50 feet high, as far as the eye can see in either direction. You can see a sand plant on the opposite shore on a clear day. It is obviously silica bases sand that is used for cement mixes, playgrounds, etc. Its light brown. There are waves constantly pounding this sand onto the shoreline. This sea water is pulled in from this silicate sand bay and then pushed through a SAND filter with over 8 feet of silicate sand in it and then is directly introduced into the exibit tanks. Some of which have intense lighting and corals. Constant water changes 24 - 7 from water surounded and filtered through silicate based sand.

They don't seem to be suffering from any silicates or anything else from the beach that I can see. In fact they seem to do really well.

Seems as though the beach here would have this terrible algae/diatom bloom going on too, if it was really such a huge problem.

Am I missing something here?

That said, it is really ugly brown sand that I have absolutely no desire to ever put in my DT anyway. Even if it is free.

 

[Mr. Fish]

In many areas it is illegal to collect sand from the beach. Even though you would probably never get caught, as responsible marine aquarists I think it is important that we follow these rules as they are clearly in place for a reason. We take so much from the ocean, the least we can do is spend the $20 on a bag of sand and follow the rules/law.

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[KafudaFish]

In many areas it is illegal to collect sand from the beach. Even though you would probably never get caught, as responsible marine aquarists I think it is important that we follow these rules as they are clearly in place for a reason. We take so much from the ocean, the least we can do is spend the $20 on a bag of sand and follow the rules/law.

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So the $20 a bag sand comes from where compared to someone collecting their own?

 

[Mr. Fish]

So the $20 a bag sand comes from where compared to someone collecting their own?

Far off shore where they don't have to bring in silica sand to combat erosion.

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[KafudaFish]

So you are saying if the sand is right there it is silica based but if you go into 20 feet of water it changes chemical composition?

 

[Mr. Fish]

So you are saying if the sand is right there it is silica based but if you go into 20 feet of water it changes chemical composition?

Public beaches bring in silica sand to combat the erosion.

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[KafudaFish]

^ and that is why it is illegal to collect the sand in certain locations. The municipality spent money on a resource.

What if the OP lives somewhere the beach sand is not silica based and not maintained for erosion purposes?

Would it be ok for him to use then?

 

[Mr. Fish]

^ and that is why it is illegal to collect the sand in certain locations. The municipality spent money on a resource.

What if the OP lives somewhere the beach sand is not silica based and not maintained for erosion purposes?

Would it be ok for him to use then?

If he calls his county, city, or state and finds out if that location is legal to collect from I have no issue. This hobby is highly scrutinized by the Scuba Bobs of the world that are just looking for things hobbyists are doing 'wrong'.

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[mwladdicted]

Terrible idea, this question is asked so many times. Think about it, do you want sunscreen motor oil, gasoline ect. in your tank. Your going to be buying expensive SPS just buy the safe sand.

 

[REEF SMAC]

In many areas it is illegal to collect sand from the beach.

Unless you are a sand plant.

Even though you would probably never get caught, as responsible marine aquarists I think it is important that we follow these rules as they are clearly in place for a reason.

Isn't the reason, so the sand plant can sell it to you?

We take so much from the ocean, the least we can do is spend the $20 on a bag of sand and follow the rules/law.

I actually thought that $19.95 of it was the shipping cost.

Far off shore where they don't have to bring in silica sand to combat erosion.

Here they just scrape it off the shore. Then they send it to places that need it to combat erosion.

Public beaches bring in silica sand to combat the erosion.

You would think that they would stop doing that, if it was causing all these algae/diatom out breaks along the beach.

 

[trinity1012]

seems easy enough to spend some cash and buy reef sand!!
why not you know its safe right.

 

[Reeferz412]

If the beach you plan on taking the sand from allow is it, I would check the contents of the sand. I reused some of my sand from my old system. I sprayed it with freshwater and let it sit in the sun for a week, rinsed, dried, and reused it. I would go a step further and put some bleach with water and put the sand in it. I know I would never use any sand off of south beach, so many cigarette buds and cars drive through the sand and pollution.. blech.