which sand?

[Lyotim88]

out of all of the types of sands on this page , what should i get for a 4" bed in a 55 gallon? i want something easy to clean but good for corals at the same time

 

[xian]

Nice fine aragonite sand, whichever is cheapest.

The miracle mud is nice for planted refugiums.

 

[Lyotim88]

yea but if it's fine won't it get sucked up by the vacuum?

 

[kraze3]

There is no need to vacuum sand, Get somenassarius snails and maybe a sand sifting goby and youll be all set. I think its a better idea to buy some cheap play sand and see with sand from a few other established tanks.

 

[xian]

You don't vacuum the sand. In a reef aquarium the sand is a living part of your ecosystem just like your rocks.

The organisms that live in the rock will colonize the sand.
Bacteria, worms, crustaceans prtozoa...

Occasionally you may want to siphon some algae off the top, but you do this with an air hose, not a vacuum.

 

[Lyotim88]

i think im going to get the fiji pink. anybody have experience with this?

 

[xian]

Its all preference. How much are you planning on buying?

 

[Lyotim88]

100 lbs i figure

 

[xian]

How big a tank?

 

[Kenmx10]

Aragamax Sand- Petsmart has it cheaper. 19.99 for 30lb..Plus no freight charge. The Fiji Pink is nice. But IMO, once you get your tank set up and lights on, its hard to tell the difference in the two...So I would go with CarrbiSea at Petsmart.

 

[drummereef]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14774427#post14774427 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Lyotim88
i think im going to get the fiji pink. anybody have experience with this?

I use the Fiji Pink sand. It's a crisp white with a hint of pink. Gorgeous sand IMO. Check out my gallery.

 

[Lyotim88]

is there any "best" sand? or is it just a matter of preference? I just don't want to make a mistake by buying the wrong kind.

 

[reeftrinh]

does anyone have any advice on some "florida crushed coral"? I have about 100lbs of this stuff that i got for free. Can i use this as the base for my substrate and then fill it in with some fine sand?

or is there any other application for crushed corals? i've read different things bout crushed coral where it can increase nitrates because food get stuck in the shells and what not, but it was good for balancing out PH and other vital levels.

 

[Felix T Cat]

Personally I got the fine sand for my Aquapod and have hated it. the slightest disturbance and it is all over the place and settling on everything in the tank. When I move to my 29 I plan on going with something slightly larger.

 

[xian]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14777011#post14777011 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Lyotim88
is there any "best" sand? or is it just a matter of preference? I just don't want to make a mistake by buying the wrong kind.

As long as it is aragonite there is no best kind. But many of us opt for cheap sand.

Myself, I mixed about 80lbs of aragonite with about 80lbs of white play sand from home depot.

Quartz based sand isn't as good for building a sand bed community and it doesn't do anything for buffering your water. But I wasn't concerned about that.

Rich

Crushed coral makes good reactor media

 

[spike78]

For a DSB (4" or greater), you need to look at the size of the sand rather than the color. The finer the better. (< 1mm)

http://www.ronshimek.com/deep_sand_beds.html

 

[Lyotim88]

now i'm confused. Because i was told that i dont want sand that's too fine, but i'd imagine it probably looks and works better. I've been told a few different things and don't know what to do

 

[Kenmx10]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14779894#post14779894 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Lyotim88
now i'm confused. Because i was told that i dont want sand that's too fine, but i'd imagine it probably looks and works better. I've been told a few different things and don't know what to do

I've had both and I like the fine sand much better. And have no problems. I have had problems with crushed coral..

 

[Lyotim88]

question though, the aragamax sand says good for beds covering up to one inch. So i can't use it for the whole bed, or what?

 

[fishwonder]

I have the same issue: which sand size is better? So I decided I have a mixture: Haft coarse and haft sugar fine sand. After reading this thread I know that when I do water chage I don't have to vacuum the sand. My problem is my sand bed is only 3". Should I add 1" or leave it 3"???