sand question

[doctor x]

i was told today i can use silica sand for my bottom.im setting up a 75 gallon tank.is this true,can silica be used????any idea of how many pounds to use or how deep to make it? thanks in advance to anyone that can answer this for me.

[Reefscape]

the sand to go for is oolite aragonite sand, about sugar grain size...Silica is ok, but does not provide the buffering of aragonite sand..

If you want a deep sand bed ( DSB ), the go for 4 - 6 inches, normal sand bed about 2 inches...

Could not tell you how much you need for your tank size, am sure some-one will pipe up with the answer to that one...

Niko

[Starion]

maybe give the tank size rather than just capacity.. :P

base size mostly..

To work out how much sand you need, multiply the tank width by length by the desired depth of the sand..

ie. 180cm x 45cm x 5cm = 40,500cm3
or 6ft x 1.5ft x 2inch = 1.5ft3

then look at what the sand will cover, differenet sands do different areas..

[Germanman]

ive read that silica isnt a good choice in many different books, plus its usually more expensive than aragonite and doesnt have its buffing capability as atnixon stated.

[doctor x]

thanks for the good answers,i will use the sand you all recommended.thanks again for the help!!!!!!

[Germanman]

no problem good luck keep us all posted on your progress. have any questions just pm me i love to help thats wut i do for a living lol.