Cichlid Sand Substrate?

Sonjamo

Sonjamo

AC Members
Jun 11, 2007
128
0
0
I just got a 90 gallon aquarium, and Im going to be setting it up as a cichlid tank. What is a good sand substrate to get thats no too exspensive? Im hearing a lot about "Caribsea Aragonite Sand". Is that good for a freshwater setup with cichlids?

Let me know other types of sand that works well with cichlids.

Thanks
 
I've read that play sand from home depot will work as long as you clean it(dump some in bucket and let water run over it for a while until it runs clear). I have not tried this myself, just something I read.
 
I have 2 tanks with sand, went to my local concrete company, owners a neighbor, and I and the fish love it. Clean it really well, I used a paint mixer thingy on an electric drill to swish the sand and ran water thru it, let it settle and did it again and again and ....... It looks really nice, BUT you do have to poke at it when you do you water changes to release any trapped gasses that could be forming.
 
the cichlid aragonite sand is good for african cichlids, but really any kind of sand will do (the aragonite raises the ph/hardness of your water which is good for african cichlids, but not usually required)
just make sure the sand is not super fine.. the more fine it is, the more easily it will pack down and get bad stuff (toxic gasses for example) trapped in it.
 
I use CaribSea Aquarium Sand (Black) which they love!!! I chose black b/c light color sand tends to drain the color out of the fish. If you go to Petsmart its 24.99 however I'll tell you a tip go to their website and print it out b/c on-line its 19.99 and they will honor that price. My fish love to dig in it and I enjoy watching them do there fishy things.
 
Yes any sand will be ok but I would not recommend play sand unless you want to spend a lot of time washing it out. I got pool filter sand for my 55 gallon. Cost me $10 for 50 lbs. and it looks great, more natural...
 
I've heard good things about pool sand, but I went with play sand from Home Depot which turned out not to be as dirty as I thought. I rinsed it out a couple times and it was good, which I would do with any new substrate anyway. It was cheap and easy to find.
 
#16 Sandblasting sand....no rinsing needed...I use it with aulonocara, many tanganyikans, Central Americans, etc...WORKS GREAT! Some say it's too sharp, but I have never experienced any problems. Highly recommend....
 
Sonjamo said:
I just got a 90 gallon aquarium, and Im going to be setting it up as a cichlid tank. What is a good sand substrate to get thats no too exspensive? Im hearing a lot about "Caribsea Aragonite Sand". Is that good for a freshwater setup with cichlids?

Let me know other types of sand that works well with cichlids.

Thanks
Click to expand...

my cons just got sand that looks like that stuff in your av. they love it. i can see there "prints" throughout the tank on the sand. they even dug a couple pits. they made the driftwood look like a sugar-coated jambuster too a couple times.:)
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom