Sand in Freshwater Aquarium

[Jumko]

I would recommend trying Pool Filter Sand rather than play sand as the grains are much larger and would be easier to clean than play sand. Malaysian Trumpets snails are necessary ( or you can stir yourself) to prevent anaerobic pockets from forming and killing your fish if they get dislodged.

I agree. I've used home depot play sand before and would never try it again. The kind I had was very light colored and would show dirt rather easily. Add this with the fact that, as mentioned above, it was harder to clean, made the play sand a regret. I have nothing but good things to say about pool filter sand, on the other hand.

 

[slipgate]

I've had sand in my 130g for over a year and I am about to dump it for fine natural gravel. I like it, but it is now very discolored and just didn't weather well and I want a new look. It is cheap though and that was the attraction. I am looking for a 240g to setup to receive the 130g fish so I can do a complete tear-down of the 130g.

 

[BettaFishMommy]

i've used play sand in a couple of my tanks - one 55 gallon and a 20 long. the two tanks had different bags of sand in each, and i was not happy with the sand in the 55! diatoms everywhere, all the time, and the oscar housed in that tank would move the sand around into a pile and it would turn black quite quickly, even with me stirring it and spreading it back out over the tank bottom every water change (or more frequently!).

the 20 long on the other hand...... i'm in love with the sand in that tank! no diatoms whatsoever, no black sand 'pockets' even when i forget to give it a stir, and my swordplants are happy as pigs, sending roots all across the place (most likely the reason for no black pockets). what i do when i'm scraping the tank glass clean is use the plastic card (i use a tim hortons card because i'm Canadian, hahaha!) and 'chop' the sand in places where the sword roots aren't too plentiful. works great, and there's no sand cloud in the water from stirring.

if you go with play sand, give it multiple rinses before adding it to the tank. play sand can have a lot of silt in it, and you want to ensure you get as much of that out as possible. heck, i rinsed the sand so good when i put it in the 55, i did it with fish in the tank and the water was clear within hours.

 

[Alec2cool]

Oh gosh, i had already put in the sand without rinsing it, i did not even think about it. Theres a huge white cloud that stops me from seeing anything in the tank, but over the past 30minutes its gotten just a little bit clearer. I decided to get play sand since i was unable to find pool filter sand (Walmart guy had no idea what pool filter sand was). Anyways, will the cloud eventually disappear? or do i have to take it all out and rinse the sand.

 

[Khemul]

Not sure if Walmart carries PFS. Even Lowes I've found is a bit hit or miss on it. Home Depot usually carries it though. Probably pool supply stores also.

The cloudiness will go away eventually. Water changes and filter cleanings should help clear up the water a little quicker. Watch the filter to make sure it doesn't lock up. If it does take it apart and rinse out the impeller assembly and put it back together.

 

[Alec2cool]

will putting in more filters speed up the process? i dont want my mother coming home and berating me about my tank -_-.

 

[Khemul]

Don't see why more filter would hurt. May not speed up the process enough though. I've had it take a day or two with the filters alone. Water changes would probably be the fastest way.

 

[Alec2cool]

Hmm, well i will try a water change. thanks for your help guys.

 

[excuzzzeme]

PFS (Pool Filter Sand #20) has uniform grain size and no sharp edges like play sand has. I never rinse it before use. #20 grain seems to work very well and is heavy enough not to kick up. I rarely find any in my filters like I did when using playsand.

 

[BettaFishMommy]

wrap the intake of your filter in paper towel and use a rubber band to hold it on. change out the paper towel as soon as it starts to look dirty/clogged up. keep doing this until your tank clears. trust me, it works! and it will save your filter impeller from sand silt damage.