Sand Substrate

I

I Am Fishy

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Jul 14, 2003
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Massachusetts
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I have read articles and even some posts here (which I can't find when I do a search) about sand. I was thinking of going to a sand substrate in my FW tank, I think it looks better. Now with my current setup could I use sand (all my specs are in the members section, the link is below). Is harder to keep clean than gravel and would I need to buy additional equipment.

Thanks









http://www.aquariacentral.com/forum...&threadid=13723
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IMO, it's actually easier to maintain the sand substrate than it is a gravel substrate. Some people make the claim that's it's the next cleanest setup to a bare bottom tank. Because it's so tightly packed, the waste all stays on top of it, and even collects together into some areas so it be easly vacuumed up during a water change. You don't have to vacuum within the sand, or you'll end up with a bucket full of sand, just simply wave the end of it around above the sand just enough to pickup the waste, but not enough to pickup the sand too much. You'll quickly get the hang of it. You'll still end up with some sand in your bucket, but you just have to pour out the water and then dump the sand back into the tank after you're done.

However, because of how it's tightly packed it has an extreme lack of oxygen within the substrate so there's a much greater vulnerability of getting pockets of anerobic bacteria in the sand. Just read the thread here on that subject to see just how bad that can be if you're not already aware of it. So it's a good idea to keep the sand substate below 1" deep if you can, that helps a lot. Also, during every second water change we run our fingers through the sand and throroughly work it up everywhere to help prevent this from forming.

No special equipment is required, but if your filter intake is located really close to the bottom, you may want to modify it to be higher so that it doesn't suck up too much sand. It can destroy filter impellers. We still get a small amount in the filters, but after a year of having sand in all our tanks now, we haven't had an impeller need replacing yet.

If you have a smaller Q-Tank/Hospital Tank, you can experiment with that first to get the hang of it and see if you like it before doing one of your main tanks.

Ric
 
I like the look of sand,however it is in my reef tank and is seeded to help keep the sand turned and serves as a natural filter for the tank,I am new to FW and am told this can not be done in a FW tank,any takes on this ???????
why can't ya seed a fresh water DSB like ya would a saltwater DSB ???
 
Ric, thanks for filling me in on some of that potentially helpfull info providing I go that route. Is there a certain type of sand that should be used, is one the same as the next type of sand or are they specific to a certain type of setup.

Tom
 
You're welcome Tom! About the only differences you'll come across are the grain size of the sand. Some are larger, and thus heavier and will be flying around in the water less when disturbed, and less likely to end up in the filter. We've used playsand from Home Depot. A lot of people complain that this stuff is too fine, but we've found it to be quite good. I guess it varies from place to place, becuase I notice the sand sold in our Home Depot comes from sand pits nearby here, so I guess Home Depot gets it in from the nearest source. A very popular choice among aquarists is to use pool filter sand, which is suppose to be heavier grains. You might want to check into that if you have a swimming pool supply place nearby as it sounds really good, and looks great too I've noticed from the tank pictures I've seen with it.

Sorry I can't answer your question Ozzy.

Ric
 
Another thing on this subject. I have read in a few places that you need to cycle the tank over again and say you don't need to. Any thoughts on this one? Doing a cycle all over will be extremly though with one tank and so many fish
 
A couple of things--there are differences in sand.

Quartz sand. This is inert, and won't impact your water chemistry. Comes in a variety of grain sizes, and is cheap.

Silica sand. Also inert, cheap, variety of grain sizes,usually smoother than quartz sand. Much maligned for releasing silicates and encouraging diatom blooms--this doesn't actually happen unless your pH drops below about 4.0. When this happens, diatoms will be the least of your concerns.

Aragonite sand. Not inert! This is the kind of sand most commonly used in SW and high pH cichlid tanks--it is coral bits, broken fine and worn smooth. It will raise your pH in many cases, and buffer the tank well. Sold under Southdown Playsand and Old Kastle.

Deeper substrates are fine, as long as you don't muck about in them or keep them turned over regularly. If you have digging fish, this may cause a problem. Planted tanks frequently have very deep substrates with a mix of sizes, and the plants benefit from the anaerobic areas, while roots moving about prevents anoxic areas. It's an either or--you have to keep it turned over, or never touch it. Most problems are the result of slacking in maintenance, or deciding to 'really clean' a previously undisturbed setup.

For cycling, if you currently have a UGF as your primary filter, the tank will completely recycle. If you have a HOB or canister filter running, mush of the bacteria bed will be within the filter rather than the substrate. There may be a small cycle--but you shoul dbe able to limit the negative effects by doing daily water changes (test to be certain this is needed--I replaced a 15 gallon tank with a 40, and didn't use any of the old gravel, just the filter and media. I never had a spike, but the tank was planted and understocked).

As for the comparison between a SW DSB and a FW sand substrate--keep in mind that one of the reasons the DSB works is because of the critters. There are not comparable creatures for a FW tank. Most FW macro invertebrates are 1) food items and 2) insect larvae. Not an easy population to maintain within an aquarium. Snails help, and many will dig in the substrate. Crayfish would also help, but can be destructive and predatory. FW crabs would also work, but most of them need access to the surface, and will nab fish is they can--not ideal inhabitants of the average aquarium. FW leeches would be good, but the 'yuck' factor probably excludes many of them, even those that do not suck human blood. And, unfortunately, many of the good FW macroinvertebrates are even pickier about water quality.
 
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What kind of sand is pool filter sand :confused: How long after I put the sand in should I be able to add my fish back in? After the sand settles? All I have in my tank are 2 SAE's, 12 Blood Fin Tetras and 9 Black Tetras. I do have an AC500 and a Fluval 404. My tank has been established for 7 mo. or so with no problems. I shouldn't have a problem with the conversion?



My Tank
 
Pool filter sand is normally silica--perfectly good to use, decent particle size, and a good color.

The best metho for adding sand is to remove all the fish (put them in a tub with a powerhead) and decoarions (also in the tub). Remove the old substrate. Pour in the DRY sand. Place a bowl on the sand. Use a chunk of tubing to siphon water into the bowl, so that it slowly and gently fills the tank. Do not use a bucket to just dump the water in--this is was causes the cloudiness. Once the tank is full and up to temp, start up the filters and add the fish back in. You should be able to get it done in one day--we did with a 65 gallon SW tank, and we had a lot of rock and critters to deal with. Since most of you bacteria will be in the filter media, you should be fine--but I still advise monitoring for ammonia and being prepared to do water changes if needed.

HTH
 
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