Sand in the Freshwater Aquarium

fish monger

Have any of our members used Pavestone Playsand in their tanks ? Wondering how it stacks up to Quikrete insofar as cleaning/cloudiness is concerned. I want to try sand but, I don't want to set myself up for a giant chore.

marshallsea

I have no experience with sand but I've been researching it for my tank. I've read that Estes Marine Sand requires very little cleaning. As far as most others go, dont make any plans that day.

fish monger

LOL. Yes, that's how it sounds. Thanks for the feedback.

jaysee

I've used a dozen different sands and pool filter sand is hands down the best. It is soft, uniform (prevents packing), heavy enough to not get caught in the current, looks great and is CHEAP. a 50 lb bag should cost about $10.

marshallsea

Im in for 50lbs for $10

KPainter

I got a 50 lb bag of playsand for $3.94 at Lowes. Can't beat that. And it only took me about an hour to wash what I needed. Granted, I'd probably spend a little more time than that now since my water did get a little cloudy, but it's clearing up nicely now.

Fishguy2727

I only use and recommend Estes Marine Sand (also known as Stoney River and Ultra Reef). It is very uniform and the perfect size. It requires no cleaning at all (before being put in or after). It comes in multiple colors, I usually do either solid black or a 50/50 mix of black and white.

Varkolak

Leslies pool filter sand is my sand of choice - took 20 minutes to wash 150 lbs of it and never got my tank cloudy

cwmorrow

I washed playsand for two tens Sunday afternoon. I can see through both tanks Thursday morning.

genewitch

The 25 or 50 pound bags of sand for <$4 at home improvement stores is perfect, put about half the bag in a 5 gallon bucket, and a spray nozzle on your hose... Blast the sand till it fills about 5 times. The 6th fill the water will look slightly milky, but will clear nearly instantly... that's what you're looking for.

Sponge filters are great for getting sand clouds out of water. I rarely have to wait more than an hour or two after putting the sand in a tank to add fish. Make sure you put the sand in, then a bowl, then fill with water. it really reduces the cloud factor.

Hope you have some happy corydoras to put in there ;-D