| Before you decide to use sand in your new fish | | | | of CO2, which might be deadly to your aquatic |
| tank, you need to learn a little more about it. | | | | life. To avoid this, stir the sand a couple of times |
| Why choose sand? | | | | a week. You can use your fingers gently, or a |
| Well, sand is great for live plants. They'll root very | | | | very thin object, always watching out for the |
| nicely in it. Sand doesn't shift as gravel does and | | | | roots of your plants. You can always add some |
| the plants will not get loose. | | | | critters to keep your sand free of uneaten food. |
| Some fish - such as Eels - like to bury | | | | You can have scavengers such as a sea |
| themselves, so sand is a great option if you have | | | | cucumber. |
| fish like that. Sand can give your aquarium a | | | | What kind of filter do you need? |
| tropical look. | | | | An UGF will definitely not do. In just a few days |
| Let's begin with the different types of sand you | | | | the filter will become useless. A canister filter is |
| can choose from: | | | | safe, as long as the filter intake is at least 1" |
| Play Sand | | | | above the sand. In any case you have to use a |
| A lot of people use play sand or silver sand, a fine | | | | very good filter, maybe one stronger than the |
| white sand used in gardening. Play sand is cheap. | | | | one required for your tank capacity, at least 3 |
| However, it might create excessive algae growth | | | | times the power. |
| in the tank. | | | | You must turn off the filter on your tank when |
| Silica Sand | | | | you first start to use the sand. It always starts |
| This is what we know as pool filter sand. Some | | | | out very cloudy and you have to give it time to |
| people say it stays better on the bottom. This is | | | | settle. |
| the one I recommend. | | | | Keep in mind that sand might be a little tricky to |
| Aquarium Sand | | | | clean. Always maintain the siphon at least one inch |
| This is typically silica sand that can be artificially | | | | over the sand. Once you get the hang of it, it |
| colored. Aquarium sand is just a little thicker than | | | | should be very easy, since the debris does not |
| silver sand but it costs a lot more. | | | | get buried in the sand as it does in gravel. Now, |
| Marine Sand | | | | since the debris does not get buried, it's much |
| Marine sand is usually made up of crushed corals | | | | more visible, but with the right setup of filters and |
| or crushed seashells, and this kind of substrate will | | | | pumps or power heads you can have all the |
| alter the pH of you aquarium, and it's really not | | | | waste get pushed away behind a rock or back in |
| recommended for most tropical fish. However, | | | | a corner. |
| marine sand is suitable for fish that require high pH | | | | Once you get your sand, make sure you rinse it |
| such as African cichlids. Do not use it for | | | | thoroughly until the water comes out clear. |
| freshwater setups! | | | | Also, do some research to decide what fish will |
| Beach Sand | | | | thrive with a sand substrate and which won't do |
| The sand you can freely find on a beach contains | | | | as good. Sand can be used in salt and some |
| a huge amount of salt in it and it's almost | | | | freshwater tanks. Don't use sand with Goldfish, |
| impossible to get rid of it completely. You could | | | | for example, because they will just grab |
| use beach sand for marine set ups, but | | | | mouthfuls of it when looking for food, and |
| remember that many beaches are polluted in | | | | obviously, that's not good for them. |
| some way and that could end up being very | | | | Some sands, like marine sand, can change the PH |
| damaging to your aquarium. So unless you can | | | | in the water, so make sure the change your |
| get it from a pristine beach in the middle of the | | | | particular will create will not be harmful to the fish |
| ocean, I wouldn't recommend it. | | | | you want to keep. You can get away with coral |
| Never use building sand in your aquarium since it | | | | sand in an African cichlid tank because coral sand |
| might have chemicals added to it to help with | | | | will raise the pH naturally and freshwater African |
| creating mortars. | | | | cichlids actually like that. |
| Whatever sand you use, make sure you read the | | | | Setting up a new tank with sand is easy if you |
| labels to check for added chemicals. Some brand | | | | follow the precautions about the filter, the |
| sand sold in big home improvement stores comes | | | | siphoning technique and you research the kind of |
| sterilized and totally inert. | | | | fish you want. But it's also possible to convert |
| How much sand do I need? | | | | from gravel to sand in an already established |
| If you have live plants, I would cover the bottom | | | | tank, it's only a little bit more complicated since |
| with a minimum depth of 1" and a maximum of | | | | you have to take out plants, decorations and fish |
| 1.5" of sand. If you don't have live plants 1" or less | | | | to do it, but once done, your tank will look so |
| will be perfect. If you put over 1.5" you can cause | | | | beautiful you will forget all about the hard work. |
| anaerobic bacteria to build up in pockets and | | | | So go with sand if you want, and enjoy it! |
| create toxic gasses like methane and high levels | | | | |