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Sand - which brand?

Robder

Robder

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I've been in a maze of Google searches over which brand of black sand to buy.

I'm going for oscars so I don't need a substrate to grow stuff in necessarily.

Here's where I've got to:

Seachem Flourite looks great - premium stuff and likely to hold its colour but ££££££. This will apparently take ages to clean too which is a meh.

Pettex Roman Gravel - about half the price but I'm unsure if the colour is as good.

Dehner Aqua - seems cheap but reviews suggest it is sticky and behaves more like polystyrene than sand.

I was told on here to go with the Imagitarium brand but I think this is a Walmart thing or something. It's impossible to get Imagitarium in the UK.

Any ideas? THANKS! :)
 
Robder said:
I've been in a maze of Google searches over which brand of black sand to buy.

I'm going for oscars so I don't need a substrate to grow stuff in necessarily.

Here's where I've got to:

Seachem Flourite looks great - premium stuff and likely to hold its colour but ££££££. This will apparently take ages to clean too which is a meh.

Pettex Roman Gravel - about half the price but I'm unsure if the colour is as good.

Dehner Aqua - seems cheap but reviews suggest it is sticky and behaves more like polystyrene than sand.

I was told on here to go with the Imagitarium brand but I think this is a Walmart thing or something. It's impossible to get Imagitarium in the UK.

Any ideas? THANKS! :)
Click to expand...
I use imagitarium black sand! It looks great!
 
Robder said:
It's impossible to get Imagitarium in the UK.
Click to expand...
I have never seen this sold at walmart but I have seen it on Ebay and on Amazon... Their black sand is the best, its not sticky, it doesnt cloud up water, and its non toxic. I love it
 
Rocky998 said:
I have never seen this sold at walmart but I have seen it on Ebay and on Amazon... Their black sand is the best, its not sticky, it doesnt cloud up water, and its non toxic. I love it
Click to expand...

Sadly seems to be US only. :(
 
Robder said:
Sadly seems to be US only. :(
Click to expand...
The next best one I can think of that is available to you is the seachem flourite sand... I have heard that it clouds up quite a bit... I would rinse it really good about 3 to 5 times and then attempt using it... It will probably still be cloudy but the sediment should settle after a while
 
Unipac Limpopo Black sand might be worth a look.

Quite a few fishkeepers go for it in the UK
 
AquaBarb said:
Unipac Limpopo Black sand might be worth a look.

Quite a few fishkeepers go for it in the UK
Click to expand...
If aquabarb recommends it get it... He doesnt have a tank of the year plus 3 tank of the months for nothin lol
 
Thank you!!! So it's the Unipac Limpopo vs the Seachem. :cool:

Any thoughts on the decider? Unipac is dramatically cheaper, which is great (!!!) but makes me naturally suspicious. :/

Around 25-30 kg should do it right?
 
Robder said:
Thank you!!! So it's the Unipac Limpopo vs the Seachem. :cool:

Any thoughts on the decider? Unipac is dramatically cheaper, which is great (!!!) but makes me naturally suspicious. :/

Around 25-30 kg should do it right?
Click to expand...
Trust me, AquaBarb would not lead you wrong... He knows his stuff and his tanks can not be put into words how beautiful they are... Their so majestic... I dont know how I would react if I saw it in person
 
I use Black Diamond Coal Blasting Sand. I have 100lbs for 8’ square bottom. I should get more. 39D833A1-AB4E-4481-9A33-B9DFCA7B1099.jpeg Really pretty in person.680E9D25-AD95-46F2-8B72-E6FF5CF60145.jpeg
 
Robder said:
Thank you!!! So it's the Unipac Limpopo vs the Seachem. :cool:

Any thoughts on the decider? Unipac is dramatically cheaper, which is great (!!!) but makes me naturally suspicious. :/

Around 25-30 kg should do it right?
Click to expand...
Well for me id have the Unipac. You could get the limpopo for around £28 for 20kg. You pay that for 7kg of seachem sand....The gap in price is simple not worth it.
Heres a picture i found online of them both.
Screenshot_20220218-201523_Chrome.jpg


The limpopo is a light black almost grey but i think will look good in a oscar tank.

Ive used unipac before with no issues.

I use Argos playsand now in all my tanks (£5 for 15kg😲) but unfortuntely it only comes in natural buff.
 
Robder said:
I've been in a maze of Google searches over which brand of black sand to buy.

I'm going for oscars so I don't need a substrate to grow stuff in necessarily.

Here's where I've got to:

Seachem Flourite looks great - premium stuff and likely to hold its colour but ££££££. This will apparently take ages to clean too which is a meh.

Pettex Roman Gravel - about half the price but I'm unsure if the colour is as good.

Dehner Aqua - seems cheap but reviews suggest it is sticky and behaves more like polystyrene than sand.

I was told on here to go with the Imagitarium brand but I think this is a Walmart thing or something. It's impossible to get Imagitarium in the UK.

Any ideas? THANKS! :)
Click to expand...
I use the JBL sand from maiden head aquatics.Not quite black but it’s dark enough I find.

DA877CD2-B7CC-4382-B2BE-ADB4DB67CD94.jpeg
 
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