Gravel- New +old

[fish-face]

Hi
Setting up a tank for the first time so this will be the first of many questions,i`ve layed a layer of aquaclay at the bottom of the tank and while i was at the lfs i decided to buy a new bag of gravel which i`ve washed and spread in the tank but its not going to be enough.
The tank is 2nd hand and when i brought this the seller bagged up the gravel and i left them in the garden over christmas till today,could i wash this and use or would i be better off buying more new,silly question i know but i`ve got lots more i`m sure,i`m just excited about finally getting round to making a start. Thanks

 

[fishing4exotics]

Hi fish-face, funny user name Using old gravel is fisn. Just rinse them out in a bucket till the water runs clear.

 

[debiasir]

my old gravel was in the garden in a bagfor a few months i poured it in a bucket and added boiling water a few times then i let a hose run throught it to clean it then it was ready to go in the tank

ask as many questions as you like we have all been setting up a first tank at some stage

 

[fish-face]

thanks

 

[Matty]

why not? It might even give you some extra beneficial bacteria.

 

[fish-face]

whilst rinsing out the old gravel have come across some snails in the old gravel varying from 1"- 25mm to 1/8 of an inch- 3mm thats only the ones i found,would expect lots to get through my rinsing/sifting should i carry on knowing these are dead or just dump the old gravel and get more new.

 

[Matty]

i personally would try to salvage the old gravel, but if there are snails, you might not want to take the chance.

 

[cashton]

i personally would try to salvage the old gravel, but if there are snails, you might not want to take the chance.

Boil it then you won't have to worry about the snails or any other pesky things that may have hitched a ride.

 

[fish-face]

looks like i`m down for gravel boiling tomorrow

 

[cashton]

looks like i`m down for gravel boiling tomorrow

If you like the gravel well enough, that is what I would do. This hobby is expensive enough as is, might as well try to save a few $$$$ when you can.