Opinons Needed

[LegalTender]

So my wife, the caring lady she is, decided to get me some subsrate for my new 33gal tank
So i need some opinions weather o not i should use what she has gotten me.

25lb bag of "Florida crushed coral"
and a 5lb bag of "Ocean direct caribbean live sand"

She said the guy at the fish store told her to mix the 2 together and then put it in the tank. And that the 5 pound bag MIGHT not be enough

Now i have never used this type of substrate before. Tanks that i have seen have just been straight sand, or so it seems.
and i was gonna go for that look for my tank.
So here i am wondering if it will work or even look good.
My plans were top just put marine sand in it and go from there, but now with this crushed coral im in a bit of a pickle on wheather to use it or not

Thought and opinions appreciated.

Thanks again

SG is .010 if it matters

 

[nmonks]

Well, the "live sand" won't be live in brackish water for very long. At least, I doubt it will; be happy to be proven wrong though!

Crushed coral and sand mixed together make a nice substrate, though the effect on hardness (esp. carbonate hardness) is marginal once the substrate is covered with algae and *unless* it is part of an undergravel system. It needs to have a flow of water running past it to really buffer the water nicely. So I'd tend to use whatever substrate *looks* the part in the tank, and then reserve the chemically active substrate for the filter. You can fill a canister filter with the stuff, and every month or so rotate it with another batch. The stuff you take out can be cleaned, and then put back the next month. That way you always have optimal buffering.

By the way, on this Valentine's Day Eve, how lovely to see a really romantic lady who knows how to treat her man right! With some fish stuff!

Cheers, Neale

 

[LegalTender]

Ok well, i added the crushed coral, washed it first, added it to the tank, and my tank is extremely cloudy, i cant spread out the substrate cause i can barely see it, is this normal? and if it is, how long till it goes away, im pretty PO'd right now cause i wasnt expecting this.

 

[nmonks]

Completely normal: It means you didn't wash it enough.

Stick some clean filter floss in the filter and then forget about it; it'll be fine in a day or two.

Cheers, Neale

Ok well, i added the crushed coral, washed it first, added it to the tank, and my tank is extremely cloudy, i cant spread out the substrate cause i can barely see it, is this normal? and if it is, how long till it goes away, im pretty PO'd right now cause i wasnt expecting this.

 

[LegalTender]

Completely normal: It means you didn't wash it enough.

Stick some clean filter floss in the filter and then forget about it; it'll be fine in a day or two.

Cheers, Neale

Ok well, i added the crushed coral, washed it first, added it to the tank, and my tank is extremely cloudy, i cant spread out the substrate cause i can barely see it, is this normal? and if it is, how long till it goes away, im pretty PO'd right now cause i wasnt expecting this.

ack, okay, thanks

 

[Marine/Freshwater?]

The live sand should definately be used if you have the time. I don't know that comercial live sand is worth much for brackish though. One can make their own sand in another smaller spare tank or a bucket with nearly the same water parameters as the main system.I've certanily had enough success with live rock and substrate from Cape Canaveral Florida. Really it is all about trial and error. The organisms in the sand may or may not live. If you "test' the organisms in another tank the unsuitable ones will die off without pollutiong your main tank. The substrate and rock I pick up has a lot of organisms. My tank has everything a natural intercoastal marine substrate has minus sea spiders and bristleworms. Try different "live" items, just be sure to irradicate unwanted pests.