Sand with stones substrate

[siggie]

Have a new 29 gallon and bought a 25 lb. bag of leveling sand. It is a darker sand with small stones in it. Put it in the aquarium and the water is cloudy and has been for the past several hours. The sand was washed well prior, but of course all the dust cannot be taken away. We've changed the water a few times and let it run through the filter, but it's still cloudy. Will this substrate actually work or do we need to empty the tank and start all over? We would like a dark sand, not beach white sand, with stones in it and can't see spending $15 for a bag, when they sell practically the same thing at hardware/home stores for $3. Any help or suggestions would be appreciated.

 

[pondfreak4365]

Siggie, Something I try when I've got stuff stirred up in the tank is to take a small piece of fiberfill (sold in fabric stores or Wal Mart, if you are in the USA). I use a square about 4" X 4" and just place it over the intake of your filter, the flow should hold it in place. It catches a lot of particulate matter, just keep an eye on it and replace with a fresh square when it becomes dirty. It should clear the water in a few hours that way.
Good luck, it should look nice with a sandy bottom What type of fish are you keeping?

 

[wetwetwet]

HiYa siggie and welcome

The cloudiness should soon settle down may take a few days though. I like pf's idea give that a go. Or filter wool (probably similar to 'fibrefill') in the filter itself to remove fine particals.

Let us know how it goes

 

[semper fi]

if you added the sand that you can get for construction purposes you will have cloudy water for a few days to a week. when i first set up my 180 i wanted a sand bottom. my husband added the sand used in construction to it to suprise me. i was going to keep the tank bare bottom til i added the sand which is quite expensive. the water was so cloudy that you could not see into the tank at all. we tried to get as much of the sand out. it does have to be rinsed and rinsed and rinsed. this sand breaks down into smaller particles when rubbed together. so anytime the sand is moved ie when vaccumming, the cloudiness comes back. also clogs the filters terribly.

hth

maggie

 

[Great Lakes]

Remember Siggie, the mantra for fishkeeping. Patience is a virtue. It will clear up.