Sand

[bmonki]

I have been considering changing our substrate from the white sharp gravel we have to sand as i think the cories will be happier and im hoping it will look cleaner than the algae growing on our white gravel.

how much sand would i need to get a decent layer of substrate? (would like to avoid going too deep as i had read about gas pockets and i dont have anything to turn the sand over etc.) tank dims 48x12x18 inches

what kind of sand do i go for? is there types to avoid?

any recommendations on places to buy the sand (limited budget, so cheaper the better)

how would i actually change the substrate?

finally id like opinions on sand colour, what would go best with my tank (pic in sig) taking background and decs into consideration?

thanks in advance

 

[DanTheFishMan11]

black sand would look nice

 

[mike455555]

Argos play sand you'd need 1-2 bags of it. it costs about £3 per bag just needs a good wash:
half fill bucket with sand.
fill with water
stir it up
let sand settle for about 30 secs.
pour off water
repeat untill sand settles in under 10 secs

then take your old gravel out and put in the sand. best way is to drain the tank then refill it

 

[fatheadminnow]

Hello bmonki!

You are very right, your Cories will LOVE sand! Cories are bottom feeders so they love sifting the sand through their gills.

The sand I use (Super cheap!) is call "Play Sand". You can pick this sand up at your local hardware store. If you are in the U.S. the places that carry this sand are places such as Fleet Farm, Menards, Home Depot... etc... places like these. They come in, I believe, 20 pounds bags and cost like $2 a bag. So you could easily do a full sand substrate for under $10! Shoot for about 3 inches of sand at the bottom.


Below is an article I wrote that I pulled from my "Starting a New Aquarium" Book. If you want you can find this book online... pm me for more info...

The most effective method of cleaning sand is referred to as what is known as the “bucket method.”


First method "Bucket Method"
Step 1: Get a clean bucket that is free from any detergent.

Step 2: Fill the bucket with ¼ sand.

Step 3: Take a garden hose, if you are outside, or take a shower hose if you are inside and place the hose all the way down into the sand until the hose hits the bottom of the bucket. Note: If you are inside, this is best done in a bathtub or near a drain.

Step 4: Turn the water on. While the water is running out of the hose, stir the sand with the end of the hose while the bucket is filling up with water.

-What this does, is it kicks up any debris within the sand and brings it to surface. Since the sand is usually heavier than the debris, the sand remains at the bottom of the bucket. Allow the bucket to over-flow with water and pour over the edges of the bucket. This brings all the debris up and out of the sand, which flows out as the water over flows the bucket

Step 5: After you have spent some time doing this, and the water begins to clear up, you can now stop the cleaning process. Pour out the remaining water and place the sand in a clean empty bucket. Repeat this process until you have cleaned all the sand you have.

Step 6: Now that the sand is cleaned, you can now put the sand in your tank.

Cleaning sand, Pillow Case Method:

Step 1: Locate a clean pillow case.

Step 2: Fill the pillow case ½ with sand.

Step 3: Locate a hose, a garden hose works best, and place the hose inside the pillow case with the sand and turn the water on. Repeat this method until you have cleaned all the sand you have.

-This washes off any chemicals that may be on the sand. However, this method is not best for freeing the sand of debris. For freeing the sand of debris, please follow the “Sand Cleaning, Bucket Method.”

Step 4: Now comes the time when you can place the sand in the tank.

-Author, FatHeadMinnow

Copy Right 2009

The best way, and probably the only way to do this, is take the fish out and put them off to the side in a small bucket/aquarium filled with tank water. Supply a heater (filter won't be unnecessary since they are only going to be in there for about 12 hours or so, MAYBE 24 hours.

Then empty the tank of EVERYTHING, clean it out, pour new sand in the bottom and spread it out.

To fill the tank don't just pour water back in since this will create a muddy mess from the sand being disturbed. Instead, take a glass dinner plate and put that on top of the sand. NOW, pour the water, slowly, onto the plate. The water will run off the plate and fill the tank. The plate acts sort of like a "shield" and the sand won't be nearly as disturbed. Do this until the tank is full.

Now this is why I said "12" hours.... because you are still going to have a murky look from sand/new debris floating around in the water so it is best to let the tank just "sit" over night and let all the new sand and debris to settle.... this is up to you. The sand in the water won't hurt the fish so if you want to you can put them back in (acclimate them properly). The sand floating in the water MAY be hard on the filter while it sucks up all the floating sand and sends it through the filters impellers... I would just wait a while for it to settle.

When the new water is at the right temperature and you have properly conditioned the water. (Have everything else in the tank, heater, filter, lights...etc...) go ahead and add your fishys

Hope this helps.

 

[bmonki]

Thanks for the replies so far very helpful on methods of how to actually do it

black sand im not sure of - does it not make the tank seem smaller? im not sure if it would 'go' with the background either as ive only really seen pics of black sand and plain backgrounds happy to be proved wrong if you have pics of any though as id imagine black would hide the poo better in between cleanings.. how easy is sand to clean though... i assume i cant use my gravel vac

 

[mike455555]

you squirl it above the poo. poo sits ontop of the sand

 

[fatheadminnow]

The poo will actually be seen easier with black sand. But black is, by far, my favorite substrate.

 

[mossonthemoon]

I have used black sand and it looked lovely in the smaller tank I was using, but it was a little sticky. It stuck to the sides, etc. I think this was due to its fineness, but I am not sure now that time has passed. I can't remember the name of the sand as it was too long ago, but it is common and has been mentioned here. It's is really lovely to look at.

I am currently using the Argos play sand and it isn't easy to get it clean. I cleaned it outside for hours, and still had a lot of murk, but wool in my filter did clean it up within a few days. It looks very natural, is definitely non-toxic, and felt quite soft. I would imagine that your cories would help with the turning over of the sand to an extent, but I (hopefully, as I haven't seen them) have Malaysian trumpet snails doing the job for me. It isn't difficult to clean and I use my normal gravel vac, swirling above the surface as mentioned above.

 

[raptorrex]

I have used black sand and it looked lovely in the smaller tank I was using, but it was a little sticky. It stuck to the sides, etc. I think this was due to its fineness, but I am not sure now that time has passed. I can't remember the name of the sand as it was too long ago, but it is common and has been mentioned here. It's is really lovely to look at.

I am currently using the Argos play sand and it isn't easy to get it clean. I cleaned it outside for hours, and still had a lot of murk, but wool in my filter did clean it up within a few days. It looks very natural, is definitely non-toxic, and felt quite soft. I would imagine that your cories would help with the turning over of the sand to an extent, but I (hopefully, as I haven't seen them) have Malaysian trumpet snails doing the job for me. It isn't difficult to clean and I use my normal gravel vac, swirling above the surface as mentioned above.

I had no problems, even cleaning the sand prior to adding it.
and my tank was clear only an hour, or so, after i did the change over.
not to mention the fact i did it with water and fish, in situ. (well ok, only 50% of the water)

its down to the care with which you do the changeover.

so:
clean the sand time and time again.
remove 50% of your water. remembering to switch off your heater.
remove the old substrate.
leave the tank to clear.
turn off the filter.
add the sand with a container like a takeaway dish.
slowly take the container full of wet sand, down to the bottom.
then slowly empty it on the base
repeat till you have the required depth.
let the tank settle.
replace your deccor and top up the tank.
if you are not careful, you will need to let the tank settle.
switch on your filter and heater.
have a cup of tea, whilst admiring your handy work.

sand, seems easy to keep clean.
and it is, to an extent.
if you carefully vac the surface (using a wide bore syphon).
you will keep the sand clear, this also stops an Algae skin (possibly even bio film) from forming.
if you look around the edges, between the sand and glass, you will often find a dark mark forming.
i simply ran something round the edges (finger in my case) this got rid of the mark.

as for which type?
well I'm a PlaySand fan.
it has limited colours (even two bags bought at the same time are often varied) but it looks natural, is cheap and readily available.

 

[bmonki]

Well i did the changeover yesterday, (used the method above with fish still in as i had only 2 buckets). Took a good couple of hours but im really happy with the result, used Toys R Us play sand (got a really nice darker colour to it ). Thanks for your help all, the cories are having a great time