Florida sand

[jimnrose]

I live in central Florida and noticed there is very fine white sand dunes in the coastal areas. Is it wise to use this sand for a reef aquarium and if so is there special treatment advised? Thanks, Jim

[Maivortex]

I used to live in HAwaii and always used sand right from the beach. No problem.

[Plan>B]

Originally Posted by jimnrose

I live in central Florida and noticed there is very fine white sand dunes in the coastal areas. Is it wise to use this sand for a reef aquarium and if so is there special treatment advised? Thanks, Jim

Hmmm.... interesting, I live near the coast of Washington, and this could be a good idea, as I need LOTS of sand.

[reefereefer]

i would dry it out in the sun for a few days. then add it to the tank

[kfisc]

Not a good idea at all- the sand could have any number of contaminants.

[Plan>B]

Originally Posted by kfisc

Not a good idea at all- the sand could have any number of contaminants.

For me... I would just put a gallon of bleach... and then rinse with tap then RO.

[Playa-1]

I went down to a beautiful white sandy beach with a metal detector and pulled up rusty nails all day long. I would have to say avoid beach sand in your tank. You never know what kind of contaminants are in it.

[Raggamuffin]

OP is in florida, get yourself some snorkling gear pop out a few hundred feet and go go go!

[Playa-1]

Is that the same Florida where all the hurricanes stir up all the stuff and deposit on the beach. The cars drive on the beach and the road grader comes along and covers everything up. They truck in new sand from the local sand quarry because the hurricanes wash away the beaches. The beach goerz wizz on the sand dunes by the bushes. Or was that a different Florida that I'm not familiar with?

[Pimps]

Originally Posted by playa-1

is that the same florida where all the hurricanes stir up all the stuff and deposit on the beach. The cars drive on the beach and the road grader comes along and covers everything up. They truck in new sand from the local sand quarry because the hurricanes wash away the beaches. The beach goerz wizz on the sand dunes by the bushes. Or was that a different florida that i'm not familiar with?

lmfao

[Maivortex]

Originally Posted by Playa-1

Is that the same Florida where all the hurricanes stir up all the stuff and deposit on the beach. The cars drive on the beach and the road grader comes along and covers everything up. They truck in new sand from the local sand quarry because the hurricanes wash away the beaches. The beach goerz wizz on the sand dunes by the bushes. Or was that a different Florida that I'm not familiar with?

All of these things can occur in your $50/bag sand commercial supply location as well. Comercial suppliers do not sterilize the sand so contminants can also be present in store boufght sand. The bottomline is that sand you buy in the store did not come from the magic sand fairy where it was never exposed to anything nasty . We hope that commercial sand suppliers use common sense when deciding where to get the sand. The Op should do the same and simply try to get sand from remote places, visibly clean of any junk.

Sand that is in the ocean is cleaner than dry sand on the beach. I mean clean from debris from land. I alwyas collected sand in knee deep water with no issues.

[RicksReefs]

commercial reef sand is collected in the bahamas in about 60 feet of water.

I wouldn't use beach sand because of all the crap that tourists (and locals) put in it plus the fact that the beach is natures collection cup for protein skimmate.

[epstein]

Lets see cigarette buts and ashes......dog feces......umm suntan lotion...lil Jonnie peeing ....and various other Junk.......all to save $50 bucks in a Hobby that you will spend thousands on?.........Yeah That makes sense.......

[jimnrose]

Thanks for all the replies. I wasn't planning on using beach sand but instead gettng it from the small sand dunes on the barrier islands. This sand is much fiiner and white but will have some organic debri due to the native plants and local rascals (lizards, gators, birds, etc.) I need a lot of sand and would bleach & rinse the sand in batches. This is a new system, so I can treat the sand with more options than adding sand to an existing tank. Jim

[Live Rocker]

I would sterilize thoroughly before thinkinbg about putting into your tank

[Crawfishy]

Isn't it illegal to take anything from some shoreline areas? I'd check it out first.

[jimnrose]

Crawfishy,
I'm sure it is as it is in the preserves but there is areas that have dunes
that I beleive have no restrictions. It's been a long time since I was down but I'll bring containers and a shovel, but will check with the 'locals'. Jim

[SaltLifeLove]

I know it is illegal to take sand from my local beach...even though I leave with about 10 lbs in my car each time thanks to my son

[lordofthereef]

Though I have had no personal experience, many people use sand from the beach without any issues. If you have fish and feed your tank (I assume you will do at least one if not both) you will be polluting the tank just the same. I have read people dropping cigarettes, nails, you name it into their tanks without ill effects. The biggest concern would be tanning lotion but even that I do not imagine would be in a high enough quantity. With people comments to humans peeing in the sand, your animal's waste will probably equate to way more than any human waste you have in teh sand, especially if it has been washed out. While I don't think anyone can say with any absolute certainty that you will be in the clear and AS SAFE as bagged sand, I personally would not worry about it.

[Beaun]

I use dune/beach sand from the ocean near me (long island, NY) just let it sit out after washing it for a few days in the sun, and be smart where you get it from. I would use a bowl instead of a shovel to dig it up so you can see what you are collecting.

[jimnrose]

Thanks again everyone. I will use a bowl (shovel also looks offensive). Has anyone any knowledge of silicages in the sand. I was searching for info on this subject and someone said to get aragonite sand (live sand) because beach sand could contain silicates which would be a nightmare for algae. The article implied aragonite is much whiter and smaller (sugar size). The sand dunes I'll heading to are very white and fine particle size. Jim

[Pimps]

Originally Posted by Maivortex

The bottomline is that sand you buy in the store did not come from the magic sand fairy where it was never exposed to anything nasty

No Sand Fairy? Next you'll tell me there's no Santa!

[RicksReefs]

bring a little white vinegar with you and see if the sand 'fizzles' when you drop a little sand into the vinegar. but unless your south of miami, all US sand is silica based. the sand on florida beaches was up in new england a few decades (or more) ago and is continually washed down the coast until it hits the miami cut and drops into deep water.

[Playa-1]

Originally Posted by jimnrose

Thanks for all the replies. I wasn't planning on using beach sand but instead gettng it from the small sand dunes on the barrier islands. This sand is much fiiner and white but will have some organic debri due to the native plants and local rascals (lizards, gators, birds, etc.) I need a lot of sand and would bleach & rinse the sand in batches. This is a new system, so I can treat the sand with more options than adding sand to an existing tank. Jim

This is what happened to the last guy that tried that

Originally Posted by Pimps

No Sand Fairy? Next you'll tell me there's no Santa!

I'm sure I tried some of that magic dust back in the day

[scuba guy ron]

I researched this about a year ago. It is illegal to take sand from florida beaches. Sand dunes that are connected to the beaches is also illegal. not condoning or deterring you but just thought id let you know first.