dsb question

[bboy aqua]

which substrates from caribsea argonite substrates are good for dsb?can u name all of the ones that can be used for dsb not just the best one although i would like to know which is the best too

I also heard about the argonite sand u can get at home depot
does anyone know whats its called and if it can be used for dsb?

getting a substrate locally is priority 1 then ordering online is my next priority

[TekCat]

Sand from HD called Southdown play sand. Not all HDs have them.
The "best" sand for DSB is the one that has the smallest grain size, oolitic (sp?) that is. As far as composition, aragonite will provide some pH buffering, while silica sand will not.

[bboy aqua]

what other sands from caribsea can I use for dsb?
could u name all of them?

also can I use the coral sand that home depot sells for dsb?

[TekCat]

For DSB I'd use the most fine sand from CaribSea:
Aragamax Sugar Sized Sandâ„¢
Product #: 00930 (30 lb. bag).
Grain size 0.1 - 1.0 mm


My second choice ( actually this sand is good to put on top of finer sand to reduce sand storms ):
Aragamax Selectâ„¢
Product #: 00932 (30 lb. bag).
Grain size 0.5 - 1.5 mm
or
Fiji Pink Reef Sand
Product #: 00022 (15 lb. bag); 00052 (40 lb. bag).
0.5 - 1.5


I am not familiar with corals sand from home depot ... sorry

[MJAnderson]

Minor hijack...

I have about 2" of southdown in a tank i bought used. I'm guessing it's all "dead" now. When adding live sand, how do I find some that will match the southdown in color? I don't want my tank to look like one of those sand sculptures, with 2" of one color and 2" of another. Is it ok to mix them?

[NUBIANTANGLOVER]

I have used the Southdown Sand from Home Depot, and it is awesome. Yes, it is hard to come by, but I persuaded my local HD to order around 50 bags. I got 15 bags myself, then told everyone here on RC about the delivery here in NC. I used this sand in my 175 bowfront, and never, ever had a problem. I used it for a 4-5 inch DSB.
Also, I just purchased an Aquapod 24G and plan on adding the HD Southdown sand to it, along with toping it off with a thin layer of small-size crush coral.

[TekCat]

MJAnderson, if you have LR in your tank, then sand is already seeded with bacteria ( that is all "bagged" LS has). So, there is no need to get LS. For bio-diversity get as many cups of sand from established tanks: from fellow reefers in your area, and/or LFS (some will give you a cup of their tank's sand for free).

[MJAnderson]

Sorry, didn't explain myself well enough. Currently there is 2" of sand and 3" of water in the tank. I bought it used and it's sitting on cinderblocks in my garage while I paint the stand and set up the sump. The prior owner left the sand figuring I would need it anyway. How long does it take for LS to become DS (dead sand)?

If it is dead and I get some LS, how do I match color or mix it in? If it's still live, can I add 2" on top of it without issue?

Originally posted by TekCat
MJAnderson, if you have LR in your tank, then sand is already seeded with bacteria ( that is all "bagged" LS has). So, there is no need to get LS. For bio-diversity get as many cups of sand from established tanks: from fellow reefers in your area, and/or LFS (some will give you a cup of their tank's sand for free).

[TekCat]

There is no know method (at least to me) to match color of the sand for the exception of mixing two different colors to make something monotone looking.

If you unsure that your existing sand is dead or alive, you could add new sand in several iterations to just single area (let's say a quater of surface). each time you'll be covering new area of old sand.

After that if the colors don't match you could mix the sand in tank also in descrete areas of the surface.

Let a few days pass between performing tasks on different areas of the sand, so bacteria has more chances


However, again, if you have LR, it will populate sand with bacteria in a matter of weeks. So, save some money on so called LS in a bag.

[MJAnderson]

Thanks Tek.

I want to give the little guys whatever fighting chance I can since they will be working so hard for me in the future...

[TekCat]

u r welcome funny thing about bacteria, that if you'd setup dead sand and cycled tank with a cocktail shrimp the "right" bacteria colony would be established almost out of nowhere. Actually the air contains tons of spores of different bacteria and algae. For example at 18000 feet above Chicago they examined air and detected presence of green hair algae spores. go figure

[bkr527]

hello, just posted this q in a different forum. i want to change my sand bed. do i have to mix the southdown sand mentioned from home depot with live sand? i have more than 70 lbs of lr in my tank. should the silicate content in the hd sand be a concern. i have aragonite sand now, but it seems like my tank is on a meltdown after i converted to a sump. i had removed the lr moved the tank to a new stand with the sump and now the water is still cloudy after 2 days, my nitrate content is also up the roof. please advise.
thanks.

[smy168]

oops

[TekCat]

Southdown from HD is aragonite sand, not silica based. Even with silica based sands, there are lots of tanks that do not have problem with leaking silicates.

[Silverado]

I used the sugar sized sand and had nothing but sand storms. I even tried to put the Aragamax Select on top of it, and when the critters in my tank would mix the sand I would have sand storms again.

I now have a 4" sand bed made of Aragamax Select and have not had any problems yet.

Hope this helps.

[bkr527]

thanks Tek.

[bboy aqua]

can I use beach sand for dsb?
which one would I use the one underwater(Live sand) or the dry ones?

[bboy aqua]

another question i forgot to add to the post before this
do silica based sands(artificial sand) usually leak silicates out or are they good to use?

[TekCat]

I'd stay away from beach sand or underwater one. The reason is there are tonns of dirt, contaminants, possible pathogens, etc... after all birds like to poop on the beach

IMO, silica sand is totally fine, it wont leach much silicates. On initial contact with water they leak some, but then leaking stops. Just make sure you rinse it well before using it.

-- edit --

Please note: silica sands will not be providing any buffering as with arogonite sand, also they have less surface area compared to oolitic sand, so if you decided to setup DSB with silica from HD then you'd need to make you sand bed a bit deeper.

[bboy aqua]

Originally posted by TekCat
I'd stay away from beach sand or underwater one. The reason is there are tonns of dirt, contaminants, possible pathogens, etc... after all birds like to poop on the beach

IMO, silica sand is totally fine, it wont leach much silicates. On initial contact with water they leak some, but then leaking stops. Just make sure you rinse it well before using it.

-- edit --

Please note: silica sands will not be providing any buffering as with arogonite sand, also they have less surface area compared to oolitic sand, so if you decided to setup DSB with silica from HD then you'd need to make you sand bed a bit deeper.

homedepot sells silica sand?
i didnt know
I was going to buy it from my lfs but if homedepot does sell it, it would be cheaper there

[TekCat]

silica sand in HD is "regurlar" play sand.
not all HDs sell aragonite sand though.

[bboy aqua]

do most home depot sell playsand(silica sand)?

[TekCat]

yes

[nodea717]

Do not use silica... it will cause you many headaches! please, take the live sand from Lanikai. Its aragonite base is ideal for a DSB make sure to use at least 4 inches deep or less then 1 inch or else you will have dead spots. Please dont use silica...