calcium sand

[griffithimage]

I was in the reptile section of the pet store and saw some very white and nice looking sand. It being sold as "calcium sand". Is it safe to use?

[sassafrass]

probably ground limestone some people use it however it has some very fine particles so it needs to be rinsed and rinsed and rinsed and...
Lee

[griffithimage]

are there any potential algae problems?

[sassafrass]

Not because of the sand . I understand that it is not good for a deep sand bed because of the shape of the grains
Lee

[griffithimage]

how does it differ from argonite?

[sassafrass]

From what I have read aragonite has more surface area for bacteria to populate .
Lee

[xJake]

There's no real difference between crushed limestone and aragonite sand other than the shape. Either is fine for use as a sand bed. The dust from the limestone will eventually be precipitated or skimmed out of the water and there is no real reason to rinse it.

[sassafrass]

xJake have you ever put it in a tank ? If you don't rinse it the word eventually could take on a long term meaning but you are right you don't have to.
Lee

[xJake]

Originally posted by sassafrass
xJake have you ever put it in a tank ? If you don't rinse it the word eventually could take on a long term meaning but you are right you don't have to.
Lee

Ummm, what? I have put it in a tank and it clears up very quickly. Salt water naturally precipitates small particles out of the water and the dust from the pulverized limestone sticks to the foam of protein skimmers rather easily.

[sassafrass]

Yes you must be right why else would most reefers pay $1 per pound for aragonite if crushed limestone for 10 cents a pound worked just as well?

[Rysam]

i use crushed dolomite limestone in my fuge and its fine. as soon as my DIY rock is done im going to re-do my display and go with it as a the substrate. when i added it i barely rinsed it and it only took a few hours to clear. i found it at ace hardware for 5$ a bag.

[xJake]

Originally posted by sassafrass
Yes you must be right why else would most reefers pay $1 per pound for aragonite if crushed limestone for 10 cents a pound worked just as well?

Well, I hate to break it to you, but it does work just as well. It may not look as nice (it's sort of an ugly grey color), but in terms of function it works just as well. Most reefers pay $1/lb. for aragonite simply because there is a stamp on it that says it's designed for aquarium use.

Aragonite is simply overpriced play sand as you may have found out from reading any of the thousands of posts about Southdown Tropical Play Sand. It costs companies just pennies per lb. to mine and ship aragonite yet they charge 100x as much. It's simply a way to make money, and it works.

[Flipper62]

WOW...before starting a REEF TANK..People realy need to do some research on sand substrates.....

[xJake]

Originally posted by Flipper62
WOW...before starting a REEF TANK..People realy need to do some research on sand substrates.....

Um, I'm not sure what this is supposed to mean or who it was targeted at, but a little clarification would be nice.

[Flipper62]

Not targeted at anyone in general....Its just there have been questions about this in the past few weeks.

One guy said that he got sand from a playground where his kids go to play on the swings......COME ON...

That was my point......before starting a REEF TANK.....do some research.....

[xJake]

Very true. There have been quite a few threads in the past couple weeks. I guess I missed the one about the playground sand thief.

[sassafrass]

Live and learn thanks for the info
Lee