new HD Sand..brand is Sakrete

Walmart on Long Island NY has the prized sand. I snagged five bags for myself.

 

i used the sakrete natural play sand.... is it ok? i am experiencing extremely high nitrite levels & was wondering if this could be the reason?

 

If you can't or wont use a proper sand that serves a purpose then find a different hobby Sand is not a place to cut corners..Get a good agronite media and then seed that with a few pounds of a good L/Sand and use base rocks ad not live rock thats where you would far better of cutting a corner..

 

Silica sand wont hurt your tank. It wont. I promise. But at the same time Dr Ron Shimek has stated that its not the composition of the sand but the shape. Sand dwelling organisms dont like sharp or jagged sand such as silica. They like soft aragonite. You can use Kolorscape. I would recommend using some soft sand though. I've got tons of life in my kolorscape bed. Including burrowing snails and spaghetti worms. I dont think you'll get that with silica.

I would say find kolorscape or plunk down the money on quality stuff. If you want to save money use DIY rock. Its even cheaper than baserock.

 

The only sand that can be safely used from Home Depot is what used to be called "Southdown" now called Yardright\Oldcastle, it is argonite beach sand, and is same stuff LFS's sell for much more $$$ --- unfortunately it is not carried by most of the Home Depot outlets. You might be lucky. You could always request a special order.

See: YardRight/OldCastle Tropical Play Sand

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Description
From the YardRight website:

Tropical Play Sand from the Caribbean is sterilized and silica-free.

From the Caribbean our Tropical Play Sand from YardRight™ Select is all-natural product from the Caribbean. It has a bright white color and a pure, soft feel. It's screened, sterilized and safe for kids.


Aragonite Sand

SKU # 578-819
UPC # 0-210026-16865-5
Model # 420-100


Comments:
YardRight Tropical Play Sand is an aragonite sand. It is not mined and does not contain silica dust like many playsands do. Many playsands are made from crushed rock which is mined and filled with impurities that should not be in any crabitat.

Many playsands contain crystalline silica, also known as quartz. Exposure to crystalline silica dust can cause lung diseases such as silicosis. Crystalline silica is a colorless mineral, also called quartz. It is an ingredient in sand and flint, which are used in making glass, cement, and concrete.

While the playsand you find in ToysRUs and other places is a lot less expensive this is one case where quality of a product far outweighs the cost.




You could also try to order online here.

Order online here: Just Phish ---


Even with shipping, you save bundles of money if you needed a couple of bags or more.


Good Luck

 

Kolorscape is calcium sand. Its not aragonite but it can safely be used. Its in all my DIY rock from the last few years. Its in my frag system. And theres 500lbs of it in the 1k gallon system. I've got lots of critters living happily in my frag tanks.

I've fizzed tested it and its passes. But it too is hard to find.

 

Its not that silica sand is that bad for the tank it just kills fish that siphon it to get the pods out and such. Sandsifting gobies for example it cuts there gills and they die. and any other fish that ingests it I have used a little bit in mantis tanks cause they like the real fine sand to build there burrows with but I would not put it in a tank with any fish or stars. or anenomes it blows and they get it and get infections from the sharpness of it.