southdown warning

[consigliere]

went to home depot today for southdown sand.....noticed there is a warning about "not for aquarium use" on the bag.....is this something new?? bag looks different also....same colors etc but doesn't say southdown on it anywhere....
any body else notice this ?

 

[AngelMaster]

Do a search on Southdown, it was discussed previously. here's just one of the many threads



Some people have used it in aquariums with no problems,others have found all sorts of nasty stuff in it.
http://reefs.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t=28962&highlight=southdown

 

[Len]

The warning has been there for a while, pretty much for legal purposes. The material hasn't changed. But what AngelMaster said is true: people have had mixed experiences using Southdown.

 

[Anonymous]

Here's a thread discussing the labeling:
http://reefs.org/phpBB2/viewtopic.php?t ... n+aquarium

I think the problems people have had with southdown they would also have with any fine silty sand. I haven't heard of anything nasty found in it if chemicals are whats meant. I'm sure people find rusty nails, skulls and thats sort of thing however...

 

[teevee]

i expect the sand is filtered before it is bagged. you can't have children playing in sand full of rusty nails. you'd be just asking for a lawsuit.

 

[AngelMaster]

I heard one guy found a barbie doll head

he still wakes up at night screaming

 

[Anonymous]

The warning on the label is bullcrap!

 

[consigliere]

my biggest concern is it doesn't say "southdown" on the front of the bag anymore....anyone else notice this ? still the same little boy with the shovel and blue and red colors though....

 

[Anonymous]

my biggest concern is it doesn't say "southdown" on the front of the bag anymore....anyone else notice this ? still the same little boy with the shovel and blue and red colors though....

Mine says Southdown.

 

[lawndoctor]

People have reported finding all sorts of things in both play sands and dedicated reef sands including nails, rocks, glass, and bullet casings. One batch of SD formed a layer of cement in one of my old tanks. The Barbie Doll head is the best one I've heard in a while.

At this point, I wouldn't trust any dry sand right out of the bag. Before putting any in a tank, I would pour it dry through a screen first, then test a sample from each bag in salt water. These two steps would eliminate nearly all of the problems I've heard on this board and RC over the years.