crushed marble vs. silica sand for DSB

[mikenegue]

I went to the local Home Depot, and they had two varieties of playsand:
1) Crushed Marble (from calcite ore)
2) Quikrete Silica Sand

Which is preferable for a DSB? Do I have any other options here in Southern California?

 

[Len]

Neither is very good IMO. I'd pay the premium and go with Caribsea aragonite sand, available at lots of LFS in LA or via mail order. Since the sandbed forms the literal and figurative foundation of your whole reef tank, I would not hesitate to invest in proven media.

 

[Reef Guy11]

I used Crushed Marble in my reef. I didn't like it, thought it was the cause of my low Calcium level. I have it in my FOWLR tank, Seeded with Live Sand from one of my old tanks. It doing good for that purpose.

 

[hillbilly]

I agree with Len. Carb-Sea aragonite is the best sand you can get, period. JMO, but I feel some people's algae problems could be traced to "hardware store" sand leaching phosphates.

 

[shr00m]

if its a small tank sure use carib-sea, but do you know some lfs's charge near 25-30 dollars per bag of carib sea, do you realise how much you wind up paying for sand in a DSB.... my sandbed is working great, i had the normal diatoms at first, then a small bout with hair algae, now all is good.... i used white beach play sand from walmart... its basically white sand collected from the beach, its probally only 25 percent aragonite and the rest silica... only some of it dissolves... yet it works really well. i for one would say the sand at the hardware store will work ok... you probally want to wash it first.... BUT if you have lots of cash to throw around the carib-sea is preferred.... but i realise if its a large tank its kind of hard to spend a lot of cash on sand that you know is in other states for around 5 bucks a bag.

 

[mikenegue]

I'll go check out the "local" Walmart (they're in short supply in the LA area as well -- but they just opened up a new megastore in Crenshaw with a great lot of hoopla). Are there any other stores to go and check out for a cheaper alternative to the Carib-Sea? I am a bit short on cash, and I'm even considering sand from the pristine beaches of California (though I'm being disuaded from that option).

 

[shr00m]

i would suggest the beach sand over hardware sand, if you collect it , sift it and wash it VERY VERY GOOD .... at least it will be white... its usable but make CERTAIN you clean the hell out of it.

 

[mikenegue]

I was being sarcstic about the "prisitne beaches" in Southern California. Does anyone have any comments on where I can get some cheap sand for a DSB?

What are the drawbacks of using Crushed Marble?
Is Silica-based sand proven to be inappropriate for aquarium use?

 

[RustySnail]

How much sand do you need? Put some posts on the drygoods FS page here and on RC and ask if someone has 'Southdown' sand available in the LA area. That's about the least expensive route to get aragonite sand for your tank. The word on other types of non-calcium based sands is that you will have trouble keeping the proper types of sandbed infauna alive; and the sandbed won't function to it's full potential.

 

[shr00m]

nope, not true, my bed is full of life...

 

[shr00m]

i think the people who say that are people who dont properly seed there bed.

 

[mikenegue]

what do you mean by "properly seed their bed"? is it a matter of the right source of "live sand" or the quantity of it or the method by which you apply it to the sand bed?

 

[shr00m]

more so quality, how much diversity the seeding sand has in it.... a detrivore kit, live sand starter kit or something similar is a great way to start out a sandbed if you cant get any really good starter scoop of l/s.

 

[mikenegue]

ok, I've physically gone to (after phone calls got me nowhere) the local Walmart, OSH, Home Depot, Lowes and Target stores... and all they have the same Quikrete Kiddie Play Sand (silica-based). Home Depot also has the Crushed Marble.

Any other suggestions? Just go with the Quikrete or Crushed Marble from Home Depot? By the way, I did see some sand at Lowe's that had an Old Castle label on it, but it had warnings of free silicates that were carcinogenic... is this sand any good for fish tanks?

 

[shr00m]

that really sucks quickrete is all you have availible, it will be brown

 

[hillbilly]

ok, I've physically gone to (after phone calls got me nowhere) the local Walmart, OSH, Home Depot, Lowes and Target stores... and all they have the same Quikrete Kiddie Play Sand (silica-based). Home Depot also has the Crushed Marble.

Any other suggestions? Just go with the Quikrete or Crushed Marble from Home Depot? By the way, I did see some sand at Lowe's that had an Old Castle label on it, but it had warnings of free silicates that were carcinogenic... is this sand any good for fish tanks?

Carcinogenic? That sounds healthy! :wink:

 

[Quigonsean]

Carcinogenic? That sounds healthy

Hey why should the fish have a better shot than us smokers 8O lol

 

[RustySnail]

nope, not true, my bed is full of life...

Never said that you would not have a sandbed 'full of life'... You could have a CC bed 'full of life' also. Just mentioning that it -may- not work as well as a sandbed with the ideal size/type of silt. If the grain sizes are too large your denitrification capacity will also be limited.

 

[shr00m]

i think anytime we breath in small particles it can be carcinaginic, think of when you open a bag of sand, tons of tiny airborne particles.... anything like that is not good for your lungs...

 

[Anonymous]

I've used calcite sand, works fine, it wont cause low calcium, someone would have to prove that one to me, after all it is calcium based, the chemical formula is CaCO3

it's also called Calcium Carbonate what a suprise

it can have impurities, I used stuff that was really really white, probably more pure than your average aragonite (anybody notice how brown that stuff is?)