thougths on play sand???

[speed123]

what are you guys thought on play sand that is fully washed ...i was looking into using this for my tank that has already been established with crush coral......i would like to get rid of the crush coral and use sand but don't want the expense of live sand has anyone done this? what are the pros and cons of doing this?

 

[Anonymous]

Nearly all play sand is silica based. There are mixed feelings on this. Some claim that it's just fine, others claim that the silicates and phosphates will cause unwated algae outbreaks. Also, there was a thread awhile back that had photomicrographs of various types and brands of sands and substrates. If you look at caribsea or something similar, it looks like pea gravel. If you look at silica based play sand, it looks like shards of broken glass. Not very conducive to sandbed critters.

 

[Len]

I second everything John said

 

[taikonaut]

However, there are a few brand of playsand that are suitable for reefs. Southdown, for example, is one of the most famous one that many people used successfully. It is a calcium carbonite based sand that were mined off the shore of Carib. Sea.

 

[Anonymous]

:nodnod:

 

[shr00m]

i couldnt find southdown anywhere and i wasnt paying 20 bucks per 10 lb bag, i ended up finding some white play sand, which was actually just sand removed somewhere from the gulf... its white, i figured if it came from the ocean its probally ok... plus its better than anything else i had availble, just plain brown sand, i have much life in my dsb, its sugar white beach sand... if you have southdown availble use it for sure, but if you can find white play sand i think youll be happy