It's the same with getting ocean water, Assuming your close to sea/ beach to obtain sand you may want to do the same with water. But sea water gathered close to shore has the same problems -the closer you are to shore the more contaminants the water has.
Actually the problem with beach sand is not really pollution but the grain size is too small. My first salt tank was beach sand, (they diden't sell salt water aquarium sand them) and it became a mess of hydrogen sulfide.
You don't hardly get any circulation through it.
I am talking north east coast of the US sand.
Other places it may be better.
Sand is usually silicate and easy to clean out any pollution if there is any.
Exactly Paul. It all depends what beach your talking about. I have a friend here in SC who has a local cold water tank. Everything in it is from here including the sand. If you want to use beach sand you need to get it from a remote location and only take the upper top layer. The deeper you go into the sand the less wash out there will be and concentration of pollutants.
She actually did. That was ocean sand and ocean water taken from about 5 miles out in the Gulf of Mexico.
Needless to say she tore the entire tank down and started from scratch a week later and now has an awesome reef.
She actually did. That was ocean sand and ocean water taken from about 5 miles out in the Gulf of Mexico.
Needless to say she tore the entire tank down and started from scratch a week later and now has an awesome reef.