Substrate decision

[tbittner]

And I'll also be putting the rock in first to it's resting on the glass, then I'll add the sand so the sand won't need to cover the entire bottom.

 

[kare-bear]

Thatpetplace.com has sand on sale right now. I had free shipping for orders over $100. Check it out. I just ordered 200lb. I did pay for overweight shipping but it was only $80.

 

[tbittner]

Ok, here is what I ended up ordering:

(5) 40 lb bags of the Ocean Direct Caribbean Live Sand - 200 lbs
(10) 30 lb bags of the Aragamax Sand - 300 lbs
(10) 40 lb bags of the Seaflor Special Grade - 400 lbs


That seems like the best of everything and it should satisfy even the pickiest of substrate dwellers AND give the aquarium pretty good buffering.

In this order, I also ordered (4) 160g IO/RC salt mix and 1 each of the 64 oz bottles of the phytoplankton and microvert food. Shipping for everything was $17.99

I have no idea how they do it but I'm not complaining...

 

[naperenterprise]

Wow! Shipping is GREAT!!!

 

[Jimw369]

I am not a fan of the sugar sized sand at all. It doesnt stay put and is easily blown around the tank. We are always cramming more and more LR and corals in our tanks making it harder to keep good flow to all areas and so we ramp up the powerheads and then the sand starts blowing around. Also if you tear any of these DSB apart with the sugar sized sand you will find the sand below 4" is all chunked up and no flow is going thru it at all. Maybe a DSB with a plenum is different dont know. Also the aragamax sand is a better buffer for the tank than the others. Pretty important too.

 

[elliottb]

How deep are you planning to have the sand bed? I have 200lbs in my 40 and it gave me a 5.5" DSB.

 

[tbittner]

My sand bed will be between 5 and 7 inches. Jim, that's the reason I bought the mixture. It's going to be all mixed together and it should prevent any kind of clumping. But the mix should be to the liking of a bunch of different sand living critters. All of the sands that I bought are Aragonite and should provide decent buffering and the aragamax will help to boost it just a bit more. I actually haven't had an issue with maintaining an 8.2 - 8.4 PH but I wanted to be sure I didn't after bringing the 450 online.

Oh yeah, and if I was planning on a DSB and the nitrate reduction they provide, then wouldn't you want the sand packed together as tight as it could be to protect the bacteria that develops deep in the bed? It should have very little flow deep down. At least, that is the way I understand for them to work.

 

[Basile]

Please take a look at the following substrates and give me your opinion as to what you would use and why. I want to eventually get one or two Bluespot Jawfish so please take that into consideration. This is for my 450g 120x24x36 and I'm going to have a closed loop running on this tank with between 8,000 and 13,000 gph flow. I figured I'm going to need around 600 pounds of the sand of choice.

Aragamax Aquarium Sand
I've heard some bad things about this sand. With really good circulation, this sand won't settle.


Seaflor Special Grade Reef Sand
It's more expensive but it's thicker grained.

Marine Substrates: Ocean Direct Caribbean Live Sand at Drs. Foster & Smith
Least expensive and it does look nice. Thicker grained.

Marine Reef Aquarium Substrates: Arag-Alive
Either the Fuji Pink or the Special Grade.

I have the Caribian one and i like its simplicity, the funky one ,or dark one is a problem one. A friend has it and regrets it. First you have difficulty identifying, bad algae,the color makes it difficult, second when you see the problem its too late, think( pests- algae overtakes, bacteria etc.) Plus your sand should be just a medium not the attraction, your fishes and corals are. Thicker grains mean nitrate traps, and gunk trap. For your fish make him a pvc, tunel, with 2 openings at different ends and burry it in the sand , he'll love that little cavern, that he didn't have to dig(it take a few day before he uses it ,so be patient) On thickness, well the thicker it is the worse for nitrate trapping. Youll have to make more water changes. 2 inch for normal and max 4 inch if you have species that NEED's it. DSB get full of green, brown gunk, its not pretty. At 2 inch your cleaning crew can help, but you'll still have to siphon most of your sand bed, So at 6 or 7 like some say its crazy, your time will be double cleaning and the water change will too. I had a DSB and now a 3", and i can get away with Water changes every 45 days, no more and my nitrates only at 10 on the 45 day. try that with DSB.
I travel alot for my job and i come back every 45 days for a while that how i know . Never thought things would be alive after that long, but they where and still are.

 

[Basile]

My sand bed will be between 5 and 7 inches. Jim, that's the reason I bought the mixture. It's going to be all mixed together and it should prevent any kind of clumping. But the mix should be to the liking of a bunch of different sand living critters. All of the sands that I bought are Aragonite and should provide decent buffering and the aragamax will help to boost it just a bit more. I actually haven't had an issue with maintaining an 8.2 - 8.4 PH but I wanted to be sure I didn't after bringing the 450 online.

Oh yeah, and if I was planning on a DSB and the nitrate reduction they provide, then wouldn't you want the sand packed together as tight as it could be to protect the bacteria that develops deep in the bed? It should have very little flow deep down. At least, that is the way I understand for them to work.

I don't know where you get your info , but its wrong. Aragonite has no nitrate reduction what so ever. Its a carbon base medium, of mostly shells. Calcite base too. Its reponsable for rendering your water pristine clear, it adds calcium also. It irridescent, columnar, radiant,fibrous in nature. Thats why is so good at filtering, look at the picture. For that reason its a NITRATE TRAP, not reducing it. The only uses is for its fitration and it keep the temparature more stable in the tank. It traps also oxygen wich your bacteria needs to decompose your wastes, and make home to critters who eats the waste columb, of your tank.