angelfish Posted May 25, 2005 Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 looking at setting up a marine tank for home, but i dont like the sand (coral sand) that i got from brooklands for the tank at work. what do you guys use, and where do you get it from? im looking for very fine, very white sand. any ideas? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Control Posted May 25, 2005 Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 You should stick to coral sand. Why don't you like it? its what is in the reefs anyway. Aaron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RnB Posted May 25, 2005 Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 its not all the same different sand (from coral reefs in different locations) looks quite different Kelly Tarlton (sp?) imported from a special location to get the nice white looking sand for their recent sting ray tank........ I could find out where if you are interested but suspect you would probably need to import about 500-1000kg to make it worth while.... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Control Posted May 25, 2005 Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 That could be a bit of a mission but if you succeed there would be a good market for it. Funny that you mentioned Kelly Tarlton I've just been talking to someone about a problem that they are having with there ozone system. Aaron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angelfish Posted May 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 good reason to get a bigger tank!just kidding, but imagine the size of the tank you would need to find a home for all that sand!!!! the coral sand in the tank at work is quite a big grain size (if that makes sense). looks almost like gravel instead of sand. i just thought we could get play sand or something similar (like they talk about on the aquaria central site) but perhaps we cant... oh well, thanks for the help guys, it might have to be coral sand then Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lduncan Posted May 25, 2005 Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 I prefer coarse sand (gravel) in a display because it's easy to vacuum and keep clean to avoid the DSB effect. Also less of a problem in high flow tanks, it stays put (most of the time). The sand you hear about on other forums is "Southdown" which is a carbonate based sand, as opposed to the silica based sands which are common here in NZ. Carbonate sand is white, silica sand is generally not. Layton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angelfish Posted May 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 thanks layton. i guess the coral sand will be ok, better when siphoning etc like you said. ill get over its 'lumpy' look. didnt want to go for a deep sand bed, just thought their sand always looked so nice and white. oh well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted May 25, 2005 Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 probably because the stingrays are always nose diving into it Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angelfish Posted May 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
chimera Posted May 25, 2005 Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 I prefer coarse sand (gravel) in a display because it's easy to vacuum and keep clean to avoid the DSB effect. Also less of a problem in high flow tanks, it stays put (most of the time). i agree, the white sand is obviously a nicer look too. i have coarse white sand in my main tank and a finer sand in my refugium. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RnB Posted May 25, 2005 Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 chim - didn't you use silica pool filter sand in your refugia? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angelfish Posted May 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 sorry to hijak (sp?) my own thread, but does anyone know if the jebo tanks are ok for saltwater? ive seen that alot of people use the aqua one tanks, which are kinda the same. tank is a year old, and its a jebo R 390 if that helps. it didnt come with any instructions so i dont realy know if its 'salt proof'. and thanks again Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted May 25, 2005 Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 same thing as the viaaqua tanks, you can use them but they dont make for a very good setup Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angelfish Posted May 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 thanks brianemone. thought that might be the case. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Aquatopia Posted May 25, 2005 Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 Used to get a finer white sand in the UK - called P25 - think that just related to the granule size. Folks there use it in conjunction with a mix of other sand sizes for DSB's. Beware of fine sand though as it can get everywhere. (Even moreso than coral sand). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angelfish Posted May 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 brianemone, have you got a sump on your 88ltr setup? what is the main filtration on your tank (just power heads/live rock/ skimmer?)? do you get high nitrate levels? im thinking of doing the same sort of thing, maybe a 150ltr tank, no sump, lots of rock, skimmer, and maybe only two clowns, mushies, zoos etc. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angelfish Posted May 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 thanks pomereef. didnt realise the finer sand was so much trouble! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Brianemone Posted May 25, 2005 Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 main filtration is skimmer with live rock, i dont have a sump but i am upgrading and even if i was staying with a tank of the current size i would still have a sump, well worth the effort, its just that when i moved i didnt have the time to set one up. big pain in the but having the skimmer in the same tank, the heater doesnt make too much of a difference but the skimmer :-? :evil: get a sump even in the most simple setup dont have a problem with nitrates as i have quite a bit of liverock and only three fish but should really only have two :oops: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angelfish Posted May 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 thanks for the reply brianemone. now how do i convince my partner that a sump isnt ANOTHER tank, doesnt cost even MORE money, and is easy peasy to setup!!!!! :roll: bonnie Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
dogmatix Posted May 25, 2005 Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 The new coral sphere sand thats availible is very nice IMO Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angelfish Posted May 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 what brand is it, and where do you get it from? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
petplanet Posted May 25, 2005 Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 Agreed. The spheres are very nice. Brooklands do them. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Control Posted May 25, 2005 Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 Think about what sort of activity you want in your sand. The coarser the better if you don't want any anairobic activity. But in saying that it depends on how deep you are going to make it. If you want the base to be anairobic go fine and deep. You can't just base this on looks, there are other things to consider. Aaron Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
angelfish Posted May 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 sorry guys, i understand what you're all saying. just thought there might be another way to do things. :oops: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
lduncan Posted May 25, 2005 Report Share Posted May 25, 2005 I would not recommend a "live" sand bed in a display. I would never plan to create a sand bed which would go anaerobic in a display, too many problems with removing phosphorous. My advice would be go with a thin bed (1-2in) with a 2-4mm grain size. And keep it well vacuumed. Layton Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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