Another sand thread ... sorry in advance :)

[johnhammond]

Hi all - have my 75g cleaned rinsed and ready to go. Am planning on using play sand for the substrate (I like the colour better than the sand I can get in the LFS).

I started cleaning it tonight but not sure I'm getting anywhere. I can get my bucket of sand rinsed so the water rinses pretty clear, but if I stir it up a bit I'm right back where I started - cloudy sand water. I figure either
- The play sand is no good
- All sand clouds up if you stir it like that when it's 50/50 sand/water.
- I am not a very good sand washer

I searched the forums and apart from finding about the secret sand club (which sound like fun by the way!) it seems like there is a mix of opinion.

I guess my question is this:

Is there a way to tell if the sand is clean enough apart from dumping 100 pounds of it my my tank and filling it up?

A much fun as that sounds I'm not sure I want to explain why I'm dragging 100 pounds of wet sand back *out* through the house :-) Or am I just worrying too much?!

[labnjab]

I just added play sand to all my tanks, and i rinsed it pretty good, using a 21 gallon tub, by hosing it down with high pressure filling up the tub, and then dumping the water out, and repeat for a half hour or so, the water wasn't completely clear, but way better then when i started rinsing it. Once i put it it my tanks, they were cloudy for about 24 hours, and now their crystal clear. Its well worth it.

[Lady Hobbs]

The last time I added play sand to my 55 gallon, I was really lazy. I filled the tank half full of water, jumped the sand (dry) right in the tank, stirred it up then did a 90 percent water change. Worked fine.

Stirring it will constantly cloud the water up. Let it settle then turn your filters on. If it's really cloudy, do a large water change.

[jb300m01]

I used a small mop bucket, about 2 gallons. Filled it up 2/3 with sand and shoved a hose in and tilted the bucket every few minutes. Stirred up the sand with my hand until it came out clear. It was cloudy for about 24 hours.

[joe1567]

it willn't get perfectly clean I had the same problem and the filter will get what you missed.:c3:

[Gemstone]

Don't worry so much....put your filters on and leave for 24 hours...if still cloudy. do a big water change....and leave for a few hours again...you WILL see the difference and reap the benefits...I promise.:11:

[Sounguru]

I want black sand but I can't find anyone with 3m in stock...... Arrghhh

[Gemstone]

we use pool filter sand...the cloudiness is minimal and gone in about half an hour..

[johnhammond]

Ok - I'll give that lazy sounding option a try ;-) Should have the tank up and running in a few days, will post some pics when I do.

[Lady Hobbs]

Hey, easier to do water changing right from the tank than bucket by bucket full. I DO HOPE you have a python to make those water changes easier?

It also helps to lay a plastic bag over the sand and fill that way. The bag helps hold down the sand. Just make sure it settles before turning on your filter. 15 minutes or so.

[KingFisher]

When I rinsed my playsand, I dumped the bag of sand in a tote and let the hose run in the tote while stirring the sand. As the water overflowed out of the tote, all the lighter particles were removed. It took about a half hour, until when the hose was removed, the sand settled quickly to the bottom of the tote and the water looked clear. After adding it to the tank, the water only looked cloudy for an hour or two. It has been perfectly clear ever since.

[johnhammond]

I ended up using the Lady Hobbs method (or should that be the Lazy Hobbs method :hmm3grin2orange: ).

Basically just dumped two bags of play sand in the tank, filled and emptied a couple of times and then turned the filter on. Within 24 hours the tank was pretty clear, and now 3 days later it's looking ready to go. Now just need to decorate, cycle and add fish!

Thanks for the advice!
John

[verbosity]

This thread has pictures of sand cleaning:
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