Silica sand

[lava]

Hey I just bout some silica sand, its white and is VERY FINE(almost like flour). Doe you guys think the fish may have a problem eating food of the sand? like they might end up swallowing some in the process. It looks like it rises really fast , settles a little bit slower , very clean almost not cloudynes , a little of it floats up top and wont sink and binds a little together .
:( I am trying to get some cory cats but have a hard time finding sand around my place, I dont wanna order any online cuz then I have to pay a hefty change cuz it weights a lot. Any opinions would be greatly appreciated .

[Fishguy2727]

There are some risks with that type of sand. One is that it is so fine it is easy to develop toxic anoxic pockets. Another risk is your filters. Since it doesn't sink fast it is easy for it to get into the filter and burn it out.

This is why I stick with and only recommend sands made for aquarium use.

[lava]

hmm this sucks cuz not even my petco or petsmart sell any sand, I only see sand for marine stuff that has already some sort of water in it.

[Wild Turkey]

go for play sand over silica sand for the reasons fishguy listed. Make sure you pre rinse it. Some people maintain silica sand can be too sharp for some bottom feeders i believe.

[Fishguy2727]

Play sand is a type of silica sand. All sand except true marine sands (which are calcium based) are silica based. People seem to have good results with play and pool filter sands. I use Estes' Marine Sand, which is available online.

[Wild Turkey]

The only type i can find advertised as such is what the op is describing, like powder almost, and you should have a mask for, its what ive always thought thats what people use for pools, but its not always called pool sand. I dont doubt they are primarily the same you would know better than I Fg.
The fine stuff is supposed to be bad for reptiles too. The play sand is rougher and less uniform and not as attractive, but its a lot less expensive than the aquarium marketed sands, i never hear of people having problems with it so I would try that first. Rinse it though, i dont think estes has to be rinsed but i would rinse that too honestly.

Edit: But, if you can find 3m color quartz i believe thats the same thing as estes, so you wont have to buy X amount of 5 lb bags at retail price.

[Wiggs]

I got my Este's for $3.99 a 5lb bag. While its a bit more expensive(not terrible) My fish love it and it settled very well.

Also, while it is not a true marine sand, i don't believe it is silica based, correct me if I'm wrong.

[Fishguy2727]

It is silica based. It has a polymer coating on it to help prevent silica problems (like certain types of algae). I use it in my reef, but no it is not a true marine sand since it is not calcium based.

[lava]

Thank you so much for your input guys! I did see play sand at the home depot that I was at. But didnt go for it because I liked the white silica color. The play sand had a grayish color it claimed to be natural sand >_>" I just want something to look really close to the sand in oceans like the white kind. Do you guys think the gray play sand that I saw in home depot would get even more darker once it becomes submerged?

[Wild Turkey]

most everything looks lighter in the aquarium, dropping in grey stones often makes them appear white. Start a thread and ask people with play sand to post pictures and see if you like it

[lava]

Alright thanks :)

[Heliwyr]

These are all with play sand in them. My tanks have a very small amount of playsand, and yes, it does look like this. Especially the first one.

Pictures (not of any tank I have):

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[lava]

That looks so nice! I am sure the gray play sand wont look so good! :(

[Wild Turkey]

For the most part it only comes in one color which is off-white or light grey as far as i know, i havent looked anywhere but the hardware store though. However it looks like the pictures above in the aquarium because like i say, it looks lighter. The white stuff looks too bright once its in there imo

[lava]

Is play sand pretty close to being small grain size like the silica I discribed? btw I hope your right because now I am excited to go buy it but its night time LOL. I will head to home depot tomorrow!!

[Wild Turkey]

Is play sand pretty close to being small grain size like the silica I discribed? btw I hope your right because now I am excited to go buy it but its night time LOL. I will head to home depot tomorrow!!

Its literally the stuff that you put in little kids sandboxes. exactly the same stuff, in fact, you are 1 out of 10 people that are purchasing it for something other than that most likely

[tim k]

I used Silica sand in my African tank for years without any problem at all.
My LFS sold it as budgie gravel I believe , it was a medium fine grade

I would simply vacume up one side of the sand bed every week or so just before doing a water change to keep it clean.
I would also avoid making the bed to deep.

My shell dwellers really liked playing in the stuff and it was cheap.

Tim K

[*Sarah*]

I use pool filter silica sand and have no problems with it at all. I much prefer the look to gravel and it was CHEAP! For $20 I had enough for a good sand bed for my 100 gal. The fish seem to do just fine with it...I have had a green sev for over a year that doesn't have any health problems.
I will use this type of substrate for any future tanks I have, unless I do a planted tank, in which case I'd search out a nutrient rich type of substrate.

Oh and as far as the air pockets in the silica, just rake the sand gently when you do a water change and you're good to go :)

[Northernguy]

I use pool filter silica sand and have no problems with it at all. I much prefer the look to gravel and it was CHEAP! For $20 I had enough for a good sand bed for my 100 gal. The fish seem to do just fine with it...I have had a green sev for over a year that doesn't have any health problems.
I will use this type of substrate for any future tanks I have, unless I do a planted tank, in which case I'd search out a nutrient rich type of substrate.

Oh and as far as the air pockets in the silica, just rake the sand gently when you do a water change and you're good to go :)

I like the Pool sand as well.
It settles just as fast as gravel and is a breeze to vacuum.Its a large enough grain that gas pockets are not really a threat.It looks grey or off white when dry but seems to lighten up in color when its in the tank.
I love it!

[lava]

Thanks once again! I am on my way to home depot! :)