New Tank Needs Gravel

[DainBramage1991]

Hello, Everyone!

I'll finally be getting a big tank tomorrow, barring unforeseen circumstances. It is either a 75 or a 90 gallon tank (283 or 340l), I can't be sure until I pick it up. I'm buying it at a VERY good price and I wasn't about to give the previous owner a hard time about the specifics.

Needless to say, I'm looking forward to getting this tank going.

However, it needs a few things, including gravel. As I intend to migrate my loaches over to this new tank once it's cycled, I'd like to find some gravel that will be kind to their noses and barbels. All of the local stores around here supply standard sized aquarium gravel and river sand (which is more like silt and a nightmare to deal with), but nothing in-between.

I guess what I'm looking for is a fine gravel (not sand!) with rounded edges that's available in a variety of colors and doesn't cost a fortune. Does anyone know of a supplier or two I could look at?

[Diana]

I would suggest you look in stores that sell in bulk to landscapers. You might find them listed with any of these headings:
Brick
Rock
Soil
Masonry
Gravel
Mulch
Bark
and probably some other headings.

Take some zip-lock baggies and a Sharpie.
Get a handful of whichever gravel you like and label the baggie.
Take the sample home and test to see if it is going to alter the water parameters. You can put a few drops of acid on it, if you want. If it fizzes, that is not good. Even better, put each gravel in a separate jar of water. The same water you will be using for the aquarium, even some old water out of the established tank.
Test for GH, KH and pH, TDS, too, if you have a meter. Test at the beginning, then every few days for a week. Any gravel that changes the parameters in the jar will do the same thing in the aquarium.

Most gravel weighs about 100 lbs per cubic foot.

1 cubic foot of gravel (or anything else) spread 2" deep will cover 6 square feet.
The same amount spread over 1.5" covers 8 square feet.

[plaalye]

Good suggestions from Diana. Also have a look at Carib Sea Torpedo Beach. It's sand but not so fine. I use it without problems. I think they have other colors in the same size. For the past few years though I've been going to a bar at one of the local rivers & sifting my own. A wooden box with 1/8th in mesh wire on the bottom for the first step. Then basic window screen and dunk well in the river to eliminate fines & dirt. What I'm left with is just the right size for me. Not the smoothest but seems to be fine. I wash it well and soak in a mild bleach solution & rinse well again. I have tested it for leaching & no problems but that will vary depending on geological make up of your area.

[DainBramage1991]

Unfortunately, the local rocks and gravel around here are all heavily loaded with iron and various other unfriendly stuff. It would be very difficult (I'd literally have to pick the gravel piece by piece) to acquire it locally, either by sifting or through local sand and gravel distributors.

Much as I would love to use free/low priced materials, I think I'm stuck with the commercial pre-bagged variety. I will look into the Carib Sea Torpedo Beach, and see what I think.

Thanks for the suggestions!

By the way, it's a 90 gallon tank.

[Diana]

Good that you are aware of the local problems with collecting gravel, good luck with packaged products!
Have a good look on the floor and shelf where these materials are sold. You might find a few grains, a handful from a broken bag. If you can get that and test to see that it does not alter the mineral levels and pH of the water that would be good.

[DainBramage1991]

I know from previous experience that the brands of aquarium gravel sold locally are fine as far as quality and chemistry go, but they are more course than I would like to use in the new tank. I did find some gravel/sand on Big Als that looks like it might fit the bill (yes, I like colored gravel - please don't have me banned from the forum )

http://www.bigalspets.com/fish/substrat ... -5-lb.html

Does anyone have any experience with this brand?

[Diana]

My fish all turned funny colors and put on red clown noses! JK