Pool Filter Sand

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Curtis
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Pool Filter Sand

Post by Curtis » Tue Mar 20, 2007 4:22 am

Does anyone use straight pool filter sand with their loaches? I'm probably purchasing two 265 gallon tanks before September and I'm trying to decide on a substrate for these tanks.

If you use this sand, does the brightness of the sand cause the loaches to grey out more to blend in with the sand?

Do you have any other good suggestions for substrate?

In the past I have used gravel that is "natural" colored... tan/brownish. But gravel is farely expensive for this size of tank... just wondering what others are doing.

Thanks.

aquariumjunkie
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Post by aquariumjunkie » Tue Mar 20, 2007 5:11 am

I've used sand from work. I think its called "Lapis Luster". It's natural colored, and my loach doesnt seem to "pale" out. Three 50 LB bags for free... cant complain
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Total Package
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Post by Total Package » Tue Mar 20, 2007 8:21 am

I'm putting it in my tank in another 2 weeks when i set it up. It seems to be a common substrate to use but I went with it mainly since it's clean for the price.

Aquarium sand goes for $0.75-1.20/lb

Pool sand $0.20-0.25/lb

General purpose/play sand ~$0.10/lb

You save some with the general purpose sand, but what i've seen is much more variable in size and dustier. I like the look of the black sand, but the aquarium sand is just way too expensive when you need to get over 100lbs of it.

hemi
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Post by hemi » Tue Mar 20, 2007 8:24 am

home depot play sand
3bucks for 50 lbs
worst part is you gotta rinse it
it took me 3 hours per 100lbs

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Icewall42
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Post by Icewall42 » Tue Mar 20, 2007 1:47 pm

I used Quikrete commercial grade sand, it's very fine and consistently sized, though a little on the bright side. I paid $4.50 per 50lbs. bag, great deal. But yeah, the downside if that you have to rinse it, it took me 5 hours for like 75lbs of sand rinsing :(

Oldfish
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Post by Oldfish » Tue Mar 20, 2007 2:17 pm

curtis I used pool sand in my 700 gallon tank and it works great. You'll find that different brands have different colors and grain size so look around to find what you like. I got mine at Meijer.

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shari2
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Post by shari2 » Tue Mar 20, 2007 2:49 pm

some pool places sell their sand in clear plastic bags. You can see what you're getting. The lightness varies from grey to beige and everywhere in between. You'll find nearly each bag is somewhat different.
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Curtis
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Post by Curtis » Tue Mar 20, 2007 3:09 pm

Do loaches or fish have an issue with the brightly colored sand? Do the fish not color up as well? Also, how is your maintenance especially on your 700 gallon tank.

Curtis
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Post by Curtis » Tue Mar 20, 2007 3:23 pm

Oldfish - how many pounds of sand did you put in your 700 gallon tank? What all do you have in the tank?

Oldfish
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Post by Oldfish » Tue Mar 20, 2007 9:31 pm

Curtis wrote:Oldfish - how many pounds of sand did you put in your 700 gallon tank? What all do you have in the tank?
There is about 600 lbs of sand,a pile of driftwood, 12 clowns, 5 Yasuhiotakia modesta, 6 Osphronemus laticlavius,2 sunshine pleco,1 golden nugget pleco,1 striped talking cat,and 1 small giraffe cat.

Oldfish
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Post by Oldfish » Tue Mar 20, 2007 9:45 pm

Curtis wrote:Do loaches or fish have an issue with the brightly colored sand? Do the fish not color up as well? Also, how is your maintenance especially on your 700 gallon tank.
I think most fish washout on white sand and tend to look better on darker colors but lighter colors reflect light better making the tank look brighter. Maintenance is easy.I use a bead filter and pump rated for a 4000 gal koi pond.Every week I backwash the filter until 25-30% of the water is gone then fill it backup and I'm done!

Curtis
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Post by Curtis » Tue Mar 20, 2007 11:20 pm

Old fish - do you have issues with your clowns washing out on the sand? Since you used pool filter sand it should be fairly white.

Can you post me a link to the bead filter you use and the pump you use.

I'm currently putting together a central system that will house around 1000 gallons or so... and until you mentioned it I never even heard of a bead filter.

Thanks.

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crazy loaches
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Post by crazy loaches » Tue Mar 20, 2007 11:37 pm

Curtis, what part of Ohio are you in? I'm setting up a 240G for my loaches and have run into a wall with the substrate. IMO black looks really sharp and all the colors of the fish stand out. I was originally going to use AquaSoil Amazonia (black) but its far to light and was told the tank will be a continous dust storm. The I was told about 3M ColorQuartz which apparently is very similar to Tahitian Black Moon Sand but cheaper. Its ceramic coated quartz and available in two sizes. The problem is its only available in Cleveland (in Ohio atleast) and the fellow there seems to be charging almost double what people have paid for it (although those figures are a couple years old now). Its $30-35 for a 50# bag, depending on grade. The fine grade is very small and perfectly smooth 'spheres'. The larger one is rougher and is questionable if it will be good for loaches. I havent decided if I am going to fork over that much for it when I can get pool filter sand so much cheaper. I just dont like the white look. But maybe it will grow on me.

About sands though, they are pretty much all locally sourced. I got really excited seing a post about Quikrete Medium Sand. Although it wasnt black it was a natural tan and much coarser than most sands which I find too fine. I have a post and have pictures of it (check out the pictures here). But after looking at my local HD and Lowes I found out that what we have available here was completely different. The Quikrete Medium Sand here wasnt coarse at all, just as fine as the regular sand sitting next to it, and it was even more pale white. I was dissapointed :cry:

Curtis
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Post by Curtis » Wed Mar 21, 2007 12:01 am

Crazy Loaches -

I'm from Euclid, Ohio

Where are you getting this substrate from? I might be able to stop by the store since I go to a lot of fish stores in the area.

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crazy loaches
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Post by crazy loaches » Wed Mar 21, 2007 3:24 am

Dont know exactly where they are in cleveland but your a lot closer than I! The only reason I am even considering it is becuase I do often travel up to East Canton (inlaws) and that puts me half way to cleveland. Anyhow, 3M ColorQuartz isnt something you'll find in a LFS. Its a commercial aggregate most often used lining pools to give them color and texture. Check it out on 3M's website: http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/!ut/ ... QEAHTt83Y! and to see the dealer in cleveland click the 'where to buy' link in the left nav bar and select distributers and ohio, theres only 1.

I am just considering this, since its more costly now than it used to be. But its still about the cheapest way to get black sand other than maybe coal slag used for sandblasting (not sure how rough that is though). Pool filter sand is so much cheaper, but I just dont like the white look. Lots of folks on other forums have used this stuff, not sure about here. For a great read [long though] take a look at http://www.cichlid-forum.com/phpBB/view ... hp?t=43290 it will probably tell you all you ever wanted to know about it. Maybe if there is enough interest we could get a slight discount, but not too much. I think a local guy here in columbus says he pays about $28/50# for it (but wanted to charge me $45-50/# for it). I'd have to call the guy back though to see how much it would take to get that discount but I wouldnt plan on getting it any less than $30-35/50#.

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