Light Colored Sand/Substrate

[Drayden Farci]

Hello all,

Curious about what your go-to sand options are. I have used the average tan/beige sand at 2-6mm my whole life, but I'm looking to go with a lighter color and smaller pebble size in my next tank. See the following video for an example:

I haven't looked into play sand yet, but I imagine it's more of the brown color than what I'm looking for. Anyone have experience with CaribSea products? Their website shows Crystal River, Moonlight Sand, and Torpedo Beach as possible "white" sands.

33 Long Biotope coming soon, most likely home to Apistogramma sp. Totaya until I find something else

 

[Bart Hazes]

I use pool filter sand. It is a little too white to my taste and grains are a bit coarser than I'd prefer but meets your description. Other benefits is that it is super clean, so no need to rinse (I never do for any substrate anyway) and you can buy it in bags. It is also completely inert and doesn't increase water hardness (our local play sand raises hardness slowly). Alternatively you can check out your landscaping supplier in town to look at their play and other types of sand. There may be one to your liking and will be lowest cost option. But you may want to bring home a small sample first, add it to pure RO water and see if the hardness creeps up.

 

[Tlindsey]

I have play sand in my setup decided to use it for my Banjo Catfish who love to burrow in it during lights on. The only negative is play sand is more difficult to keep clean imo. Also didn't know it increases hardness.

 

[Bart Hazes]

I have play sand in my setup decided to use it for my Banjo Catfish who love to burrow in it during lights on. The only negative is play sand is more difficult to keep clean imo. Also didn't know it increases hardness.

Not all play sands are created equal so impact on hardness is probably variable. In addition, you will only notice the impact on hardness if you aim for very soft water. My tanks are on pure RO water so I care. If I had tanks on tap water it wouldn't matter.

I'm not sure if with 'keeping clean' you mean dirt/mulm accumulating on top of the sand or dirt getting into the sand. I've never found either to be a problem because I like a layer of mulm, the decomposition of which provides food and CO2 for plants and, as a substrate for microbial life, it creates a source of food for fish fry. I guess it depends if you like your tanks to be spic & span according to human sensitivities or more natural.

 

[Tlindsey]

Not all play sands are created equal so impact on hardness is probably variable. In addition, you will only notice the impact on hardness if you aim for very soft water. My tanks are on pure RO water so I care. If I had tanks on tap water it wouldn't matter.

I'm not sure if with 'keeping clean' you mean dirt/mulm accumulating on top of the sand or dirt getting into the sand. I've never found either to be a problem because I like a layer of mulm, the decomposition of which provides food and CO2 for plants and, as a substrate for microbial life, it creates a source of food for fish fry. I guess it depends if you like your tanks to be spic & span according to human sensitivities or more natural.

I actually have play sand in 2 of my setups and I don't touch the sand in my Ram and Apistogramma because I get what you are saying about the microbial life and have leaves in the aquarium to decompose and hopefully provide food for whatever species spawns first. I use a gravel vac for all of my setups and sucking up the debris off the Play Sand is not as easy as with Pool filter Sand. I absolutely don't have any squeaky clean aquariums lol nice to see a little algae and a few Coepods scooting across the glass.

 

[Drayden Farci]

Any pics of the sand in your tanks? I don't intend on keeping it "clean", but rather leaving it to produce a nice layer of microbial bacteria to munch on and hide in.

 

[Tlindsey]

The play sand in the 40 gallon breeder Clown Loach growout had to put my Dat in there until it got better. The Datnoid moved the sand to the front with its tail fin lol the sand is so light.

The Apistogramma and Ram setup has the same colored play sand but it looks darker due to the tannins from the leaves and wood.

 

[Tlindsey]

The play sand in the 40 gallon breeder Clown Loach growout had to put my Dat in there until it got better. The Datnoid moved the sand to the front with its tail fin lol the sand is so light.

The Apistogramma and Ram setup has the same colored play sand but it looks darker due to the tannins from the leaves and wood.

Added more leaves and water is darker that is my Senegal Bichir setup above to compare coloration.

 

[Drayden Farci]

Yea, the bottom tank is pretty close to what I'm looking for. You get the play sand at a home improvement store?

 

[Tlindsey]

Yea, the bottom tank is pretty close to what I'm looking for. You get the play sand at a home improvement store?

Yes

 

[Tetranerd]

I use the Quick-Crete brand sand in my Corydoras tanks and Apistogramma tanks. A thin layer is easier to take care of. It’s tan and a little bright when fresh, but only takes a little leaf litter or wood to color things up nicely. It looks like all the natural amazon videos you find online. I find it in the hardware store next to the bags of concrete.