• We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo

Why not to use sand

I've seen oscars eat MTS in my tanks. They do everything short of crush them flat in their mouths then spit out the shell bits. Oscars will attempt to eat anything that will fit in their mouths.
 
HEHEHEH!, when will you FW peoples get the drift from the reefers? Sand, in DEEP beds, at least 3-4 inches, can be VERY beneficial to a tank. It provides room for nitrates to be denitrified into harmless stuff, mostly free nitrogen and water, I think, and provides for better root growth in planted tanks. The secret to keeping the sand clean is to utilize a cleanup crew, just like the reefers. Introduce some tubiflex worms, not alot, but some, befor you stock the tank. Add some snails, as mentioned earlier, and you won't need to continually stir up the sand. The worms and snails will take care of that for you.
Hope this helps.
 
Lupin;3200631; said:
Sand is heavier than fish poop. That is unlikely to happen.
That was my point? I meant the waste wouldn't get under the sand unless you literally yourself attempted to bury it, and somehow succeeded...
 
great information! this has me second guessing my sand now......
 
hehe nobody has mentioned the fact that there isnt just one type of sand......!!!!!! Sure if you get very fine sand it will mess up your tank.... it will clog filters,, it will compact quickly and will not provide oxygen to plant roots... and cus the gass bubles to form ect ect blah blah( to be honest id say the only way these bubles could be very harmful is if some1 took a pile of **** stuck it under the sand and left it there without stiring it up..)i know here in Ireland alot of people get playsand because its very cheap... And it never works out. I just use Aqurium sand i got from my LFS its more expensive but its perfectly fine.... It doesnt cloud up water and go into filter even when my 13" Plecos decided to go a bit crazy..... It anchors the plants roots and lets oxygen reach them! Sand is perfectly fine in aquariums... Just dont get fine sand...(well Depends of setup)! Sicila Sand is very good,,,,!
 
can anyone post any proof that sand alone resulted in fish loss in their tank?
 
nitrates and nitrites cant be "trapped" in sand, they are molecules and too small to get trapped. fish waste on the other hand can get trappped and is more likely to be in gravel IMO. nitrates will be the same at the bottom of sand as in the water,,sand cant create a osmotic barrier.
 
just look at the water in the bucket. the water is far dirtier in a bucket from a gravel vacuum that it is from a sand vacuum WC
 
my point being that much more rots and breaks down in a gravel tank, where as in sand, it remains close to the surface and doesn't get trapped for months
 
My Loaches would hate me if I took away their sand. They love to dig & move stuff around. BTW, I was told aquarium sand was heavier than play sand due to higher iron content. Anyone else back that up? I know it sux when you drop a magnet in the sand...
 
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