# White/Tan substrate for low tech tank



## vincel892 (May 23, 2012)

So I'm in the process of gathering everything to convert my second 200 gallon into a low tech tank with these as my inspiration . Really interested in getting into more high end fish like altums, dantums, or german rams.

















Really want an easy and stable tank that I don't have to trim every one or two weeks. I am thinking of using some sort of white or tan sand as the substrate even though I've heard it could be a pain in the a** to keep clean. I've read that using a sand that is slightly off white and larger grain would make maintenance easier.

Just wanted to know if anyone has had experience using white or tan coloured sand, what type/brands I can use, and where I can get some for a good price.

Thanks.

Vincent


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## planter (Jun 9, 2008)

Those are some solid tanks dude real beauties. I'm also in the market for a similar sand. I tried white sand several years back and yeah it was a pain


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## cb1021 (Sep 21, 2009)

See if you like anything from Angelfins. 
http://angelfins.ca/index.php?main_page=index&cPath=28319_28275


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## vincel892 (May 23, 2012)

The ADA La Plata Sand is very nice...but also super expensive. i know a lot of people use pool filter sand but I'm worried that might get too dirty.


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## planter (Jun 9, 2008)

There used to be a sand that was brownish at home depot years back that was safe to use but I haven't seen it there for some time. I'll keep an eye out for it come spring when they gear up for the season.

I forgot what it's called.


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## vincel892 (May 23, 2012)

planter said:


> There used to be a sand that was brownish at home depot years back that was safe to use but I haven't seen it there for some time. I'll keep an eye out for it come spring when they gear up for the season.
> 
> I forgot what it's called.


Nice, please let me know


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## default (May 28, 2011)

La Plata is the best for this application, but it would definitely cost you.

IMO, just use pool filter sand, I've made 3-5 different paludariums and island layouts with it and it's worked out very well every time. It's actually 'cleaner' and easier to maintain than any other sand - the granules are quite large. Only drawback are the flecks of black mixed in, but it's not very noticeable.


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## planter (Jun 9, 2008)

La Plata for a 200 gallon tank is a steep bill.

This is a african tank I setup several years ago with sand I bought at home depot there was this super white which is what i have in this tank and another one that was a little more brownish.

I think I cost $10 for a 50lb bag


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## vincel892 (May 23, 2012)

default said:


> La Plata is the best for this application, but it would definitely cost you.
> 
> IMO, just use pool filter sand, I've made 3-5 different paludariums and island layouts with it and it's worked out very well every time. It's actually 'cleaner' and easier to maintain than any other sand - the granules are quite large. Only drawback are the flecks of black mixed in, but it's not very noticeable.


Thanks Lin. Thats reasurring. I may end up going with pool filter sand if I dont end up finding anything else.


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## vincel892 (May 23, 2012)

planter said:


> La Plata for a 200 gallon tank is a steep bill.
> 
> This is a african tank I setup several years ago with sand I bought at home depot there was this super white which is what i have in this tank and another one that was a little more brownish.
> 
> I think I cost $10 for a 50lb bag


Nice tank, I'll probably check out home depot, lowes, rona etc and see if I can find what you're talking about. Do you think it could have pool filter sand?


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## planter (Jun 9, 2008)

No I've had pool filter sand this was much finer and had no black specks mixed in it. It was pure white


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## vincel892 (May 23, 2012)

Just found some Tan coloured sand on AI website

http://aionair.com/index.php?route=product/category&path=107


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## planter (Jun 9, 2008)

I wouldn't trust that website call them or go to the store. It looks like it's still under construction and pricing or stock might not be accurate.


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## Fishfur (Mar 4, 2012)

Fwiw, I've used concrete sand in several tanks and been happy with it. Very cheap; a 60 pound sack of it cost me less than $5 some 3 years ago, and it is SO easy to keep clean. Fish droppings just sit on the surface and are virtually invisible. You only have to hover a siphon over the surface to suck it all up.

The worst bit was washing out all the fines/dust. At first you get a pile of foam and it looks really muddy but it does clear up. I put roughly 8 inches of sand in a 5G bucket, pushed the hose right to the bottom and ran the water just fast enough to stir it up some, but not enough to blow the sand up to the bucket rim; just kept stirring it up and let the dirty water go over the bucket rim. Not the worst chore in the world but it did take time; I'd guess about twice a long as it took me to wash a simiilar amount of Flourite black sand.

As for colour, though it has darker coloured particles in it, they're not very noticeable. It's a nice light shade of tan or maybe greyish, depending on your light source. Trying to catch my Endler fry is hell, they're totally invisible against this colour of substrate. I'll get a pic of some of it so you can see how it looks.

Though it's not essential, I did sieve this sand, to remove the many tiny pebbles and chunks and other coarse particles. Play sand wouldn't have had that kind of stuff in it and I think the next time I'll use play sand.

I used a medium kitchen strainer first and then became curious to see how fine it might get, so I used a really fine mesh sieve a second time and ended up with 3 totally different grades. 

The finest was fine, so soft and so smooth that I feared it would just get compacted, so I mostly used the middle grade. I've kept all sorts of plants and fish on this stuff and it's worked out nicely.

One thing to be aware of is that depending on the sand's origin, it might have some amount of calcium carbonate content. My sand foamed up pretty briskly with a vinegar test.

Since none of my tanks needed soft, acidic water, the lime content didn't worry me. There haven't been any problems I can associate with its presence over the years I've used it and I believe that a bit of calcium leaching into the water probably helps maintains calcium levels so they aren't all used up. Grows nice plants but I use root tabs for crypts, etc.


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## BillD (Jun 5, 2006)

You might try looking for Garnet sand. It is brownish to reddish and sold by a company called Mohawk Garnet. It is inert and available in a variety of grain sizes, which means you can match the #20 grain size of PFS. http://mohawkgarnet.com/ is their website.


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## vincel892 (May 23, 2012)

planter said:


> There used to be a sand that was brownish at home depot years back that was safe to use but I haven't seen it there for some time. I'll keep an eye out for it come spring when they gear up for the season.
> 
> I forgot what it's called.


Did you end up figuring out what kind of sand it was ? I jsut purchased two 50 lbs bags of pool filter sand from cederbrae pools on the weekend but wouldn't mind mixing some of the darker stuff in

Sent from my SM-N920W8 using Tapatalk


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## Boreas (Dec 8, 2015)

Has anyone tried Estes brand Ceramacolor or permacolor? In my research people recommend it as a replacement for the discontinued 3M ceramic sand.

http://estesco.com/permacolorquartz/products/

I just haven't found a Canadian distributer yet.


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