# Pool Filter Sand and Play Sand



## zfarsh (Apr 7, 2011)

Hi Everyone, I live in Oakville, but come to toronto often. I want to buy cheap sand for my 75 g planted tank with goldfish and dojo loaches, to offer a soft and safe for my fish, as well as a natural look.

My prefference is black, but i know this is super expensive, and though i have a nice aquarium black sand for my 10G, this is simply not feasable on a 75 G tank.

So my options are to get either Play Sand (from Home Depot i guess, or not sure where), and Pool Filter Sand, though i donot know where in oakville / mississauga / toronto that i can get the later one from. Also, is Pool Filter Sand as thin as Play Sand?? I know Play sand is the one found on beaches, but is Pool Filter Sand much larger grains, and less soft, and much whiter??? I know it is cleaner, so that is an advantage. I was going to provide a black wallpaper/background to make up for not having black sand.

Pls help on on making this desicion, and knowing where to buy this for cheap, but good quality which wont need a humoungous amount of cleaning. Also, how deep should i have this on my planted tank if i happen to buy rooted plants.

Note that plants will be compatible with the fish i want, and there will be MTS to prevent the gases, or i will mix it untill i get the mts.

Thanks in advance guys.


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## BillD (Jun 5, 2006)

Black blasting sand is around $10 for 88lbs or $75.50 for 50lbs. the brand i have is Bell & MacKenzie, which I think originates in the Hamilton area. It should be available whereever you can get blasting sand. It is available in 3 grit sizes, #20, which is the same size as PFS, and #12 and #40 with #40 being the finest of the three.
PFS is available from any pool supply store, but is usually white.


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## Zebrapl3co (Mar 29, 2006)

Blasting sand is OK for goldfish, but not for loaches, plecos and corries. The sharp edges cut their barb leaving open wounds for disease and parasites to set in.
Pool sand is whiter, but if you want the natural look, play sand is your best bet. In terms of sand, plays is the best for bottom crawlers.

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## zfarsh (Apr 7, 2011)

Hi Bill,

Thanks for the reply. You mentioned: "$10 for 88lbs or $75.50 for 50lbs", did you mean 75.50 $ for 500 lbs??? Anyways, 20 $ for 2 x 88 lbs sounds really good.

Few things though:

- Is this sand safe for Goldfish, Plecos, and Dojo Loach. Dojo Loach like to bary under there? I know regular sand is should be fine, but what about sand blasting sand.
- Is the #40 grit size like play sand? I currently have Ecocomplete sand on a 10G, but i think it might be more thicker than play sand, so maybe Grit 20 is more similar?
- how do you wash it, i think i will need about 100 to 125 lbs of substrate, so i am guessing this will be very time consuming?

Thanks in advance. I so much want black sand, i think the Goldfish wont look very nice with PFS.


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## zfarsh (Apr 7, 2011)

Thanks Zebra, are there different colors of play sand, so i can get the darker one? My home depot only has the King Play Sand brand, and i cant see what color it really is as i havent bought it and cant see through it. Will go see if other Home Depots have better ones.


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## Antoine Doinel (Dec 20, 2010)

Kings Play Sand looks fantastic. It's a little bit darker than most brands and looks very natural. Other brands are far cheaper though.

I honestly wouldn't just trust trumpets to take care of it though, especially if you're doing enough for rooted plants (3 to 4 inches). The best method is to just to layer it with something else, so you only have about an inch of sand.

If the layered look bothers you, just do pool filter sand. It doesn't look as good imo, but if you can get it in off white, it still looks good. Should be easy to find this time of year. Just search _pool supply oakville_.


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## zfarsh (Apr 7, 2011)

Hi Antoine,

Thanks for the reply, i am happy the king play sand is darker, and thats what i want. I was thinking of doing 2 - 2.5" sand thickness only (maybe i will stick to two inches). Will that help to use the trumpets? I was scrared to stiring it to not damage roots, but maybe i will choose plants that wont dont need substrate, or just stick with 2 - 2.5". That said, what substrate do you recomend that wont end up on the top after time?

Thanks in advance


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## zfarsh (Apr 7, 2011)

oh, and what if i do a slop, Say 1 - 2 " at front of tank, and 2.5" - 3.5" at the back, would that help to not have to stur or have two substrate?


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## zfarsh (Apr 7, 2011)

i just thoughed some more, maybe i can put a sublayer of PFS at the bottom of 1" depth, if i am not happy, then add 1 - 2" of King Play Sand on top.

By the way, stores for Pool Sand seem to have only one type available. So i dont know if i really have different options.


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## Antoine Doinel (Dec 20, 2010)

Darker meaning darker than most brands of play sand. Basically, it's not bright white/tan.

The trumpets will help, and big root feeders like Amazon Swords will also help. Neither of these are really surefire though. Stirring will help, but you'll see that in a larger tank it becomes very tedious, especially in a planted tank. 

Layering can become messy, especially if you like to move stuff around. It's pretty easy to put together a rim around your stand to cover it up though. Any larger grain substrate will do. A lot of people use something specifically for plants like flourite. Depends on your budget and what kind of plants you want.

I wouldn't rule out sandblasting sand either. I don't know much about it, but pool filter sand is also very sharp, and a lot of people (including me) keep cories with it.


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## BillD (Jun 5, 2006)

PFS is required to be "sharp" as per specification. Doesn't mean you will cut yourself, just means the pieces are jagged as oppose to round. The same for blasting sand.


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## BillD (Jun 5, 2006)

PFS is required to be "sharp" as per specification. Doesn't mean you will cut yourself, just means the pieces are jagged as oppose to round. The same for blasting sand.
Oh, that was $7.50 for 50lbs. I would think one 88lb bag would be sufficient for a 75. I used a 50 lb bag for a 48" x 12" tank.


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## Antoine Doinel (Dec 20, 2010)

zfarsh said:


> By the way, stores for Pool Sand seem to have only one type available. So i dont know if i really have different options.


There are more options, but most stores only care two types at best: white and off white. The off white looks a little different depending on the brand.

You may want to try an International Pool & Spas, which are all over the place, so I'm sure Oakville has one. Their sand looks quite good.

I'd honestly just take your time and check out all the types of sand, see what you can find, and get some prices. It's the one thing you don't want to buy on impulse, trust me.


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