here is an odd question

[bearwithfish]

ok so i bounce around the world (ok the web) a lot and found an interesting question perhaps you all could address....

 

So there's substrate out there for reptile tanks that's called calci-sand and it's calcium carbonate. I found a page online about the dangers of over exposure harming reptiles and humans, but what about fish? I mean, there's lots of things we put in tanks that can be dangerous to us (the first that came to mind is just about every ich medication that's known to the state of california to cause cancer). So would calcium carbonate in your tank hurt your fish? Here's the link to the page on the dangers:

 

Calcium Sand - Dangers

 

So, assuming all of this is null and void because it's in a fish tank (which doesn't make a lot of sense but also wouldn't surprise me), what effect would this have on the water chemistry? Does anyone know if it would affect the amount of calcium or the pH or something in the tank?

 

I asked my friend and she said she had no idea about the water chemistry but when this stuff gets wet it hardens almost to a cement. If THAT is also true, what would happen if you used it like sand in your tank, stuck some plastic plants in it, and then filled it with water? Would it give you a solid substrate to hold plants in place and you wouldn't have to clean it? I know a lot of beneficial bacteria lives in the gravel/sand, but maybe a thin layer underneath would hold down your plants so your big fish (i.e. SA cichlids) couldn't "redecorate"?

 

I know you don't really use plants in saltwater but I figure someone out there might know about the calcium and all that, since obviously I don't.

 

Thanks!

 

(Sorry there's like three different questions, I was thinking really deeply into this)

 

now the poster really had the geas turning here but my additional questions are

this poses an interesting question if it leaches Cal into the water could this be used as a way to dose? for example were this to be a feasible situation and if all tests are sound and safe if this lets a certain amount of Cal into the water could making a block of this to sit in the sump be a slowly releasing solution to dosing Cal??? again just an idea at this point and i am sure i am over looking some points but in the stage of theory it sounds plausible.....

 

so i need facts thoughts ideas and or links about this to help the poster and myself get a clear picture

[AZDesertRat]

At the 8+ pH we normally run our tanks at the calcim carbonate sand does not contribute to the calcium in the water nor does it get hard.

If you research a calcium reactor though you will see calcium carbonate slowly dissolves at a pH around 6.xx by bubbling CO2 through it which lowers the pH.

I cannot imagine how this would cause any harm as all the stony corals and coral reefs are composed of calcium carbonate.

[Dustin11]

BUMP, I don't know much about the calcium sand but I'll be following here to find out. I understand that the aragonite that most of us use will not contribute when the ph is at nominal levels, but how does this relate to the calcium sand. Would it contribute at a higher ph then aragonite? would it contribute anything at 8.00? I would guess not since if it did, everyone would be using it by now. Anyone with experience using it?

[AZDesertRat]

Aragonite is calcium carbonate sand.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Aragonite

[Dustin11]

So is there a difference between aragonite and calcium sand?

[AZDesertRat]

I would say generally aragonite is from the sea or beach while its possible some calcium sands can be ground up calcite rock from other locations. That may not always be the case though as Southdown play sand which used to be sold in the hardware and building supply places in 50 lb bags can from the same place and supplier as all the popular aragonite sands but at 1/10 the cost. 50 lbs of Southdown could be had for less than $3 in many places, we had a semo load deliverd to Phoenix about 7 years ago and it was still less than $6 a bag including shipping costs and is the same stuff you get in the LFS for a lot more $$.

[lakshwadeep]

Calcium carbonate is harmless in a reef tank. Aragonite and calcite are just two crystal forms of calcium carbonate. Calcium and carbonate (more specifically bicarbonate) are important constituents of saltwater. Moreover, calcium carbonate is the main constituent of "skeletons" of stony corals, mollusks, and calcareous algae, either in the form of aragonite or calcite. +1 to calcium carbonate not dissolving to any significant extent at normal SW pH conditions, which is why it's useful as a "skeleton" in the first place. In natural reefs, ocean acidification is considered a major threat because the calcified organisms depend on calcium carbonate not dissolving.

 

Calcium carbonate sand shouldn't cement together due to bacteria and other things creating a film to limit compaction. It is possible that organisms growing in the sand will join individual grains, but this rarely is a pervasive issue.