MiniReefin Posted December 7, 2004 Share Posted December 7, 2004 anyone know of any other brands? [/b] dont know if its been said, but my buddy is cycling with NATURAL CORAL SAND. made by Tideline he got the simi course. i may be puttin this in my new tank. maybe 50/50 with my old live sand? Link to comment
EnderG60 Posted December 8, 2004 Author Share Posted December 8, 2004 hmm can seem to find anything but a large grain regular sand from tideline. any other info you can give me? maybe a website off the bag or something? Link to comment
EnderG60 Posted December 13, 2004 Author Share Posted December 13, 2004 Finally got in touch with someone at estes and their sand is also silica based. But as I said before the sand will not desolve either so its not really a problem. and I still havent found squat on the tideline stuff. So unless I find something else im gonna get the the tahian moon stuff. now i gata figure out how to sead the stuff since its not live.... Link to comment
ifynanceu Posted December 15, 2004 Share Posted December 15, 2004 here is a full tank shot of my 50t with a black vinyl background and carib sea black tahitian moon sand (bought very cheap at www.customaquatic.com) Link to comment
EnderG60 Posted December 16, 2004 Author Share Posted December 16, 2004 ifynanceu..what kind of lighting are you running?, how long has your tank been setup like that and how do you like the black sand? Link to comment
ifynanceu Posted December 16, 2004 Share Posted December 16, 2004 this tank has been up since july...I originally had it set up as a 50 regular acrylic (since march), but had decided to have the glass tank built...it is constructed of 1/4" glass (it weighs a ton) and I had the overflow box made smaller than normal (no need to take up space for an overflow)...I really like the black sand as it really allows you to fully enjoy the beauty of the corals with such a powerful contrast...the pure white sand Carib-Sea offers is also nice because the light reflects off of it well, but it looks dirty fast. My lighting consists of a Hamilton 250w HQI reefstar halide pendant with a 14k bulb (d/e) in a custom canopy (had it built at 10" tall instead of the usual 5" so the light spreads much better and the heat build-up isn't so drastic) and I also run 1 55w SunDay 03 actinic pc and 1 30" 03 actinic Helios t-5...I monitor ph regularly, but I have never had an issue as it stays consistant at 8.0/8.1 The only suggestion I make to anyone using this sand is to add a ladder goby or something to turn the sand and keep it clean...otherwise it is great for bringing out the true colors of your livestock. Link to comment
EnderG60 Posted December 17, 2004 Author Share Posted December 17, 2004 awsome. I have a 58g with a 250w halide and a 12" canopy as well. How does the sand get dirty though? I have a pistol shrimp, sand sifting star and 5 nass. snails that will be going in this tank(moving everything from my 10 to this), they keep the sand turned over pretty good, but im wondering if there is anything different about the black sand...other then the fish poop which is white. Link to comment
ifynanceu Posted December 17, 2004 Share Posted December 17, 2004 no...that clean up crew should handle it well...you get debris from the live rock as it changes (my fish pick at some of it and it releases some small debris here and there) and as you introduce new things in...nothing major...It runs like $12 or so per 20lb bag at custom aquatic and is easy to rinse...i used just less than 40lbs in my tank to get about a 2" - 2.5" bed...the goby would help to eat the detritus and wastes out of the sand and keep it jet black...I just love the effect using it and the responses I get from others who see it in person...Mine is the Tahitian Moon (really fine sand) vs the chunkier stuff... Link to comment
BKtomodachi Posted December 17, 2004 Share Posted December 17, 2004 I like the moon sand, but prefer to buffer with my substrate. I've seen that seachem has a dark grey substrate that will buffer.. I dont remember the name though. heh... my durango is actaully a dark grey so road grime, etc. doesnt even show! lol Link to comment
ifynanceu Posted December 17, 2004 Share Posted December 17, 2004 i never have to buffer my ph...I use ESV B-Ionic 2 part calcium/alkalinity buffer, and ESV Kalkwasser (calcium hydroxide) in a reptile 1 gallon drip jug and everything stays perfect...no troubles to date and all is growing very well... Link to comment
EnderG60 Posted December 17, 2004 Author Share Posted December 17, 2004 great looks like thats what ill be getting. tank is nearing completion and i cant wait to get it going now:) Link to comment
ifynanceu Posted December 17, 2004 Share Posted December 17, 2004 cool! anjoy, and post some shots when you get it up and running Link to comment
DarkXerox Posted December 21, 2004 Share Posted December 21, 2004 The thing is that if you're pH drops to where the arag sand actually starts buffering at an effective rate--you're not taking good enough care of your tank or have a more serious problem. Like ifynanceu said, dripping kalk or a 2 part calcium solution will eliminate this problem and will help anything with a calcium carbonate based skeleton do better. I'm using the Tahitian Moon as well (acoustic had this in his TOTM). A good cleanup crew will keep it nice and clean and you can always vacuum areas near the rock when pieces break off. Link to comment
EnderG60 Posted December 22, 2004 Author Share Posted December 22, 2004 yeah, thats pretty much the conclusion ive come to. If it gets drity ill just suck it out when I do a water change, rince it off and leave it in the sun for a day and put it back. The rear of the tank is going to be a fuge, so im gonna put a bunch of regular sand back there with some rock rubble. But we will see, tank construction should be done soon, and ill have it cycling in a month. Im getting excited now:D Link to comment
smokez01 Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 i have the black tahitian moon in my 10 and i kind of wish that i had chosen fiji pink aragonite or something, mine is very dirty at the moment and i dont have anything in there to sift it around or keep it clean, i thought about doing a subtrate change but what a pain in the a$$, i know the white sand would relect it more, i just have mixed feelins about it, if i could keep it clean id keep it, and i think some type of goby might be too big for my small tank eh? Link to comment
MiniReefin Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 Originally posted by smokez01 i have the black tahitian moon in my 10 and i kind of wish that i had chosen fiji pink aragonite or something, mine is very dirty at the moment and i dont have anything in there to sift it around or keep it clean, i thought about doing a subtrate change but what a pain in the a$$, i know the white sand would relect it more, i just have mixed feelins about it, if i could keep it clean id keep it, and i think some type of goby might be too big for my small tank eh? my nass snails do a good job, but i dont have black sand. Link to comment
DarkXerox Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 Recently I think that the phosphates have cleared out of my tank so the sand is staying completely clear. Also the cerith snails and the fighting conch seem to be working pretty hard. Link to comment
ifynanceu Posted December 23, 2004 Share Posted December 23, 2004 I have a few nass snails and a sifting star cleaning things up....a cheap and effective clean up crew Link to comment
smokez01 Posted December 24, 2004 Share Posted December 24, 2004 is there any way to clean this stuff, i am seriosuly thinking about doing a subtrate change, but i know it will never happen so i havt to deal with what i have in the future i want a pistol shrimp and im going to have to order it online so maybe ill get like 3 cerith and 4 nass snails but as of right now its disgusitng, diatomns everywhere, and ther are these worm looking things on the glass where the sand is Link to comment
Travis Posted December 24, 2004 Share Posted December 24, 2004 Originally posted by smokez01 is there any way to clean this stuff, i am seriosuly thinking about doing a subtrate change, but i know it will never happen so i havt to deal with what i have in the future i want a pistol shrimp and im going to have to order it online so maybe ill get like 3 cerith and 4 nass snails but as of right now its disgusitng, diatomns everywhere, and ther are these worm looking things on the glass where the sand is Those are some of the same reasons I didn't go with Black Sand in my new tank. Link to comment
ifynanceu Posted December 24, 2004 Share Posted December 24, 2004 use ladder gobies, sleeper gobies, and so on, but also the sand sifting stars, adn nassarius snails... Link to comment
MiniReefin Posted December 24, 2004 Share Posted December 24, 2004 Originally posted by smokez01 is there any way to clean this stuff, i am seriosuly thinking about doing a subtrate change, but i know it will never happen so i havt to deal with what i have in the future i want a pistol shrimp and im going to have to order it online so maybe ill get like 3 cerith and 4 nass snails but as of right now its disgusitng, diatomns everywhere, and ther are these worm looking things on the glass where the sand is i get the same on my sand, from time to time. then i just start feedin, and the nass. get work. sallylightfoot does some cleanin of my sand, but hes ruthless. actually my sand is pretty durty now. Link to comment
smokez01 Posted December 24, 2004 Share Posted December 24, 2004 Originally posted by ifynanceu use ladder gobies, sleeper gobies, and so on, but also the sand sifting stars, adn nassarius snails... arnt those types of gobies too big for a 10 gallon?? and Travis, i see what your saying, i like how it looks but when it gets dirty, omg Link to comment
EnderG60 Posted December 24, 2004 Author Share Posted December 24, 2004 hey smokez, can you post some pics of what you mean by dirty? Im kinda curious to see what i might be in for Link to comment
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