[Grah the great]

Hi everyone! Here's a question...I have never had great luck growing plants in anything coarser than sand - the plants never seem to root well in turface or gravel and the bottom of the plants rot off. However, fine sand is also VERY vulnerable to being sucked up with a gravel vacuum, making tank cleaning difficult. I imagine that a coarse sand, roughly in the 1 mm particle size range, would be easier to clean while not being too rough on the plants. The question is, where can I find such sand? I was going to use it as a cap for some type of soil substrate. Thanks

 

[Econde]

I've had very good experience with Black Diamond Blasting Sand 1240 grit. Should be available at places such as Tractor Supply Co. and Rural King. Also I've read that Pool Filter Sand is a pleasure to work with. Both will not break the bank either.

 

[Mmiller2001]

Amazon.com : FairmountSantrol AquaQuartz-50 Pool Filter 20-Grade Silica Sand 50 Pounds, White : Patio, Lawn & Garden

Amazon.com : FairmountSantrol AquaQuartz-50 Pool Filter 20-Grade Silica Sand 50 Pounds, White : Patio, Lawn & Garden

www.amazon.com

This stuff is awesome. No vacuum problems. Plants do pretty well in it.

I'm still learning, but here is my tank with this sand. No root tabs.

 

[chuukus]

http://[URL]https://www.amazon.com/...abc_H3MKXJZ0AWSQ91VZMGV3?_encoding=UTF8&psc=1

[/URL]

This stuff is awesome. No vacuum problems. Plants do pretty well in it.

I'm still learning, but here is my tank with this sand. No root tabs.

Amazon.com : FairmountSantrol AquaQuartz-50 Pool Filter 20-Grade Silica Sand 50 Pounds, White : Patio, Lawn & Garden

Amazon.com : FairmountSantrol AquaQuartz-50 Pool Filter 20-Grade Silica Sand 50 Pounds, White : Patio, Lawn & Garden

www.amazon.com

This stuff is awesome. No vacuum problems. Plants do pretty well in it.

I'm still learning, but here is my tank with this sand. No root tabs.

I have used this stuff before loved it! cant beat the price either. My connection for this stuff told me they dont make this anymore... Good looking out! im going to buy some right now. Thanks bud!

 

[minorhero]

The coarsest (and most consistent grain size) sand I have come across is hth pool filter sand. That said, it can still get sucked up in a gravel vac if you dig into the sand. When gravel vac'ing a sand tank you don't let the vac part touch the sand. You just hover a little above the sand and get any bits that on the surface. Since sand is so dense grainwise you don't really sweat anything small enough to work its way down below the surface.

 

[Discusluv]

My favorite is Carib-sea Crystal River.