Quikrete Playsand Project

ahill3780 · 11-02-2006, 09:02 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Shawn D

Definitely always better to be safe then sorry so I will hold off on adding more life. Your play sand project seems very interesting and I would love to see what happens throughout it.

OK.

I was wanting to start a thread for this eventually anyway so I might as well start it. Can't supply pictures this go round, but I can fill you in on the details at least.

I have heard all about the whole Home Depot SouthDown playsand being used for reef tanks, but seeing as that is not available in my area I decided to experiment with what is.

Home Depot in my area carries Quikrete Premium Play Sand (No. 1113). This stuff goes for around $4 for a 50 lbs bag. It is about the right granule size for a reef tank (and any other) by my estimate, but its that light brown color playsand, no white.

I am anticipating my next tank project, hopefully 200g or more, and am considering ways to reduce the cost of setup. If this project proves successful then I can set up my next tank using 90% Playsand and 10% LS for less than $100. Definately a + in my book!

My idea is to set up my 20 gallon long tank using a 4" sandbed. Let it sit and cycle, then seed it and throw in some LR and let it sit more. I want to watch every cycle come and go until the tank is completely cycled with 0 ammonia, nitrites and nitrates, and no more algae.

Then I'll get a couple clowns and QT them in the tank to introduce the bioload and see how things react. If all goes well then I will go ahead and start cycling the sand for the big tank so that its nice and aged by the time it goes into the tank.

I plan to get a little pool to hold the big batch of sand and use the sand from the 20 gallon to seed it. Of course I would either sell, return, give away, or move the clowns before doing this.

If it takes longer than I think before I can set up the big tank then I can always use the sand as a sump/refugium area slash saltwater pond while I wait.

In fact, I might even do that too!

Anyway, I started this tank on October 1st by filling it with 75 lbs of playsand and then filling it with water from my 55g water change. I put in a 50W heater and a wooden airstone. I anchored the airline down with a small piece of LR from my first attempt at raising brine shrimp.

I waited two weeks before testing the tank and came up with the following results:

Quote:

Originally Posted by ahill3780

pH = 8.1
ammonia = .50 ppm
nitrite = .25 ppm
nitrate = 40~50 ppm

I tested the water again just the other day and the readings are now:

pH = 8.0
ammonia = 0 ppm
nitrite = 0 ppm
nitrate = 50~60 ppm

Since then I have placed a few cupfuls of CC from my sump into this tank and pushed it down into the sandbed to start seeding the spread of bacteria deep down. I'll need to do more of this but for now I'm satisfied with the results.

I'll keep you all updated as things progress. Maybe if the things work out for me your next big tank project could be a little cheaper too.

-Aaron

Shawn D · 11-02-2006, 09:09 PM

Very interesting project

WhoDey · 11-02-2006, 09:13 PM

Aaron,

When I set up my 55 gal tank I used 100 lbs of Play Sand from Lowes for $8. I'm in the process of putting the finishing touches on my reef tank. I really hope this sand does work out!!! So far it looks really nice and I get a lot of compliments on my sand!?!? I find that funny considering I have 90 lbs of LR also. The 100 lbs came out to about 4inches exactly. I remember washing the sand with tap water in buckets for hours a day for like 4 days.... I probably over did it but I didn't want to take the chance of anything being in the sand considering I'm setting up a reef. I can't wait to hear some more of your results!

-Nate

Tommy Gun · 11-02-2006, 09:26 PM

Hey guys!

I think this is really a great 'experiment' and I have heard a lot about the use of this type of sand as well during my hundreds of reading periods over the past year or so.

One question though...when using sand like this is a freshwater tank, it is ALWAYS recommended to wash the sand over and over to get rid of any sediment or particles that will not settle out usually when in water. I know that when using live sand, this is not recommended for the obvious reason of washing all of the "live" out of the live sand. So for your uses here, with using 'unlive sand' to create live sand, did you or would you suggest washing it as if one would for a FW tank?

Up here in the great state of Wisconsin, there is A LOT of sand quarries due to the glacial deposits. As a former landscaper (which I loved and learned a lot about), we used sand for a lot of uses, one of which was to pad the bottom of ponds. In this application, we had to use sand that was literally burned to rid it of as many non aquatic life forms as possible since some would pollute the water upon death or some could actually 'eat' through the EPDM rubber liner. I bring this up becasue I also know that many sands are on the market, and not being familiar with the exact type you are using, I wonder if this sand has had any treatments for organisms or bacteria done to it since it would be bad to have your kids playing in just any old type of sand. Or at least I would assume.

I am definetly following along on this one! Thanks for doing all of the dirty work for us.

xeruf · 11-02-2006, 10:10 PM

know what would be cool for a sand bed? black sand like on some beaches that would look really good I think

ahill3780 · 11-03-2006, 08:11 PM

Man yeah, Iwojima Black would be awesome!

Thank for the replies everyone, its always fun to get other people's input on personal projects. Many times other people can point out obvious things that you just tend to miss.

Tommy, great info about your landscaping experience, thank you for sharing it with us. I do not know what cleaning process they used, or where the source sand was gathered from. The package does not offer much information, just a little bit about it being sifted.

One of these days when I get some free time to dedicate (and the desire to sit on the phone) I will call up the manufacturer for more details.

Thanks for following along everyone, I'll have more updates in the future! A hopefully some pics by the time I start up the big batch.

Cheers!
Aaron

fishuz · 11-03-2006, 09:18 PM

I'm not sure if there is anything in the sand that is harmful to fish ? like Mica...I don't know if there is a place that can test the sand for you to tell you what minerals are present this way you will have a good idea of what the sand is made up of and if there is any reactivity to water or hazardous decomposition that can occur. this sounds like a really cool project you have in the works

Loman · 11-04-2006, 10:30 AM

Aaron,
Do you know if the Quickrete product use calcium carbonate? I took a look at it earlier and could not find an indication on the bag. It seems like several posts on the net say it has to be calcium carbonate while a few say it does not really matter.

ahill3780 · 11-04-2006, 10:46 PM

I could not find any info on this either. I do not think it is a calcium carbonate, or aragonite sand, but you can also use silica sand as well in reef tanks, and I have heard no other comments about other types of sand. Hence the current 'experiment'. Maybe I'll be able to add another exception to the list.

Loman · 11-04-2006, 11:13 PM

Aaron,
We will all await you findings

You may have looked at this too but I cam across several articles talking about sand blasting sand. There were lots of concerns raised about the sharp edges and scratching glass/acrylic tanks but it is often calcium carbonate. Something else to think about as you experiment.