southdown tropical play sand

[reefandt]

does anyone know the sand Home Depot sells is safe for using as sandbed in the sump?
thanks

[SJSobczyk]

Southdown has been talked about in many reef forums and is a great alternative to the more expensive brand.

What city are you in? I want some!

Steve

[Willow]

it's not available in canada as far as i know, it was also discussed that it's full of silicates.

[reefandt]

I am in vancouver. I called Home Depot, they have the white sand. but the guy does know what kind it is. I am going to check it out, though i know likely it is not Southdown.

[reefandt]

sorry, the guy does NOT know, i missed "NOT"

[SJSobczyk]

Probably just a playsand then, Full of silicates!

Let us know

Steve

[BT05]

Southdown (aka. YardRight) sand is available only in some parts of eastern Canada but not in the west. Calgary for sure doesn't have it and some people use sandbox playsand which is supposed to be free of silicates. (makes it safe for children)

You can also buy sand from your local specialty garden supply centre if you can't find the right color. They may contain silicates but whether this will affect your fish or not is for you to decide. (This is one of those myths that is along the lines of "microbubbles" :rolleyes:)

Depending on the size of your refugium, just bite the bullet and buy a bag of Carib-Sea aragonite. Just put the "good sand" is the refugium and use the cheap stuff for the main tank.

[outtafocus]

You gotta remember that all sand products are crushed and bagged locally. So what ever rock is in the ground in your area is the same rock going into the sand.

In Calgary Home Depot sells Target playsand, and Rona sells Burnco.


A tip for any reptile owners, if you plan on using playsand as a substrate, go to home depot and buy the Target brand. It comes prewashed and the grains are a little more coarse.
The Burnco sand is way to fine and is so full of dust its not worth the effort to wash.
This coming from a Rona employee.

[Scavenger]

outoffocus makes a great point. When I first looked into reefing and looked at southdown sand, it was apperantly unavailable west of the Mississippi River. I would suggest get a small test batch and a top notch test kit if you really want to try it.