Sand for a DSB
 

I have checked out some other sites and lots of people use playsand for their substrate. The type of sand that is most often used seems to be Southdown Playsand. Anybody ever heard of this stuff?? My question is will it do the same as Aragamax sand? Is it a lot cheaper than the Aragamax sand? Are there other alternatives?

Gord, it's exactly the same stuff and it costs about $3.00 per 50 pound bag...... IF you live on the east coast of the US. Unfortunately t isn't available here.
There are some less expensive alternatives, about $25 per bag. Seacare.org carries the sand that saltwaterconnection.com sells. Same as the caribsea, just a bit cheaper.

Wendell at Oceanaquatics has some advertised on his site at the moment.

I used Dolomite as a DSB for my refugium. Been this way for 3 months know and no negative activity in my tank so far. It is whiter than aragonite but also finer.

size matter
 

For DSB purposes the garin size seems to matter most. All articles I have read advocate going with a sugar grain size as it provides the "best" real estate for the right kind of bacteria. I would stick with sand specifically for aquaria as "playsand" would not have been FULLY stripped of any metal traces. Also be sure the DSB is populated with flora / fauna to keep it turning. Otherwise bacterial secretions may cause hard lumping.

i know this is seriously dredging up an old subject but was the whole dolomite experience a good one for you Bryan and if so can you recommend anyone who sells this locally?

thanks,