Your tip on special grade was extremely useful. I saw your last video before buying sand for my tank, special grade was definitely the way to go for my goals

I've always used dry sand because of its better cost and dose the tank with ATM when cycling

I'm glad I watched this video. Can someone help me out please? I have a bio cube 32 1st time reefer. I used live sand. My power heads are blowing the sand all over the place until there is bare spots. Im always blowing the sand off my rocks with a spot feeder. What I was going to do was get special grade and throw it over the sand but after watching this it is not recommended. What should I do? Should I just suck all the sand out when I do a water change and then add the special grade? I know I could lower my power heads but when I do that all the nasty stuff just sits on the sand bed so I wanna keep high flow as much as possible. To keep that nasty stuff suspended until it reached the filter.

I’m using the Figi pink! I’m just about a month in.🔥

@lottsaquatics4385

2 жыл бұрын

How did your tank turn out?

Should do a video on cycling where live sand is your control. What about adding bacteria with live sand, some sand say not to use.

Honest question, if you buy the live sand for a tropical tank ( I bought the wrong one) , do you need to rinse the substrate first even though it reduces the bacteria?

Can you guys lmk if you are coming out with the quarantine tank video soon? I just want to know if you are going to post it soon or if I shouldn't wait and just st it up the best I can.

@BRStv

3 жыл бұрын

It's on the to-do list, but not on our schedule yet.

Can i used special grade dry sans for freshwater boss?

I just bought a couple bags of AquaForest AF Live Sand 0.5-1.5mm. Now I'm worried I made a mistake and should've gone for 1-2mm grain size cuz I don't want to see sand particles flowing all over my tank. Should I return the bags or it's not going to be as big of an issue as I'm thinking it is?

@BRStv

3 жыл бұрын

Most of us around the BRS office that have tanks with moderate flow opt for the special grade, which is in that 1-2mm grain size you mention. Returning the sand is totally up to you, but it is hard to swap sand on an established tank, so I would suggest to "do it right" the first time and get the sand you really want.

Very nice video i was honestly going to go with Natures Ocean live sand but now i dont know if i should use the Caribsea special grade or the Oceans Direct what sand type is best for Sand sifting Gobies?

@BRStv

2 жыл бұрын

Both the Special Grade and Ocean Direct sand will work for sand sifting Gobies. The Special Grade is a lot more uniform in size, but Gobies will have no problem with the Ocean Direct sand.

Never been this early

Im getting caribsea ocean direct carribean live sand, is there anything special i should be doing? Like rinsing the sand before hand or anything else

@rhombifer566

2 жыл бұрын

be careful kill my fish 🐠

I have the blue bag, and it has one of those small packets of clear water, I am adding this to my sand already in the tank, can I use the clear water packet with fish already in the tank? Thank you

@TheGabrielberki

3 жыл бұрын

yep, you can use it.

@Rsthelen

3 жыл бұрын

@@TheGabrielberki thank you appreciate it, wasn't sure and don't want to kill the fish. Have a great day!!

Be careful with Bimini Pink sand. It looks cool with all the different sand grades and such. I cut my hand up nicely due to one of the many sharp Broken shells.

I bought some caribsea live sand special grade. It's taken longer to get build going then I expected. Is there a shelf life that bacteria will start to die off.

@BRStv

3 жыл бұрын

There should be a sticker on the bag with a "use by" date that'll tell you for sure.

Guys which one of the natural looking sands is the darkest ? Thanks nick

can you use this for freshwater

Ok Gentleman: can I use Caribsea Ocean Direct Live sand the original blend and mix it with Caribsea Crushed coral to obtain a higher ph during the cycling of my aquarium. I'm a newbie

@BRStv

2 жыл бұрын

pH is more related to the amount of hydrogen in the water. If you really want to geek out about pH, the video in the link below is a great resource. If you're not ready for that quite yet, just go with the substrate size that you like visually and is the right grain size for the livestock you plan to keep. For a vast majority of reefers, that's the special grade. pH Video -> kzread.info/dash/bejne/eX-Br5RpeZyqh84.html

how long can you store the sand after you purchase it? Not open sealed.

@BRStv

2 жыл бұрын

There is usually a small sticker on the bag with a "use by" date. Given the live nature of the product, I would suggest ordering it only when you're soon to use it.

can you put Hawaiian black and figi pink substrate together in the tank? I think I have my answer lol but I was wanting to know though.

@BRStv

Жыл бұрын

I don't see why not, but it probably won't look like you're envisioning. Usually the smaller sand particles will settle out over time, so it won't stay nicely mixed.

@ESTU_SAMURAI2658

Жыл бұрын

@@BRStv okay, I was just wondering, thank you for the reply

Question about super naturals, did I make a mistake? Haven’t put it in yet. But it’s superfine.

@BRStv

3 жыл бұрын

Ultimately, it's going to come down to how much flow you're going to have in the tank. If you're going to have high flow, then a fine sand isn't a great option.

@-Wreckanize-

3 жыл бұрын

@@BRStv Just returned it for Fiji Pink. Thanks.

I bought 10kg of substrate like 2 years ago and later discovered it was slightly magnetic when I used a new Magnet glass cleaner and drove a single deep scratch into my 25 liter freshwater aquarium. I now purposely let algae grow on that side to cover it and manage it and I think the algae actually helps my tank, absorbing nitrates and phosphates [I hope]. The magnetic substrate was kind of cool though, it gave me the idea of a substrate that was specifically made to be magnetic and you would only use a magnet on the outside of an aquarium to pick up the substrate around the walls of the Aquarium to scrub the glass with the actual substrate. Sure your water would get slightly more dirty than a normal wipe down but you can do it just before a water change. I always think of this, you would need a substrate not to high on the hardness scale, that's magnetic.

I can’t find the special grade sand

I need sand for my 40oz tank. I’m really not trying to buy a 10lb bag lol I probably just need a handful

Can this live sand be used in Freshwater Aquariums?

@BRStv

3 жыл бұрын

Unfortunately no. The bacteria in live sand is added with saltwater in mind.

@rcmiamimozzy1210

3 жыл бұрын

@@BRStv so it can’t be rinsed off and used if I don’t need the bacteria. Because I received 20 pounds of this sand by mistake and Chewy replaced it with the correct sand I ordered but told me to discard the bags of sand I received but they are perfectly fine brand new bags of sand that was $26.99 each. I don’t want to just throw it away if I can rinse it off really good and use it. I don’t know anybody with a saltwater tank I can give it to

@BRStv

3 жыл бұрын

@@rcmiamimozzy1210 If you're going to thoroughly rinse, then I don't see an issue.

I regret buying Figi Pink… Can confirm that I made the mistake of not buying Special Grade. Figi Pink is too fine.

Can they be used in freshwater or is this only for saltwater?

@BRStv

2 жыл бұрын

Live sand is generally produced with saltwater in mind, but you can certainly use sand and a bacterial starter for freshwater and get similar results. Keep in mind that aragonite based sand will likely increase your tank's pH. That may or may not be desirable depending on the species of fish you're keeping.

Can I use river sand in marine tank

@BRStv

2 жыл бұрын

Most reefers opt for an aragonite based sand to help buffer pH. A lot of river sands are also very fine, so blowing can become a big issue.

how is bahama oohlite ? I went aragonite with my old tank ... didnt like the look to much

@BRStv

3 жыл бұрын

I would caution against Oolite if you'll have any sort of flow in the tank. It's very small grain size and will blow around very easily. If you're looking for something smaller than special grade, a good middle ground is Fiji Pink sand. Still pretty small grain size, so expect some blowing around if you have moderate or higher flow. www.bulkreefsupply.com/fiji-pink-arag-alive-live-reef-sand.html

Can I syphon live fine sand?

@BRStv

3 жыл бұрын

Not only can you, we recommend cleaning your sandbed regularly. :)

@emilycooper6539

3 жыл бұрын

@@BRStv okay with super fine sand, how do you not syphon it up with the debris? Also I’m trying to seed copepods but I’m worried I’m syphon go the ones in the sand out too?

The one dislike is from marine depot.

@mdt498

3 жыл бұрын

😂😂😂😂😂

caribsea arag-alive bimini pink.! good?

@BRStv

3 жыл бұрын

As long as you're ok with a wide variety of grain sizes (.5 - 5 mm), then this is a good option. Just keep in mind that you may get some blowing and drifting due to this sand including those small grain sizes.

Black from Hawaii?

I question the 'bacteria is in the water' part - after being in the bag that long the sand should have been well populated with the bacteria. I think it is critical to rinse new sand so I don't bother with 'live' sand. But I think you can rinse live sand with water change water or maybe a low salinity new mix (to not waste salt) and the beneficial bacteria will be fine.

@jhondoe1483

Жыл бұрын

Bacteria can survive an RO bath actually, the reason it is killed in a “tap water” wash is because of the purification chemicals in your tap water not the lack of salt.

Don't ever remove it.

@TheGabrielberki

3 жыл бұрын

have you ever thought of doing a BRS investigates setting up one tank with no sand and the other with live sand and seeing the different cycles?