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White or Black Sand for my new 60G.

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old salty

I got a new 60 gallon tank for Christmas to my surprise since I didn't even put it on my list and I am starting to mull over different ideas on how I will set this one up. One big decision is substrate. Right now I have crushed coral in my 30 G. I like it, but it turns the color of coraline algae between cleanings. I am thinking sand may be a better option. White / black / or something other color? Anyone have any thoughts? Oh yea, there will be at least some soft leather corals in the tank.
 
D

Dave

i prefer white, but that is me.

White is supposed to create some reflection of light under the corals, but I have no idea how to quantify that.

Probably more useful for SPS than softies anyway.
 
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SWITCH420

i have all 3 types in different tanks.i found black live sand at petco used it in my octopus tank looks pretty good. white live sand in the 90 looks good and crushed coral in 30 gal. i like all 3 if u want 2 be a lil different use black.
 
The_Codfather

The_Codfather

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
I might be getting a 92gl and im going though the same thing.. but i was thinking doing 2"+ of garf grunge for the whole bottom after i saw this tank
tank-3.jpg
 
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old salty

Are there any bad aspects of the black sand? Bad for invertebrates, fish, corals, and overall tank health? My main concern is that white sand will get dirty between cleanings. I am very OCD and like a clean looking tank. I have crushed coral now and it gets coraline algae growth on it making the tank look messy. Maybe with the light weight of the sand it will move around more and not be susceptible to this type of growth. Any thoughts?
 
M

mnat

Officer Emeritus
Staff member
Moderator
Regular sand, IMO, will be much easier for you than the crushed coral. About a year or so ago we switched two of our tanks from crushed coral to sand and really liked the change. The negatives of crushed coral are that they can trap junk which leads to higher nitrates and it is much harder to keep clean. Sand is easier to keep clean and you can get inverts (nasarius and cerith snails, cucumbers, conches, etc.) that will constantly stir up your sand and keep it clean. You can also get fish that churn up the sand. Sand also does not trap junk like the crushed coral which should help your tank overall. The only word of caution against the and it don't get a too fine grain as you can get sandstorms in the tank.

As far black vs white goes it is really your choice. I like the look of the white sand but I have seen some tanks with black sand that looks awesome. Just make sure you get live black sand and it is up to you. My only concern with black sand is is might obscure a small problem that could grow into a big problem if caught early enough.
 
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Patriot76

what color back are you going with? do you clean the back of your glass or let it get covered in coraline? i like a dark blue back with white sand personally, i think it looks cool with the atinics. but i have considered black sand and black back for my next tank, think it would really make the corals pop.
 
B

Brian

Officer Emeritus
Officer Emeritus
I've had black sand in one of my tanks. It was called Tahitian Moon (or something like that).

On the plus side, there is no rinsing, when I put it in the tank it didn't swirl around or make a cloud. It makes fish and corals POP out.

The negative is that little bits of rock rubble and other junk are VERY visible and will eventually diminish the coolness of the black.

It didn't seem to bother any of the fish that I had in the tank either, and a few of these were wrasses who would constantly bury themselves.

I also had a mix in one of my older tanks of black and white and really liked that, maybe that could be something to look into as well.
 
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old salty

Bringing this discussion back from the dead.

I am ready to purchase some substrate. I'm going to go sand and white or as close to white as possible. What is the best brand for white and larger grain size (so no sand storms) and where is the best place to get it. Online, petsmart, petco, LFS?

Also, I have a 60G 48" long 13" wide. I want to make the sand bed shallow, no deeper then an inch. How many lbs do you think will be sufficient. 20, 30, 40lbs?

Thanks in advance!

Old Salty
 
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