setting up a tank and a question about live sand

Discussion in 'Sand' started by Jim64123, Jun 29, 2012.

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  1. Jim64123

    Jim64123 Plankton

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    so, i been reading some books on starting and upkeeps on reef tanks. the author said something that i never thought about, which is getting water straight from the ocean, and even taking sand to help with the biological filtration. I live in New Jersey.... and was wondering if when he was talking about getting live sand does he mean from any part of the ocean? or will it only be good live sand from a tropical type area? just wondering cause im not to far from the beach and could save some money from buying sand from the store..... thanks all
     
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  3. 2in10

    2in10 Super Moderator

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    I am not sure I would use the sand from most of our beaches due to contamination from spill and industrial activities. I would suggest you save money by not buying any live sand at all and just use dry sand. See if you can get a cup or so of sand from fellow hobbyists or an LFS if they have good looking tanks. Getting some from several hobbyists is a good way to get a diverse community of bacteria.
     
  4. Vinnyboombatz

    Vinnyboombatz Giant Squid

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    +1 Using sand and water from the ocean is a very risky thing to do as you never know what kind of pollution you could be adding to your tank. People who do use real ocean water usually have to perform a variety of filtration methods on it before it is actually considered safe to use.;)
    Pinching pennies is something we all strive for in this hobby as it is QUITE expensive to run a SW tank but there are some areas were doing so can be a detriment to your success.:(
     
  5. PghSteeler

    PghSteeler Tassled File Fish

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    +2, being from NJ how much do you trust the water and sand from long island sound is clean and clear? There is a history of pollution and fish deaths in that region and even though things are making a nice comeback the water is changed over many many times each day to help take away all those nasties locked into sand and rock that leech into the water
     
  6. Jim64123

    Jim64123 Plankton

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    yea I def agree about not knowing what's in those waters. Most of you would suggest against getting live sand from a lfs? Unfortunately for me I don't really know anyone else that has saltwater tanks. Other than talking on here I don't have many people to ask for help on this hobby. There are many stores around by me but usually the help are not very knowledgeable as I'm sure most of you know.
     
  7. 2in10

    2in10 Super Moderator

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    You will be fine with dry sand alone. The live rock will help populate the sand with beneficial bacteria.
     
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  9. bowe0587

    bowe0587 Astrea Snail

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    I recently set up my tank, I got dry rock and dry sand from Marco's Rock, they have good rock/sand packages. I then bought a small portion of live rock from my lfs to seed my tank. The live stuff spreads quick. Where in NJ are you, I am in southern near Philly and know of a few good stores in the area if you need suggestions
     
  10. sailorguy

    sailorguy Torch Coral

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    Where in nj do you live? There is a pretty good store in Northfield called Oceans Aquarium,they seem to be knowledgable and helpful.
     
  11. Jim64123

    Jim64123 Plankton

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    Really? In my reading I thought that the spreading of the bacteria takes a long time. But I'd just putting in a little bit of live rock will spread to the sand and other dry rock that's awesome! Well I actually live in Bergen county which is north jersey. Used to live south jersey. I def miss it.
     
  12. sailorguy

    sailorguy Torch Coral

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    It does take a little longer for bacteria to populate your tank when starting with dry rock and sand,but it is waaaay cheaper and you don't get unwanted hitch hikers that sometimes accompany live rock.It just takes a little more patience,take it slow and give it plenty of time and things should go well.Welcome to 3reef and good luck with the tank,ask lots of questions on here and people will gladly help you out.