# Black sand



## Silent.Bull (Nov 28, 2017)

I am looking for all sorts of black sand or silica sand for my new set up. I am trying to not spend an arm and a leg.
I would like to know brands products or even suppliers.

Preferably in Canada but if not well u can order some.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

Pool filter sand is 100% silica but not black. It is a great substrate. Black sands tend to be expensive and too fine for my taste. Also some fish can get muddy colors over black...I had it for a couple of years and threw it away.


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## afchlid (Sep 9, 2017)

Black Diamond blasting sand is cheap and works just fine for fish and plants but there is a lot more to growing plants in it then just the sand. The sand is easy for moving plants, changing the scape around with out making a mess. Easy to work with. It is inert.


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## joselepiu (Jul 22, 2017)

if it is inert i do not see that it has any beneficial properties for plants...
:fish: :-? :? :-? :? :-? :? :fish:


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## afchlid (Sep 9, 2017)

If one is looking for black sand as a substrate that you can grow plants in then blasting sand is an option. Yes it is inert and by it's self has no benefits for growing plants but it is easy to work with when doing a planted tank. I'm sorry I should have elaborated more, if one wants to do a tank like this then other steps must be taken. Co2, ferts for the water column, and on the tank in the above post when I put it together I used osmocote + spread out sparingly for root feeder plants like swords, crypts, and even stem plants that will root when put in the substrate. In time as the substrate accumulates mulm it will also act as a fertilizer for the plants. There is a lot of balancing with this kind of set up for sure.


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## Silent.Bull (Nov 28, 2017)

Okay sounds good I am looking for black wines are for my Jack Demspeys. I am thinking about adding some floating plants so they don't get tore up completely. Substrate is more for aestectics for me anyways lol


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## gillmanjr (Jan 27, 2017)

DJRansome said:


> Pool filter sand is 100% silica but not black. It is a great substrate. Black sands tend to be expensive and too fine for my taste. Also some fish can get muddy colors over black...I had it for a couple of years and threw it away.


They make black sand that is not fine. I bought a bag for my 75 gallon to mix in with the white sand I already had. The grain size of this sand is actually larger than what I had, its pretty big.

CaribSea Aquatics Eco-Complete African Cichlid Zack Sand, 20-Pound, Black [Link removed]


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## caldwelldaniel26 (Jun 11, 2017)

gillmanjr said:


> DJRansome said:
> 
> 
> > Pool filter sand is 100% silica but not black. It is a great substrate. Black sands tend to be expensive and too fine for my taste. Also some fish can get muddy colors over black...I had it for a couple of years and threw it away.
> ...


But yes there are some black "sands" that have decent grain size, however, I agree with DJ that it doesn't work well with most colorful species since they darken to try and blend with their surroundings. It's best to choose a mid-range neutral colored substrate for best color presentation of the fish.


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## DJRansome (Oct 29, 2005)

I've seen the black in more of a gravel size than a sand size, but I have never seen it in 20 grain.


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## Peterharrison (Dec 21, 2017)

black sand is not available in my country .....do i know any supplier....? to do order .


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## MJCanAm (Jan 1, 2018)

Peterharrison said:


> black sand is not available in my country .....do i know any supplier....? to do order .


There's some available at petsmart.com (5lbs or 25lbs)


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## Silent.Bull (Nov 28, 2017)

So here Ontario I was able to find K & E black blasticing sand at a building supply company. TSC had K and E in white but it took me some calling around to find it


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## BillD (May 17, 2005)

The black blasting sand is available in several grain sizes including, #12, #20, #40, at somewhere around $10 or $12 for 88lbs. The ones I have are nickel slag, and at least at first, they seem to kill snails.I prefer the #12 as the stuff is fairly light in weight.


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## punman (Oct 24, 2003)

I had black once many years ago. Even with decent lighting, the tank was too dark. I do have a tank now though that is "salt and pepper". That isn't too bad but I will never do all black again.


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