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It's a pity that I only saw this thread now. I saw the sudo reef sand at seaview but was hesitant to buy for my cory tank due to the word "reef".
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Re: Sudo Bottom Sand vs Sudo Reef Sand!
Originally Posted by Urban Aquaria
Did you wash the sand thoroughly beforehand? There are alot of residual minerals and fine particles in the sand so its best to wash it well before use. I washed the sand repeatedly in a bucket until the water is clear before testing and using it.
If the sand is not washed well, any residual minerals and impurities packed amongst it will naturally dissolve in your test water and raise the TDS. TDS levels in water depends on the ratio of impurities to water volume. In a small cup of water, it requires a just a tiny bit of impurities to raise the TDS by alot.
For example, my tap water usually reads a TDS of around 70... i've tested putting just a few drops of Seachem Prime in a small 150ml cup of tap water, and the TDS jumps from 70 to 300 in an instant! Did the same in a 15 liter bucket of water and the TDS only increases slightly from 70 to 80.
The large pH increase you measured is due to the direct use of RO water. RO water has little to no pH buffering ability, so even just a slight amount of impurities will push pH way up, especially in a small volume of water since the ratio is skewed.
Tap water has much better pH buffering ability, hence that's why my test didn't show any noticeable change in the parameters. The tap water was able to buffer its pH against the relatively small amounts of impurities in the sand.
Try the test again with de-chlorinated tap water (if that's what you'll normally be using for water changes) and wash the sand before testing, see if you can get the same effect.
If for various reasons you have to use RO water for your tank (ie. due to keeping sensitive fishes or shrimps), then remember to also add in the essential "balancing" mineral/trace additives (which are recommended whenever using RO water) before doing the tests, as that will help replicate the real-world conditions.
Hope that helps!
Thank you for your detailed explaination, mate. That helps indeed. I will take your advice and do it again when I have time. I intend to use this sand to keep Apisto, to replicate the Amazonia black water biotop.(whitish sand+brown water). I think that will look real natural. i will mix RO water with Tap water to achieve a TDS of around 50ppm(Tap water at home has a TDS of 100ppm+), and also use Aquarium Munster black peat to release trace elements. Thanks again.
It's a pity that I only saw this thread now. I saw the sudo reef sand at seaview but was hesitant to buy for my cory tank due to the word "reef".
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hi again,
do you see a lot of shell fragments mixed with the Sudo Reef Sand?
do they matter?
The pack of Sudo Reef Sand i got was quite clean... i didn't spot much other materials other than a few random small stone fragments, those are easily washed away when the sand is rinsed in water a few times anyways.
I guess if you find shell fragments in the sand, just wash and rinse them away before usage (they will tend to settle at the top layer when you wash the sand), that would help reduce any "contaminants" in the sand that may affect its characteristics.
great! i've also been using a normal sand bottom for my planted tank. any idea how the sudo reef sand would fare in comparison to the normal sand bottom?
From my experience using them so far, they both seem to be the same... just that the "Reef Sand" version has a lighter color.
Hi UA, have you ever tried Coral Sand for fresh water tank before? Is that safe to use? I saw this in Seaview and the colour look quite nice.
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I've not used that particular sand before , but if its actual coral sand (made up of coral bits), then it is designed to raise pH and GH... but without an actual label or description on the bag, there is no indication of what it really is.
In such cases, you'll just have to buy it and test in a container of water over the course of a week or so, do various pH, GH and TDS tests before and after to see if the sand has any effects.
Thanks UA. I might clean and test it to see how.BTW, just a question about filter, for 25cmx17cmx21cm tank, which kind of filter is suitable? I am planning to have a low tech nano tank to put on the office table.
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For similar sized nano tanks, i usually use a Dophin H80 hang-on filter, tuned to the lowest flow setting. Works well for such small tank setups.Thanks UA. I might clean and test it to see how.
Here is an example of how i use the H80 with my own custom DIY sponge and bio-media placement (photo shown without the plastic cover):
Wow. Good idea to have the bio media DYI in the Dophin filter. I will give it a try! Very excited for the new project.For similar sized nano tanks, i usually use a Dophin H80 hang-on filter, tuned to the lowest flow setting. Works well for such small tank setups.
Here is an example of how i use the H80 with my own custom DIY sponge and bio-media placement (photo shown without the plastic cover):
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Hi UA. Did you need to clean the sand for very long? I try to clean it with many water change but still it is not clear.
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Well, for the sudo brand sands i rise them repeatedly in a container until the water is clear (like washing rice), then i use in the tank. It usually takes around 5-6 rounds of stirring and rinsing the sand to remove most of the fine dust particles.
Not sure of the rainbow brand and you are using though, but if you rinse it and its still cloudy (doesn't settle and clear up within a few secinds), that means it contains alot more dust and particles, have to keep rinsing until the water is clear.
Note that some sands are artificially colored so have to watch for that too. If you notice the sand color is changing or the water color is tinted, then that could be an indication of color leaching out of the sand.
I hope to get some advice here.
I have a 4 feet planted tank with mostly tetras small fishes. The problem I have is low PH and low KH value.
Reading here, can I install a small OHF filter layered with coral sand to raise the pH and KH value safely ?
Will it harm the fishes and plants in any way ?
I think the low pH and KH value is due to the entire tank using Ada plant soil for my plants.
I have tried using coral chips and sea shells in my canister filters but it did not work. It always 0return back to low pH and KH value.
Hope you can help.
Yes, the ADA Amazonia aquasoil is actively maintaining the lower pH and KH, that is what its designed for. The KH has to be kept low so that the active soil can maintain lower pH conditions. Those low pH softwater conditions are meant to be favorable for plant growth. Thats one of the main reasons why aquascapers and planted tank keepers use ADA aquasoil in the first place.
Most tetras are also from low pH softwater environments, so your tank's lower pH levels are suitable for them too.
Do not add other pH raising buffers like corals chips and seashells in such tanks to try and manipulate it further. That is counter productive, since the soil will constantly be fighting to maintain low pH and KH. Its like pitting 2 opposing forces against each other. Doing that will deplete the soil's buffering abilities more quickly and eventually when it exhausts, the pH can spike up high into alkaline range. Parameters like ammonia are less toxic in lower pH and more toxic in higher pH. The danger here is that when pH suddenly jumps up without notice, trace amounts of harmless ammonium in the water column will instantly turn into toxic ammonia, and the livestock can't adapt to the changes in time, then thats when issues start to occur.
If you don't want a low pH environment in your tank (for whatever reasons), you should not use ADA aquasoil... consider doing a tank overhaul/re-scape, transfer out all livestock, and replace the soil with inert substrate like gravel or sand instead. Re-do the scape and then re-introduce the livestock (make sure to drip acclimate them well beforehand, since the new water conditions will be very different).
Last edited by Urban Aquaria; 3rd Jun 2016 at 14:32.
Thanks for your reply.
I expected this when I use the aquasoil but I thought after 3 years its buffering ability will be reduced and allow the pH and KH value to go up. Do you think the aquasoil will ever lose its buffering capability ?
You are right that most tetras prefer low pH but the soil is lowering the pH to 6.2 and below. I also think a very low KH value is also not good for these tetras and the plants.
Looks like I have to revamp my 4 feet tank with pea gravel instead. Any other soil suggestion ? I prefer a higher pH like 6.6 and a higher KH value.
If the tank has already been running for 3 years, other than the aquasoil buffer, part of the lower pH conditions would also be due to "old tank syndrome". This occurs when waste and mulm accumulate in the tank over a long period of time and all the organic material and bacterial activity combine to generate additional acidifying effects.
I have sand-based tanks that are around 2+ years old with pH dropping gradually over time too, so much so that their pH can get as low as 6.0... usually it's the tanks with higher plant density and bio-loads. When i do more extensive clean ups by siphoning out the accumulated waste and dirt in the tank, doing larger water changes and fully cleaning the filter, the pH gradually restores back close to 7.0 after that.
Maybe you could try to do series of comprehensive clean ups of your tank and filter, see if the pH of your tank water gradually adjusts back over time. Do monitor that the pH doesn't suddenly jump up too quickly though, as that can shock the livestock.
If you want to switch to inert substrate, consider using sand instead, i find it much easier to keep clean as waste and food sit in top, where they can be removed easily, rather then drop into gaps between gravel and get trapped/rot inside the substrate.
As for soil, ADA Amazonia aquasoil is still the one of the best for planted tanks. Perhaps it's just time to do a re-scape with fresh new soil. Low KH is okay for softwater fishes and plants, it has to be low in order for pH to be maintained at the acidic range anyways, otherwise it'll be much more difficult for the soil to control and maintain the lower pH water conditions.
Hi UA and all, do you know the difference between the sudo sand and those without brand sold at C328? The grain size looks similar and its white...thinking to use sand in my tank.
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I've not tested those no brand packets of sand from C328, so can't really comment on them. I guess you could just try them out and see if they are suitable for your usage.
For most people, they choose the sand according to grain size and color, some like artificial white color sand, while others prefer natural beige color sand. Just a preference.
If you want to be more careful, just do some tests on the sand to find out its characteristics before usage.
Noted. Thanks UA.
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