Aragonite

[mutiger91]

Is CaribSea the only place to get aragonite sand, or do lanscaping.....etc places carry this stuff? really trying to avoid the 40 tacos a bag for this stuff as i need a lot of it. is there a substitute sand that can be used...say from home depot or something?

[Original Fin]

I've done a lot of reading on this, as I plan to make my own rock too for a future build.

There are lot's of substites as far as the aggregate goes.

You Tube has a lot of DIY instructionals with different recipes. There's a recipe or two somewhere here too. Most of the reef forums have detailed DIY threads.

A lot of people like to use crushed oyster shell in addition to, or instead of sand. It's cheap...you can get it in bulk at feed stores, and since it's made of calcium, it has similar buffering qualities as natural limestone reef rock. Use (pure/clean) rock salt to make it porous. As it's curing, the salt will dissolve, leaving air pockets behind. Water softner salt crystals have a good size and shape to them, and again you can get this in bulk for short $. You'll want to research this a bit more yourself to find the cleanest brands...I don't recall which ones most people liked.

Getting the recipe ratios right is the main trick to it from what I've read.

[Original Fin]

I appologize. I misread the title of your thread...thought you were looking to make arragocrete!

[chrisfont23]

Is CaribSea the only place to get aragonite sand, or do lanscaping.....etc places carry this stuff? really trying to avoid the 40 tacos a bag for this stuff as i need a lot of it. is there a substitute sand that can be used...say from home depot or something?

You want to avoid high levels of silicate and other crap that may be present in sand that may cause difficult results for your cycle, and affect the overall progress of you tank. Play sand, such as the stuff sold at home depot, also contains silicates will feed diatoms and IMO, will have a crappy base. Most LFS have aragonite. I actually have 20 lbs of Aragonite w/ 10 lbs of "live sand" in my aquarium. IMO, there is a noticeable difference in terms of algae and beneficial support.

[mutiger91]

You are correct, i am looking to make rock......so it was very helpful....thank you