[jtsurf17]

has anyone heard of the tampabay live sand..the LFS said its better bc there are more critters/organism and not just bio stuff in ls that comes from afar...anyone know ...?

jt

[scubadude]

JT do you mean the stuff that you just get on the beach? I wouldnt do it. Or do you mean the stuff that Tampa Bay Saltwater sells? thats fine.

[Ninong]

I think he means the live sand from the Florida Keys that is commonly sold for reeftanks.

First of all, live sand from Fiji would be more appropriate for a tropical reeftank.

Second, if you insist of using live sand from Florida, you should at least wait until summer when the water is warmer. It makes a tremendous difference in the infaunal diversity as well as population density. Hopefully many of the Florida critters will survive at reeftank temps, especially those that are present during the warmer months.

[Reefland]

I would tend to agree with Ninong on this. I have dealt with Florida LS and Fiji LS in the past and the quality is nowhere near the same. All of the Fiji LS I have gotten seems to have more visible critters versus Florida sand and perhaps the bacterial contents are higher due to the natural environment.

Just my thoughts,

[jtsurf17]

i heard that the die off is much greater when its from fiji....i was talking about the tampa bay saltwater site. although its good. i want to have critters, worms and so forth rather than just buy them individually from ipsf.com...I figure i can hit two birds with one stone.

fiji or tb...? when summer time comes?

[jtsurf17]

oh yea...where did you get the fiji sand...jeffs exotic...?

[ReefHog]

I'm just curious...since LR from the Pacific is typically lighter than LR from the atlantic, would this be the same with the sand?

I haven't mail ordered sand from Florida in many...many years, but it was always my experience that most of the critters so-to-speak would be killed by the weight of the sand itself durring shipping. Of coarse I don't think anyone even had Pacific sand back then. Have things changed or was I just getting bad shipments?

Every so often when I'm at Harbor Aquatics I'll scoop up some grunge from their large rock & sand vats. I'm always supprised at what comes out of that bag.

[jtsurf17]

i don't know...what sand that you've order have you had no luck with...?

[ReefHog]

I really can't remember. This goes back to the late 80's or very early 90's before these boards existed and there were no restrictions on collecting. The only decent information there was to rely on came from magazines like MFM, FAMA, Tropical Fish, etc. and news letters like Sea Scope. I'm sure I purchaced through companys with adds in those.

[Ninong]

Originally posted by ReefHog
I'm just curious...since LR from the Pacific is typically lighter than LR from the atlantic, would this be the same with the sand?

A cubic foot of sand will weigh more if the average particle size is smaller no matter where it is from. In most cases the average particle size of Fiji sand is smaller than the average particle size of sand from the Florida Keys.

The reason that aquacultured live rock from Florida is heavier than collected live rock from the South Pacific is because it is made by digging up inland calcium carbonate deposits that have been compressed for millions of years and then laying down chunks of this material in the Gulf of Mexico for two or three years so that it can acquire some life.

[jtsurf17]

ninong...which sand is the best to get...is the TB sand collect close to shore.= diseases..but have more life or is figi just bacteria and no bugs by the time it gets to my tank...
whats best?

[Ninong]

The "quality of life" of the sand depends on how it is handled from the time it is collected until the time it gets to you. So it varies.

I think that 10% live sand is a good idea for any tank. It's pretty expensive so you might want limit the amount of real live sand that you use. I also think that IF you want to use Florida Keys sand, you are better off waiting until May or later because much of the life in the sandbed in the Keys is migratory and there is a lot more of it when the water is warmer.

[jtsurf17]

where's the best place to get sand this time of year and is it as good. or should i wait..?


any austin people here...maybe we can order and split the frieght.

jt

[ReefHog]

Originally posted by Ninong
The reason that aquacultured live rock from Florida is heavier than collected live rock from the South Pacific is because it is made by digging up inland calcium carbonate deposits that have been compressed for millions of years and then laying down chunks of this material in the Gulf of Mexico for two or three years so that it can acquire some life.

Agreed...But even before anyone was aquaculturing rock, Florida rock was heavier than Pacific rock just due to the fact that the Pacific rock was more poris. I never looked at sand under the microscope but I thaught maybe the sand was more poris also. Of coarse at that size maybe it really doesn't matter anyway.