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3 Responses to “help 75 gallon fish tank gravel or sand?help how much do i need?”
Beach sand wouldn’t be advisable, not because of the salt, but because it contains pieces of broken shell that have been ground down to about the same size as the sand. The shell can raise the pH of your tank, so I’d say that unless you’re keeping cichlids, it would be better to use construction-grade sand or playsand. Plus, with sand from a beach, you might be adding algae or unwanted bacteria or pollutants to your tank.
Sand is fine to use, unless you’re planning to use an undergravel filter – the slots in the filter plate are wide enough that the sand would fall through. It’s still from the days when UG filtration was the norm that gravel is still so popular today. But depending on the species, sand can be a better choice. It’s easier to clean (everything lays on the top of the sand, rather than falls between the pieces like in gravel). It take a bit of effort to adjust to how it needs to be cleaned, though – You can still use a siphon, but there’s a tendency to siphon up the sand if the suction is too strong. I’ll put a link about cleaning a sand substrate below.
Color is a matter of personal choice. I prefer natural colored gravel or sand because it looks the most natural, but for brightly colored fish in an unplanted tank, I sometimes go with black – it shows off the colors best, and doesn’t reflect the light so there’s slightly less algae.
A general suggestion for substrate is a 1 pound of substrate per gallon of water to get around a 2″ depth.
As the previous answer pointed out beach sand may contain things that will play with the tanks PH. Beyond that sand is a bit of a hassle. You can’t use a siphon hose on sand ’cause it just gets ****** right out!!! It would be a right pain in the behind to clean all that sand. Also most fish from the cichlid family will pick up substrate and move it, catfish and plecos often stir up substrate with the movements which will cause the tank to look dirty constantly.
Sand is a matter of opinion – for freshwater I don’t think it’s the best idea. I usually recommend blasting sand which is a very fine, natural looking gravel it looks like rather coarse sand. It’s also inexpensive fifty pounds usually runs between 10 and 15 dollars and on top of that it’s beneficial to the health of your tank, because unlike larger gravel food and waste particles can’t fall between the rocks as easily.
As far as the amount fifty pounds might get you an inch, seventy five would probably be even better.
Actually, it’s easier to clean and maintain a tank with no substrate. Bare-bottomed tanks are the norm in breeder facilities and you can actually decorate them nicely with aquatic plants in pots and pieces of driftwood or rocks.
Also, I should warn you that oscars get over a foot long. They are BIG. And very aggressive. They’ll be fine when they’re little and all, but when they get bigger, you’ll have some serious aggression problems; they may kill each other. I wouldn’t keep any more than a pair in a 75-gallon when they get that big, and even then, the pair has to be unusually tolerant of each other.
November 19th, 2009 at 8:17 am
Beatrice Ebersole
That’s a nice upgrade!
Beach sand wouldn’t be advisable, not because of the salt, but because it contains pieces of broken shell that have been ground down to about the same size as the sand. The shell can raise the pH of your tank, so I’d say that unless you’re keeping cichlids, it would be better to use construction-grade sand or playsand. Plus, with sand from a beach, you might be adding algae or unwanted bacteria or pollutants to your tank.
Sand is fine to use, unless you’re planning to use an undergravel filter – the slots in the filter plate are wide enough that the sand would fall through. It’s still from the days when UG filtration was the norm that gravel is still so popular today. But depending on the species, sand can be a better choice. It’s easier to clean (everything lays on the top of the sand, rather than falls between the pieces like in gravel). It take a bit of effort to adjust to how it needs to be cleaned, though – You can still use a siphon, but there’s a tendency to siphon up the sand if the suction is too strong. I’ll put a link about cleaning a sand substrate below.
Color is a matter of personal choice. I prefer natural colored gravel or sand because it looks the most natural, but for brightly colored fish in an unplanted tank, I sometimes go with black – it shows off the colors best, and doesn’t reflect the light so there’s slightly less algae.
A general suggestion for substrate is a 1 pound of substrate per gallon of water to get around a 2″ depth.
November 20th, 2009 at 3:27 pm
Adam Mabry
As the previous answer pointed out beach sand may contain things that will play with the tanks PH. Beyond that sand is a bit of a hassle. You can’t use a siphon hose on sand ’cause it just gets ****** right out!!! It would be a right pain in the behind to clean all that sand. Also most fish from the cichlid family will pick up substrate and move it, catfish and plecos often stir up substrate with the movements which will cause the tank to look dirty constantly.
Sand is a matter of opinion – for freshwater I don’t think it’s the best idea. I usually recommend blasting sand which is a very fine, natural looking gravel it looks like rather coarse sand. It’s also inexpensive fifty pounds usually runs between 10 and 15 dollars and on top of that it’s beneficial to the health of your tank, because unlike larger gravel food and waste particles can’t fall between the rocks as easily.
As far as the amount fifty pounds might get you an inch, seventy five would probably be even better.
November 21st, 2009 at 2:57 pm
Iris Vines
Actually, it’s easier to clean and maintain a tank with no substrate. Bare-bottomed tanks are the norm in breeder facilities and you can actually decorate them nicely with aquatic plants in pots and pieces of driftwood or rocks.
Also, I should warn you that oscars get over a foot long. They are BIG. And very aggressive. They’ll be fine when they’re little and all, but when they get bigger, you’ll have some serious aggression problems; they may kill each other. I wouldn’t keep any more than a pair in a 75-gallon when they get that big, and even then, the pair has to be unusually tolerant of each other.