# inexpensive, locally avaliable substrates? help!



## TruKnight (Sep 12, 2009)

Im planning to redo my 75g now that I know what plants will live in it and what didnt work before but I have a problem. Any decent substrate ive looked at is not locally avaliable and the shipping costs for the 100lbs id need are 2x more than the stuff itself costs, which is a total deal breaker. 

What I have now is basically sms turf fired clay stuff, which I hate. Its light and blows around way too easily and doesent hold plants well at all. It has to go. 

What I want is an inert substrate, with grain size around 1-3mm, color either black or brownish, definately not white. But it has to be locally avaliable and inexpensive. There are no major fish or pet stores here or anywhere within a 50 mile radius. What is here are places like home depot, lowes, walmart, etc. Are any of those places going to have something close to what im looking for?

What I know I dont want: larger gravel, any kind of soil including mts, fine sands, eco, aquasoil, etc. All of those arent here or are too expensive or too much of a hassle so there ruled out, so please dont suggest those, there not helpful. 

Ive also considered a sand, but what ive read doesent convince me its any better than what I have in there now. I can already see it flying everywhere, getting in my filters and breaking them and keeping the water forever cloudy. So if you can reccommend me some sort of miracle sand I can get here that wont do all that, ill look into it. 

So, I really need some help please.


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## AaronT (Apr 26, 2004)

www.spectraquartz.com. You'll want the coarser grade and you'll want to rinse it a bit, but it doesn't take much rinsing.

Also, pool filter sand is nice if you can find the right color.


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## shikari (Aug 16, 2010)

try the black diamond blasting abrasive 100lbs cost me 20 for my 75g and I have miraclegrow organic topsoil topped with black diamond and my plants are doing great.


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## Diana K (Dec 20, 2007)

Look at any and all rock yards, masonry stores, landscape supply and similar. 
Even if the majority of their sales is by the truck load, these places usually also sell by the bag, and at much better prices than most fish store gravel, sand etc. 

Sand is heavier than SMS, and does not go flying around the tank anywhere near as much. Has no cec, though. 
The pool products are a bit heavier than most sand, so stay in place or fall out of the gravel vac even faster. Still no cec, though.


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## TruKnight (Sep 12, 2009)

I could not locate either spectraquartz or the black diamond when I asked today at home depot. They basically said no and blew me off. Never going back there now, been there 3 times for different stuff and they never have any of it. Anyhow, ive read of many possible substuites over the previous two days of forum searches, but theyre just not locally avaliable here in south ark. 

Ive been able to find nothing in the size range im looking for, so I may have to consider sand. I have access to like a thousand cubic yards of yellow sand, but its the type you use for concrete, and its pretty rough as sand goes, but still very fine in comparison to what I wanted. Nevermind that it would require an obsene amount of washing to get it clean enough to use too, if its even suitable. 

I know now im not good enough to make a planted tank like many on here can, so for this tank, instead of a planted tank, im settling for a tank with plants instead heh. Going low tech this time, inert substrate, root tabs mabye, powerheads w/ sponge filters, lights, heater, air stone and thats it. No co2, dosing, canisters or complex substrates. I just want it to not kill the fish I put into it this time...

edit: just saw diana's post. There is a sand and gravel quarry, I will ask and see if they have anything that might fit the bill. Im just concerned that if I use sand it might turn into an even bigger disaster than the one I have now. =x


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## ecotanker (Jun 12, 2009)

Sikari,

what grade of black diamond ( black beauty ) are your using?


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## AaronT (Apr 26, 2004)

You can't find black beauty or spectraquartz at Home Depot. Call a rep at Spectraquartz and ask for a distributor.


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## TruKnight (Sep 12, 2009)

Heres a pic of the sand I have literally piles of:










Ive washed up a small sample, and it appears to be 50% mud, 20% small gravel, and 30% actual sand, roughly. Its got a nice earthy color to it, but id have to wash like 10x of it to get the amount of usable sand I would need.

I washed and sived about a cup of it, here are the results:










On the left is the sand that went through the mesh, on the right is what didnt. Both together are in the middle. The gravel size on the right is attractive, and the color of the sand is pretty nice too. It would be an awful lot of work to seperate the two tho.

Should I even consider using this stuff? If so, which part is the better stuff?


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## Diana K (Dec 20, 2007)

I would use it as you get it, but mineralize it. 

Finer particles hold the fertilizers (Cationic exchange capacity) and larger particles allow better water movement through the substrate. 

However, if you want to avoid the fines, and rinse them out then I would set up graduated sieves and work under some trees that need deep irrigation. 
Dry sieve the material first, then wash the coarser material to further remove the fines. A little dish soap (1 tablespoon per gallon) is completely safe for lawn and garden, and will help remove the fines from the coarser material. Then lots more rinsing while agitating the material to get rid of the soap. 
To do any real quantity of this material might take 2 people, or a powered sieve. I have no idea if these can be rented.


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