Is there any reason why i cant put sand in the bottom of my goldfish tank?

Question

apart from the fact it may be a pain to clean out!

normal yellow sand from the beach.

Answer 1

Depends on what type of sand

Answer 2

Depends on the sand. Don't use play sand, but sand blasting sand and pool filter sand is just fine.

They also sell fish sand, but don't use crushed coral, a silica sand of some sort. Personally I much prefer the fish-specific sand, because it sinks right away and it looks rather nice.

There are actual dangers to sand, the first being hardening. Without regular agitation, the sand will harden and condense if a flat plaque, a hard solid mass. You don't want that.
The other problem is bacterial accumulation under the sand. Because sand is so fine, it effectively acts as solid material. There is water flow around the sand grains as there is with gravel, so bacteria that accumulates there rots, and toxic gases accumulate. The release of such gasses can kill your fish.
However, both those problems are easily solved with zero cost to you and zero work, too! They're called malaysian trumpet snails. They are little hermaphoridic, ultra prolific trumpet-shaped snails. They burrow through the substrate and eat various bits of food, detritous, plant matter and fish waste, thus eliminating the bacteria buildup. And, of course, their burrowing activity keeps the sand clean, loose and oxygenated.

Anyone with Malaysian Trumpet Snails - petstores included - will gladly give you some (sometimes only if you buy something else). They multiply quickly. If you have a large tank, but don't have MTS in large amounts, just stir up the sand with a wooden chopstick once every few days.

Gravel vac is tough... And fish poop shows up painfully well against white sand. I suck up plenty of sand with I do water cleaning, dump out the water (the sand will usually stick in the bottom of the bucket) and just dump the sand back into the tank. It's no biggy if you don't mind a snow storm in your tank once a week.
Or you can just go very close, but not into, the sand with your syphon tube.

Answer 3

Sand can be great in a tank - unlike gravel, dirt doesn't sink into it. Instead, make sure there's decent filtration and water movement - any waste will float around until its picked up by the filter. With dual filtration on my tanks with a sand substrate I never have to bother vacuuming, just a quick siphon off the surface here and there where it collects a bit. Also, sand looks so natural.


Buy your sand, don't collect it outside - this can be dangerous and is usually illegal. Many types of sand work, including play sand - I use a practically dust free type from Home Depot called King Play Sand. You can also use blasting sand, construction sand, etc. The larger the grain size, the less dusty it tends to be. Rinse it well first no matter what.

As far as filters go, look at how it operates and you'll see which are safe. Air powered filters are always safe. Hanging filters have the water go through the impeller first, and then through the filter media, so sand tends to damage the impeller of these types. Canister filters tend bring it through the media first and then through the impeller, and are usually safe since the sand is filtered out.

Answer 4

I would not recommend putting ordinary beach sand in your tank if you have a canister filter, or any filter with exposed moving parts that's intake valve is close to the bottom of the tank. The sand is so fine that any movement from the fish, or any disturbance at all really will kick it up into the filter. The sand will then get into the moving parts and grind it away until there is a hole. And then you have a real mess!

I made this mistake once, and it cost me a couple of hundred dollars for two new filters.

If you want to get sand for your tank, an aquarium store will sell you the type that is safe for your filter, and your fish.

Good luck!

Answer 5

Who says you can't? As long as you put the sand in a deep bowl and run HOT water over it for several minutes, then let it sit in the hot water until it's cool, siphon out the water, then rinse thoroughly with cold water - should be good to go.

There is a danger that sand may have a chemical on it from lawn sprays or salt if you get it from a beach - urine from animals and that sort of thing. But if you buy sandbox sand - it is already sterile and safe for your child - a quick few rinses and it should be safe for your goldfish, too.

Answer 6

I have sand in my fish tank. I got regular playsand from Home Depot, and rinsed it until the water that ran off of it was clear. I have sand, plus Flourite for growing plants and it looks soo much better now.

You might want to move your fish to a temporary home while you redecorate his home, so that you can deal with any water quality problems that might come up. Also, you don't want to just take sand from a beach or something - who knows what is in it. Stick with playsand from a bag.

Oh, I forgot to add, you don't want to use sand with an undergravel filter because it will clog it up. I got rid of my UGF, and the water is clearer than before.

Answer 7

No you cant put normal sand in a fishtank. it is full of bacteria that may harm your fish. Everytime the tank is disturbed (during cleaning, feeding etc) the sand will rise and it will take days to settle. also the sand is so fine it will be breathed in by the fish and they will suffocate.

Answer 8

It can contain bacteria..As the same goes with drift wood and shells...All these items you buy from the pet shop are cured and baked and fresh...You can read up on ways of curing the items yourself..i personally would not suggest sand with goldfish in general as they eeat off the bottom also and could get bound up if sand is eaten...

Answer 9

Sand is very "SILTY", you can use it but, it tends to create more maint. and clogs the filter. Blue pebbles work best because, blue scatterers light the best (shortest wave length), so the tropical fish appear vibrant, and colorful. if you are worried about bacteria, you can use the children's play sand, for the "Sand Box" at any toy store. That sand has been sterilized ....

Answer 10

dont use sand from the beach it contains lots of bacteria the fish arent used to. You can buy coloured sands tho form pet shops which u can use instead