How do you calculate sand volume?

[fishbowl]

I have not been able to find the density of wet sand, or at least how many pounds are needed to cover a square foot with 1" of sand. Interesting that live sand is sold by the pound and not by a volume measurement.

thank in advance for anyone who can help.

Tim

 

[Guest]

I would not buy live sand just buy reg aquarium sand it will become live really quick once you add live rock and seed it with couple cups of live sand from a members tank


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[bimmerzs]

Here's the calculator that we have stickied. http://www.dfwmas.org/calculators#rectangularSand

Cheers,

 

[fishbowl]

Thanks Ron, that is exactly what I needed.
[smilie=clapping.gif]

 

[dmarkham]

@kuyatwo wrote:

I agree live sand is a waste of money.

 

[melev]

I have to disagree with that. I've added one or two bags of live sand to my tank annually for the past few years to add a little diversification. And when I set up the 400g, I used eight 10lb trays of LS to seed my tank and there were pods everywhere within 48 hours. Maybe results vary based on brand. I've used Caribsea in the past, and this time Tropic Eden LS.

 

[bimmerzs]

I just have a hard time believing there is anything "live" is a sealed bag sitting on a shelf, for an unknown amount of time. I would love to have someone explain to me how this is possible. [smilie=smile.gif]

Cheers,

 

[melev]

I felt the same way, Ron. Then again, how on earth does a sealed coffee can full of brine shrimp eggs eventually produce brine shrimp when added to water? I've had eggs that are years old that hatch out batch after batch. Bacteria exists in all kinds of forms, including low oxygen situations. Prepackaged LS doesn't have to keep fish alive, but bugs, pods, and bacteria can live. Not all of it, but in the case of what I've used, I've seen it and the results. I was impressed.

 

[bimmerzs]

Egg's are a different animal(pun intended). I have put LR is a sealed container and went back two weeks later and opened it...there was nothing still alive and the smell was very bad. I have also put LS in a bucket and added a pump and a heater and kept it alive with all the pod's worm's etc still happy. The LS in a bag has no smell and seems almost sterile, how do they remove the worm's etc that is found in the LS, not one critter carcas......strange. The sand will no doubt contain nitrifying (autotrophic) bacteria which double's in population every 15-24 hours, one would think that a food source would be needed outside of some cannibalization. You have seasoned LR etc that went into your tank so I can see pod's so quick as they explore their new home. [smilie=lol.gif] I still cast a skeptical eye at LS in a bag, wet or dry. [smilie=lol.gif]

Cheers,

 

[dfwminis]

@Marc wrote:

Had that happen when I had my 225g. Pods were all over within the same amount of time period when I used live sand.

 

[bimmerzs]

If you totally ignore the life cycle of copepods and amphipods and drink enough.... I guess it's possible to see "critters" after two day's. [smilie=lol.gif]

Cheers,

 

[melev]

Ron, I don't have the answers and can only based my comments on personal observation. It is true I put 200lbs of LR in my new tank from my old system, but these pods appeared to be new. They were tiny, whitish, and there were thousands everywhere. As well as those sexy non-motile jellies that I'd not seen in years. I'm pretty sure they came from the LS and not from what I already owned.

 

[fishbowl]

I did not want to get into this debate, but since I have heard the question many times:

Live sand can remain live without food or air because bacteria can go into a suspended state similar to hibernation. It is called forming a spore in bacteria. Spores can last months to years to decades. One well known spore forming bacteria, Anthrax, has spores that can last forever as far as we know. They sit dormant until conditions are right and then start up and do their thing.

So, so long as you are not sterilizing your live sand with heat or bleach, you will have microscopic organisms living in it.

 

[bimmerzs]

@fishbowl wrote:

You are overlooking a very big point.....livesand contains more than just bacteria. [smilie=surprised.gif] Also not all bacteria will automatically "hibernate" , and if dormant and ammonia is present(from the decaying worm's etc., in the sand) then then would awake and some would naturally die off at some point. One would think this cycle would continue until everything is dead....but wait....that would leave behind some kind of odor when that sealed bag is opened. [smilie=lol.gif] You just can't lump all "bacteria" in the same bucket, we are talking specifically about those found in livesand. Debate on this stuff is good, no arguement's just everybody putting their viewpoint's into the mix.

Cheers,

 

[fishbowl]

@bimmerzs wrote:

You said you could not believe anything is alive. I explained how it is possible for bacteria to still be alive. Other things will die in a sealed bag on a shelf... like fish. What organisms between a fish and bacteria survive this is not known by me.

 

[bimmerzs]

@fishbowl wrote:

You said you could not believe anything is alive. I explained how it is possible for bacteria to still be alive. Other things will die in a sealed bag on a shelf... like fish. What organisms between a fish and bacteria survive this is not known by me."]

@fishbowl wrote:

Just to go back to your original statement...the bagged live sand is totally clean, it contains no detritus, shell pieces, or any other evidence of life. That stuff does have bacteria "spores" added but it's a very small amount, there is no other fauna present and the LS usually have a 12 month shelf life. Below comment's taken from this article.http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2009-04/newbie/index.php and found in this discussion thread.http://www.thereeftank.com/forums/f6/live-sand-135330.html

The truth is out there..... [smilie=smile.gif]

 

[melev]

Perhaps what I purchased in trays isn't the same condition as bagged sand. It had an expiration date on it, after all. It would be interesting to get another tray and put some under a microscope, but that would only give me some visuals. I'm no scientist, adding stuff on petri dishes to see what types of stuff grows out over time.

 

[bimmerzs]

@Marc wrote:

If your sand came in tray's, then I would absolutely believe it had some life in it.

Cheers,

 

[mukymuk]

One man's live sand is another man's regular sand. That's the problem here I think.

I think live sand originally meant sand collected from the ocean that had a lot of visible life in it--worms, pods, etc. That's what it means to me anyway. There's not a good source of that anymore to my knowledge--maybe because it's just not in sufficient demand. Vendors now try to pass "bacteria sand" for live sand. Confusion ensues.

Personally, I don't think the bacteria that might be present in "bacteria sand" to be worth the premium. I think live rock is far and away the best way to get microscopic and small macroscopic life in your tank. I do wish there was a good source of real live sand though.

 

[Breezy]

Where would you find the live sand in trays??? If starting a large new tank is it best to order sand and/or rock straight from the ocean shipped in wet news paper ??? How do you prevent the sand from turning into hard clumps??