View Full Version : Old live sand
AJ460
01/13/2014, 02:09 PM
I babe maybe 100 pounds of live sand I got from a friend maybe a year or two ago it's in a sealed bucket and still has water in it.
Now I took these buckets and put them in my garage and have never done anything with them. They have just sat there.
Well I would like to use some of it in my reef tank to kind of dress things up fill in some bare spots could I use it or should I just buy new. And if I use it should I rinse it some how or just put right in the tank.
Joe14
01/13/2014, 02:52 PM
Do you know the conditions of your friends old tank? i wouldn't put any sand in if there was algae problems or anything like that in my tank.
AJ460
01/13/2014, 03:08 PM
Can't remember but I know I have no problems
Joe14
01/13/2014, 03:20 PM
i would definitely rinse the sand before putting it in, let someone with more experience chime in before you do anything...
patsfan1130
01/13/2014, 03:23 PM
I never mess with used sand other than a cup or so to seed a new tank. It just isn't worth it IME. Too many unknowns...
ingtar_shinowa
01/13/2014, 03:28 PM
I bet its nasty lol
shifty51008
01/13/2014, 03:31 PM
deff. rinse it off, it prob. stinks to high heaven and it may have turned black towards the bottom of the bucket
tkeracer619
01/13/2014, 03:37 PM
It doesn't matter the condition of the tank it came out of. The bacteria in sand is both aerobic and anaerobic. When you pile it into a bucket everything that requires oxygen will be dead in short order and will foul all of the sand.
If you wish to reuse it...
Rinse it out the best you can with a bucket and a garden hose.
Once rinsed put in a tub with a half gallon of regular bleach (non scented or gel, only normal) per 5 gallons fresh water.
After 24h and several stirs drain and rinse the sand.
Once the sand has dried you should soak it in RO water and test for phosphates. If they are present after 24h you will need to remove them through gfo or another method such as lanthinum chloride.
If you skip these steps you are almost guaranteed algae issues.
I have several hundred lbs of sand in buckets left over from a recent crash. Instead of the hassle I just purchased new and will reprocess my old sand for sale sometime down the road or use in a larger tank.
AJ460
01/13/2014, 03:54 PM
Ya screw it I will just go and buy a bag lol
tkeracer619
01/13/2014, 04:51 PM
Yup, this is why people often give away large buckets of sand for free :lol:
If you rinse the sand when you put it away it tends to be better but it usually still has phosphates and nitrates. It will mildew as well if it cannot dry properly after the rinse.
It is why we miss southdown! Sand used to be disposable... now its $1 a lb.
patsfan1130
01/13/2014, 08:03 PM
Yup, this is why people often give away large buckets of sand for free :lol:
If you rinse the sand when you put it away it tends to be better but it usually still has phosphates and nitrates. It will mildew as well if it cannot dry properly after the rinse.
It is why we miss southdown! Sand used to be disposable... now its $1 a lb.
I've still got 15 or so bags in my shed! Those were the days
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