Can you save sand?

[bennerkla]

Alright guys, i have a 75 gallon that i'm going to need to sell because i'm going to college :( , and i went through hell to try to get 5 packages of Southdown sand, and I was wondering if there was anyway I can just hold onto it, even though it is live by now? Sure, all the stuff will die, but will the sand be good to use in my 10 gallon nano in about a year or two?

Thanks for the input,

Ben

[ZoeReef]

I am now officially an expert.

http://www.reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=843063

[Blown 346]

Ys you can hold onto the sand, Once you go to use it, just rinse it out very well before hand.

[bennerkla]

Zoe- I read your thread, very interesting stuff. To quote Agu...


I've done the wash, dry in sun, and rewash technique several times with great success. During the second rinse all the organics that were waterlogged are now dry and float to the surface.

IMHO the use of chemicals is overkill.


Maybe there is some truth to that? I'll have to see how it works,

[NexDog]

I'm reusing sand as it's very expensive. Plus I siphon out up to 50% of my sand bed every month. I siphon it out using a cannister filter and then dump it in a bucket. Then under a tap I swirl it like panning for gold. All the crap rises to the top and I pour out the brown water. Repeat about 10 times until no more brown stuff comes out and store in a bigger bucket.

When I have enough I dish it out onto plastic trays and dry it over a week or so.