Sand verses gravel?

[angelfish]

Does anyone have experience using sand for their tank? What are the pros and cons of sand verses gravel?

Thanks in advance 

[Dorrie]

I put black tahitian sand in my parent's 55 gallons. They recented added some black plant substrate than looks alot like sand. So far the only I've noticed is that you NEED to put filter wool (or filter floss) at the beginning of your filter (if it's a canister) because the sands gets in there alot. But it's ok with the wool It looks great too

[xiaan]

I am using Fluorite Black Sand in my 20G. I like the look of it and it allows for ground cover plants to grow easily.

[Brine]

I use silica sand in my tanks because I like the look and it is REALLY inexpensive. It is a white coloured sand. You can get an 80lb bag for less than $20 at Merkley Building Supply. If you want to come see my tanks send me a PM.

[kennyman]

Sand has much less pore space than aquarium gravel so instead of plunging the vac into the substrate for cleaning you have to lift detritus off the top layer of sand. "Stuff" does not sink into the sand but stays on top to be removed. I concider that a plus.

But sand has no capacity for nutrient exchange and should be amended for a seriously planted tank. It also inhibits diffusion of O2 rich water if used thickly. This will lead to anaerobic activity which is good or bad depending on what you want to do with your tank and your level of experience.

[Nerine]

there are a few threads on this very topic

I like the look of sand and how everything sits on top of it instead of sinking inside. snails and sand sifting creatures help a lot in keeping it moving.

[littlelil]

My plants started growing like NUTS when i switched to sand. I even found plants that i never even knew i had, and they were awesome!!

I found it VERY difficult to clean the sand though. Even though the detritus does "sit" on top, its only minutely lighter, if not equal to the weight of the sand and i found myself siphoning mass amounts of sand. Conversely, I didn't see a lot of detritus often, which also tells me that it is, in fact lighter than sand and just gets sucked up into the filter faster than i can see it fall to the bottom. i also never had any problems with sand getting into the filter. I keep the intake about 2" from the bottom- it's a powerful one, too! I just cleaned mine out tonight and found not a single grain! So i guess what i'm saying is that... well, it does keep your tank cleaner, but VERY difficult to siphon when you want to do more thorough cleanings.

but for plants' sake.. WOW, go with sand!! it's SO worth it. i've got black sand- not sure what kind- i got it second hand, but it sparkles! 

i do on occasion miss "plunging the vac into the substrate"; it just feels like i'm cleaning more.. lol.