# Someone please pick a brand of live sand/substrate for me



## Altohombre (Dec 31, 2007)

I have a 46 gal bow front so I am guessing I could use about 80 lbs (?) of sand. Please recommend a brand for me. I get caught up in reviews too much and confuse myself.


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## bettababy (Oct 12, 2006)

Carib Sea puts out a wonderful live sand, I would suggest it to anyone. I've been using it for about 10 yrs in various tanks, selling it to customers, and never any complaints. It's an aragonite mix bagged wet that is available in various colors such as pink, white, and a few others.


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## Altohombre (Dec 31, 2007)

Could you be more specific of which CaribSea you use. There seems to be several types listed on Marinedepot and I can't tell if they are the "real live" or the "fake live" sand I have heard about. Which color do you prefer? the pink or white?


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## bettababy (Oct 12, 2006)

http://www.caribsea.com/pages/products/aragalive.html

I am partial to the fiji pink... is what I have always used in my home tanks. At the store we've used a number of the others, all basically the same. Watch the size/grade of sand and other things mixed in if you have any type of bottom dwelling animals such as gobys, blennies, etc. Some of those types of sand have larger pieces in them which is very sharp, and can easily cut your fish to pieces, especially any sand sifting gobys/animals. I use the fiji pink for that purpose.


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## Altohombre (Dec 31, 2007)

I like the looks of that one a lot. However it says that is not burrower safe and you say you use it because it is good for gobys. Am I confusing burrowing with sand sifting?


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## Altohombre (Dec 31, 2007)

also where do you get yours from. I see sometimes it comes in 40lb packages but a lot of the online sellers I have looked at only have 10 or 15


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## bettababy (Oct 12, 2006)

I've never had a problem with my burrowing animals in the fiji pink, and I currently have it in my 20 gallon right now, with a saron shrimp, blue leg hermits and about 6 nassarius snails. Everyone is thriving.
I get mine at the LFS where I used to work. That is standard stock for their store. (their fish room alone is 8000 sq ft) They stock the best of everything you can imagine. 
I would suggest you keep looking online, and maybe write down the information of what it is, take it to your LFS and ask them if they can order it for you. Most LFS's have it available, just not enough market or shelf space to stock it. Make sure it's the AragAlive if you are wanting what I have here. AragaLive in fiji pink, by CaribSea.


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## Altohombre (Dec 31, 2007)

it seems like Petsmart and Petco only carry the CaribSea Ocean live or the CaribSea Aragamax special something. No special colors. Actually their selection really sucks compared to their artificial gravel selection.


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## bettababy (Oct 12, 2006)

Have you considered ordering online? Sometimes online can be the way to go... it saves money in the long run because you're able to avoid future problems caused by making due with less than what you really need.
Check here 
http://drsfostersmith.com
I've ordered from them already a few times, they're reliable and less expensive than most places.


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## Altohombre (Dec 31, 2007)

how many lbs do you recommend for a 46 gallon bow front. Because it is a an odd shape I am confused as to how much sand is needed for a somewhat decent amount of sand bed. Would 80 lbs be too much? I want a nice sand bed to aid in filtration, but noting what statements of yours that I have read I don't want anything too deep because I want a long lasting tank and no crashes in a couple years.


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## bettababy (Oct 12, 2006)

You want your sandbed to be 2 - 3 inches deep...


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