Best Sand To Handle The FLOW

revhtree · Jul 1, 2016

I am thinking about sand for my new build and I am thinking I need a bigger sized grain sand so I can keep some good flow running across the top of it to help keep it clean.

I love Tropic Marin Reef Flakes but I am think about the Tropic Marin Reef Flake Grand Select size.

Here are the grain sizes:

Aragasnow - 0.5mm
Tonga Special Pink - 0.8mm
Miniflakes - 2.0mm
Mesoflakes - 2.7mm
Reefflakes - 3.0mm
Reefflakes Grand Select - 4.5mm

What are you using and what do you suggest?

ecam · Jul 1, 2016

Grand select is my favorite. But. I have an mp40 and mp60 on a 180. And still where they meet in the middle. Bare bottom

Sabellafella · Jul 1, 2016

Rev the reef flakes work great with high flow.

revhtree · Jul 1, 2016

ecam said:
Grand select is my favorite. But. I have an mp40 and mp60 on a 180. And still where they meet in the middle. Bare bottom

Bleh! Obviously no sand can handle high water flow just looking for the BEST option to handle it without creating a bunch of space for detritus!

revhtree · Jul 1, 2016

Sabellafella said:
Rev the reef flakes work great with high flow.

I currently use Reef Flakes but need something more "heavy duty" and that's why I was considering the Grand Select Reef Flakes.

revhtree · Jul 1, 2016

I am open to other brands of sand of course!

ReefQueen · Jul 1, 2016

I personally thing the grand looks too large. I would go with the reef flakes. I use seaflor so I have no experience with either, I just prefer the look of the reef flakes better

I think it will also depend on what fish you plan to go with. Goby and wrasses that burrow at night would probably appreciate a finer grade sand then the grand.

revhtree · Jul 1, 2016

ReefQueen said:
I personally thing the grand looks too large. I would go with the reef flakes. I use seaflor so I have no experience with either, I just prefer the look of the reef flakes better I think it will also depend on what fish you plan to go with. Goby and wrasses that burrow at night would probably appreciate a finer grade sand then the grand.

I LOVE the regular flakes but I want more flow in this tank to help keep the sand looking good.

Daniel@R2R · Jul 1, 2016

Following. Maybe some folks who use reef flakes could weigh in with how much flow they're running. I agree that reef flakes seem like they would look better (from the picture above and thinking about grain sizes listed), so I'd go with the smallest grain that will get 'er done.

luke33 · Jul 1, 2016

revhtree said:
Bleh! Obviously no sand can handle high water flow just looking for the BEST option to handle it without creating a bunch of space for detritus!

Thats a great choice! "NoSand" is my favorite brand too! Can really handle the flow.

nemo1017 · Jul 1, 2016

I have a mix of reef flakes and grand select. No issues with a jebao rw8 turned half way up(could increase and it wouldn't cause a sand storm.) in a 50 gallon.

jlanger · Jul 1, 2016

Great topic, Rev!

I am currently removing sand from my system (a little at a time) so I can upgrade to a larger sized sand grain.
I have the Ocean Direct Live Sand which is about 1mm in size or smaller. The sand does gets blown around where the flow is directed down towards the sand bed, but that's not my main reason for changing it out.
I have been having high nutrient levels and I think the sand bed is a possible source of those. So I want to be able to clean my sand bed of any detritus by vacuuming the sand, which isn't really possible with such a small grained sand; it just gets sucked up the vacuum. A larger grained sand should eliminate that issue while still providing a nice substrate to my reef. I do have gobies and shrimp pairs, so having the sand bed is important to me.

I'll be following along, for sure.
And I'll update the thread if I make a choice and proceed with swapping out the sand.

BTW... Tropic "Eden" substrates.

firemedix911 · Jul 1, 2016

I went with Mesoflakes and Reefflakes 50/50 mix and love it. I have a ton of flow in my tank and it stays put good but it is also good for sand dwelling animals. The reflection is much better than any of the Caribsea sands as well. So far app good here.

jsker · Jul 1, 2016

Crushed shells https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/lets-talk-substrates-for-the-marine-aquarium.72528/

Amps Reef Life · Jul 1, 2016

I use special grade sand by CaribSea. It's 1.0 to 2.0mm. Works great in my high flow tank. I use it for all my reef tanks (3 total)

BetURWrasse · Jul 1, 2016

I've ran 2 Gyre 150's and MP10 in my 130 and have had just a tiny bit of movement in my reef flakes.

I just setup 2 wav's and at 75% I'm not getting much movement either. I did when I first installed but I just angled them differently.

rovster · Jul 1, 2016

Reef flakes is great but I have 1 bare spot. 3 mp40s in a 105 gallon.

TylerS · Jul 2, 2016

Have you thought about other options besides higher flow at the tank bottom to keep the sand clean so you can keep the smaller sand you currently use and prefer. I'm not really sure what those options might be, but I'd go for that first before going with something where I didn't like the looks as much. I did a bunch of reading and hunting a while ago on various forums for substrates and a lot of people seem happy with the 1-3mm sized substrates.

One option would be more powerheads on a lower setting, instead of fewer powerheads on a higher setting. Adjusting powerhead locations, or maybe types of powerheads, adding some livestock that cleans / stirs the sand differently? I just thought I'd throw that out there.

Griff · Jul 2, 2016

I used Fiji Pink and can only turn my gyre 150 up to 25% before things blow around. I'm hopping once the sand gets a little more seasons it will stay put. I prefer the smaller grain sand as I like being able to vacume it out with ease, wash it with RODI and add it back a few cups at a time.