Is there a Coral/Motile Invert Safe Black Sand? CaribbSea Hawaiian, Yes Or No?

[Tahoe61]

Who did you order from? The IM 25 lagoon is the top contender, the other is the Reef Casa's 12 gallon lagoon. The Reef Casa is only 7 in high, that really appeals to me.
In either one I will have Aragonite.
Do you know what lighting you're going to use?

 

[Fish Fan]

I had wanted a 30-40 gallon AIO to fill a specific part of our house where a sump would be problematic, and I almost threw up a little when I saw the cost of these tanks. A big part of the cost is that with anything over 25 gallons, you're now looking at freight shipping, which starts at $300 and quickly goes up. Plus the cost of the tank, I was looking at $1000 for a 40 gallon tank that's not even my "main" display tank.

So I ended up with the IM lagoon 25 AIO, I ordered right through IM's website. At the time, the tank was on sale, but BRS was adding extra shipping on top of the $30 box charge and charging sales tax, making them the most expensive option. Amazon had the tank with sales tax and the $30 box charge. But IM offered the tank plus the $30, no sales tax or other fees, making them the best deal for me at the time (around Black Friday this year).

I don't have the tank running yet, I'm working on a custom and possibly unusual stand for it, but I've looked at the tank A LOT lol! It's just shy of 12" in height and I had at first thought I wouldn't like a tank that shallow, but I think I was wrong. The front to back depth is great on this tank, and the height is basically the same as my IM 10 gallon.

Long story short, I really like the IM 25 Lagoon AIO!

Good luck with whatever you decide!

 

[Fish Fan]

And forgot to mention, I'm lighting mine with two Kessil A360we's because I have them on hand and because I really like the Kessil shimmer, they remind me of my old metal halides.

 

[Fish Fan]

@Randy Holmes-Farley I'm sorry again to tag you in here, but I am so close to getting water in this tank, and I'm still contemplating sand options, and not ruling out bare bottom.

Could I please ask, once and for all (at least for me): Do you *need* a calcium carbonate based sand like aragonite in a typical marine reef aquarium? Yes, I know it's been touted to buffer pH, but I have thought for years that it buffers pH at about 7.6-7.8 or so. Meaning, that while it may serve as a very bottom-level safety net, it's not really buffering our systems into the pH range that we want anyway, so its use here may be a moot point, so to speak.

In typing that, I'm now realizing that if calcium carbonate sand was a necessity, every bare-bottom tank would fail.... Sometimes us slow folks have to talk our way through things.....

But seriously, do you see any reason that a reef tank couldn't use a totally inert freshwater sand? I've used this particular sand in a saltwater QT tank, I kept a little dish of this sand in the QT for my fish as recommended by the R2R QT gurus, and no problem, I believe it's inert:

https://www.chewy.com/caribsea-super-naturals-torpedo-beach/dp/322515?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=12195565633&utm_content=115868951686&gad_source=1&gclid=EAIaIQobChMInK6f_JKaiwMV0FdHAR2bZSuAEAQYAiABEgLcv_D_BwE

Why can't I use a sand like this? Nitrifying bacteria would populate it, it would (to me) have no effect on the tank chemistry, and while it wouldn't "buffer" pH, I don't think I need that, I will have "typical" rock in the tank.

Thanks RHF and everyone, I really appreciate the help here!

 

[shcrimps]

Thanks for your reply!

I understand it's magnetic, I'm not worried that because I prefer a "razor on a stick" to a magnetic scraper anyway.

Can I include you in the camp of "I've used it, and the stories of heavy metals are largely overrated"? Is it possible that those users were experiencing something other than a reaction to this sand?

Thank you so much for your help!

i’ve seen this topic so debated over the years
when i started this hobby one of my first tanks used that exact sand, i had a skunk cleaner shrimp and a blood shrimp with all my other clean up crew dudes and never had an issue
i did sift out all the fine stuff like you mentioned doing and i usually use scraper stick method or just trusty old razor blade

 

[Fish Fan]

i’ve seen this topic so debated over the years
when i started this hobby one of my first tanks used that exact sand, i had a skunk cleaner shrimp and a blood shrimp with all my other clean up crew dudes and never had an issue
i did sift out all the fine stuff like you mentioned doing and i usually use scraper stick method or just trusty old razor blade

Thank you for your reply!

I'm leaning against this sand at this point, but I'll say that I really like the look (especially in my case where this will not be my main tank), and this sand has been on the market for like 20 years. So many people report using it without a problem, but yet many people do suggest it's a problem, and now ICP testing may confirm that.

Thanks again!