Rinsing sand

[Reefer911]

I’m rinsing some dry sand and it is taking forever to clear. I have a small amount in a large mixing bowl and been constantly stirring. I’m sure it will eventually become clear but I’d like to know what everyone does.
I assume that if I don’t get the runoff water completely clear I will have cloudy water in the aquarium and I’d rather not deal with that again, hence my actions with this current build.

I’d like to know realistically how clear I’m gonna get the runoff water during the rinse. Have you been successful with this?

 

[andrewey]

I've always done it in a 5 gallon bucket with a hose. Takes ~30 minutes for 20-40lbs of sand. Lots of water.

Finish with rinse with RODI, prime, then removing as much water before using.

 

[Reefer911]

Yeah I’m in an apartment…in the north so no option for a hose. I’m doing it little by little due to what I have to work with

Yes it’s taking a LOT of water!!

So when I posted it wasn’t running this clear but all of a sudden it cleared considerably

This is looking through 3” and I’ll keep going a bit more hoping to get it perfectly clear.

 

[exnisstech]

It's a slow process if you can't use a 5g bucket and garden hose.

EDIT a larger version of one of these may work better if the sand isn't too fine.

 

[Reefer911]

Looking at the pic above, how clear is clear?

Is that little bit of cloudiness ok?

 

[brandon429]

And don't skimp rinse it till perfection

We have people that rinsed 150 lbs to total perfection, that's your bar he he

Take outside in bucket use spatula, stir and pour x10000

 

[brandon429]

No

Rinse till clean. If you're ever hired to paint a fence, paint it all too :)

 

[56longroof]

It doesn't have to be perfectly clear. I rinse mine until it looks like watered down milk. I don't final rinse with RO either. Just drain it really well. No issues in my tank and I put in almost 200 lbs of sand.

 

[Reefer911]

Also I’m sure I can put the rest in a bucket and run the bath water through it. Might try that next batch

 

[brandon429]

Clogs drains

Be outside

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/official-sand-rinse-and-tank-transfer-thread.230281/
Sixty pages no shortcuts logged. Can be done

 

[lelolai15]

Sorry for my ignorance, I have never heard of this strategy. Why would you want to rinse sand? Pros/cons?

Doesn’t it come with ocean water already? Or would you do this with some sort of dry sand?

 

[Reefer911]

And don't skimp rinse it till perfection

We have people that rinsed 150 lbs to total perfection, that's your bar he he

Take outside in bucket use spatula, stir and pour x10000

Yeah I’m willing to put the work in, as it will be worth it in the long run. Just wasn’t sure of how clear we’re talking here

 

[brandon429]

There's reasons we rinse that well vs partial

Safety assessment reasons, it's not to bug you

There's no partial sand rinse thread for a reason, this is the safe way

All other ways are something someone did once, not fifty pages worth


If you wind up doing the right way we can use as another success example I'll list in detail the risks you skipped by this extra effort

 

[Reefer911]

Sorry for my ignorance, I have never heard of this strategy. Why would you want to rinse sand? Pros/cons?

Doesn’t it come with ocean water already? Or would you do this with some sort of dry sand?

It’s dry sand.

 

[56longroof]

Sorry for my ignorance, I have never heard of this strategy. Why would you want to rinse sand? Pros/cons?

Doesn’t it come with ocean water already? Or would you do this with some sort of dry sand?

Dry sand is very dirty. It needs to be rinsed to get the bulk of the sediment out or a tank will be cloudy for quite a while. You don't have to go OCD on it until it is 100% clear runoff but it does need to be at leat like the picture the OP posted.

 

[brandon429]

The preemptive list :)

#1 above all
Reefs that can't control ammonia begin to crash. Crashing reefs go gray they don't crash as clear clean running water like normal. To predict crashes from improper tank transfers or builds we need the water to not be instantly cloudy giving us no assessment ability. A clean running reef after 48 hours with bioload in place means not going to crash, cycle locked, all due to the clean water we assessed

2. Begins lazy handling training, which were the first four reading links in the thread for dead tanks

3. Is opposite of the only known safe advice

4. Even chalk dust might not clear, see fifteen links page one non clears

5. I gotta see a clean build for more. Someone list me a benefit of cloudy water too


These rules apply to live sand just the same, that's our whole thread. Like 2 jobs there were dry sand. 2/350

 

[Reefer911]

A little clearer. How’s this?

 

[56longroof]

A little clearer. How’s this?

That's fine. Don't listen to the rhetoric.

 

[Reefer911]

@exnisstech It’s fine sand so would probably slip right through that

I’ve employed the 5g bucket and bath tub method

 

[I never finish anythi]

Sorry for my ignorance, I have never heard of this strategy. Why would you want to rinse sand? Pros/cons?

Doesn’t it come with ocean water already? Or would you do this with some sort of dry sand?

Think it might be dry sand . Must rinse it off or have cloudy water forever:)