Could Black Diamond Blasting Sand cause foggy water?

[CoSpy]

I'm using the tank and substrate my daughter had.  She never had problems with water clarity, but since I set up the tank using the same substrate, Black Diamond Blasting Sand, the water is still foggy.  It's been a month and the fish are doing well.  I rinsed out the substrate well before using it.  I've had aquarium shops test the water 3 different times and the results did not show any abnormal readings.  I've used different water clarifiers that didn't change the foggy look.  I drained and replaced 1/4 of the water last week.  The only thing unconventional I'm using is the substrate of blasting sand  that my daughter previously used without problems.  I can't think of what to do next.  I'm afraid to replace too much of the water for fear of killing the 11 tetras I have in the 55 gallon tank.  

Here is the information about using Black Diamond blasting sand: https://aquanswers.com/black-diamond-blasting-sand-aquarium-safety/#:~:text=Here’s why using Black Diamond blasting sand in,edges. It will not hurt your bottom-dwelling fish.

 

[H.K.Luterman]

This might be a silly question, but have you scrubbed down the glass inside the tank? Sometimes biofilm collects there and makes everything look foggy. 

If that's not the issue, have you tried looking at the water while having it in different containers? For instance, if you put some into a little white container, it might look a bit green, and it will mean you're having a green water bloom. 

[tonyjuliano]

Most likely a bacterial bloom, common in newly setup tanks.

It’s cause is due to a large amount of nutrients (for example, fish waste) that the bacteria is feeding on, and in turn their numbers are multiplying.

it will not harm anything.

It can be filtered out with the use of a flocculant, such as Seachem Clarity along with the addition of fine filter floss in your filter.

Edited June 17, 2021 by tonyjuliano

[Patrick_G]

I usually add some filter floss to the top of my filter. If the cloudiness is from some fine particulate that might clear it up. 
As far as large water changes go, it’s not harmful to your fish. Folks that fertilize heavily do water changes up to 70% weekly. 

[KaitieG]

I have a tank with Black Diamond Blasting Sand, and I really like it, but I had a cloudiness issue.  I tried super fine filter floss, water changes, purigen, etc..  I don't think it was related to the substrate at all.  Turns out it was a mild green water bloom (not surprising since it showed up after I added a second light).  

The tank water didn't look green to me, so I hadn't thought it would be that, and I actually couldn't really even see the green in a white cup, but when I stuck the white cup into the tank to get the water, then I could tell there was a slight green tinge. I got a UV sterilizer from Amazon, ran it for 3 days, and the water is crystal clear now and has stayed that way for about a week since running the UV sterilizer (new experiment--how long will the clear water last!).

Edited June 17, 2021 by KaitieG

[sudofish]

I had BDBS set up for a bit. Any cloudiness should long be gone by now. There's something else going on in there.

[aquachris]

I mostly only use BDBS and don't have issues with cloudiness after about a month.  I agree with others, either biofilm, or bacterial bloom.

[Daniel C]

I am also using Black Diamond with no cloudiness. I am using the medium grit and I know there is a fine grit but I don't think that would make any difference.

[ARMYVET]

Question for all of you Black Diamond Blasting Sand users....Are any of you doing heavily planted tanks with it and if so how well is their growth?  I really like the look of black substrate and BDBS seems like a perfect fit as long as it can grow plants.  

 

[Randall from Texas]

I use bdbs on my 100 gal planted tank. With my bioload I don't use liquid fert but have inserted 20 plus root tabs. My giant amazon sword is still showing deficiency so still adding tabs. Thinking I may try dosing macros soon.

[CoSpy]

Thank you all responders for your thoughts and advice.  Regarding the UV STERILIZER, can you use it periodically as a preventative, or only when you suspect or see a problem.  What does it do to the fish that are established living in the tank?  Someone posted there's a chemical alternative that does the same thing.  Would this be less invasive for the fish?

 

[Jollypop4321]

Every time I’ve had cloudy water it turned out to be a bacterial bloom.

one time I used a water clarifier that cleared the water all right, but left a white heavy film all over everything!   It was awful.   So I don’t t use those anymore.  Now that my tanks are established I don’t have that cloudy problem as much.   Sometimes slight but never heavy as in the beginning.  
Generally I don’t use carbon in my filters but I have used it successfully  in the past to help polish the water.  
 

[Fish Folk]

We use bdbs in a few tanks. It doesn’t absorb nutrients, but, as already said, bio-load + mu and root tabs can provide what’s needed. I recommend the coarser size, not the fine.

[aquachris]

On 6/18/2021 at 7:46 AM, ARMYVET said:

Question for all of you Black Diamond Blasting Sand users....Are any of you doing heavily planted tanks with it and if so how well is their growth?  I really like the look of black substrate and BDBS seems like a perfect fit as long as it can grow plants.  

 

Not heavily but a decent amount. I use root tabs to help. 

[ARMYVET]

On 6/18/2021 at 12:24 PM, aquachris said:

Not heavily but a decent amount. I use root tabs to help. 

Would I be able to see a pic of your tank and plants?🙏

[CoSpy]

On 6/18/2021 at 11:01 AM, ARMYVET said:

Would I be able to see a pic of your tank and plants?🙏

I am a beginner and didn't want to kill fish and plants, so I opted for artificial ones.  I hope when I sort of know what I'm doing, I'll have live plants.  I'm thankful my fish are still alive.  This hobby is much more complicated than I expected.  I have the utmost respect and admiration to those of you who have amazing tanks!  It inspires me to keep going despite the downfalls.

[aquachris]