FreshWater Tank - Gravel or Sand??

[SunniSki]

I have a gravel tank but have always wanted sand.  Is a gravel or sand substrate easier to take care of?  I have several fish such as plecos and cory doras that would love sand.  I just have ZERO experience with a sand substrate and Im not sure if this is harder or easier to take care of.

[Fish Folk]

On 4/15/2022 at 8:55 AM, SunniSki said:

I have a gravel tank but have always wanted sand.  Is a gravel or sand substrate easier to take care of?  I have several fish such as plecos and cory doras that would love sand.  I just have ZERO experience with a sand substrate and Im not sure if this is harder or easier to take care of.

We use a very finely crushed stone. It’s not technically sand, but for looks and feel, it is very close.

We’ve also used Black Diamond Blasting sand as a substrate. It is cheap — we buy it at Tractor Supply — but it is very, very messy / dirty to rinse out. You can buy coarse or medium grade.

I’ve heard some folks recommend pool filter sand, but I’ve never tried that.

People report different things, but in general, I do not think that sand is the best substrate for rooted plants. 

[Jacob Hill-Legion Aquatics]

I would say gravel is easier to maintain all you have to do is gravel vac. my sand I have gets a much of stuff sitting on top of it and if I try to gravel vac it sucks it all up. Also plants will like gravel better and Cory’s would be perfectly fine on gravel unless it’s really sharp.

[Tanked]

I have one pool sand tank, and the rest are gravel.  The plants don't seem to care.  The water and nutrients can circulate through gravel easier so like @Fish Folk I also prefer gravel.  The biggest difference that I see so far is visual.  Debris of every kind in my sand substrate tank sits on top of the substrate until it decomposes or is removed.  Except for the occasional plant leaf, I don't see this in a gravel substrate.  The sand is also easily disturbed during maintenance.

[Guppysnail]

I only used sand once many years ago. I did not like it. My plecos and Corydora do just fine on cheap big box gravel. 

[Jawjagrrl]

I've studied on this for weeks for my Souther American biotope-ish tanks in the works. The sand I was finding was too fine, even pool filter sand. I worried about gas pockets and compression. Considered the blasting sand, but it is sharper than i wanted (it is blasting material) But even the smallest gravels didn't have the look I wanted. Then I finally found something I like.

Caribsea makes a really coarse sand that I am going with - their supernaturals Peace River line. the grains are 1-2mm each and they also have larger versions for accent rocks of larger size (zen garden, gemstone creek and jellybean). I am planning to keep cories too and I think this will work well 🙂

[lefty o]

plenty of people make sand work. i on the other hand stick with gravel because its easy, and nearly fool proof.

[Tanked]

On 4/15/2022 at 10:14 AM, lefty o said:

plenty of people make sand work. i on the other hand stick with gravel because its easy, and nearly fool proof.

Gravel is usually a one time purchase.  No matter how careful I am I eventually find the finer sand particles in the bucket. I definitely don't want them collecting in the drains.

[Jacob Hill-Legion Aquatics]

On 4/15/2022 at 10:50 AM, Tanked said:

Gravel is usually a one time purchase.  No matter how careful I am I eventually find the finer sand particles in the bucket. I definitely don't want them collecting in the drains.

If you do use sand in one of your tanks I suggest you use a coarse type sand. Cory said in one of his videos he uses sand but only the really coarse types.

[Jack.of.all.aquariums]

In my experience, it hasn't really made a huge difference in how the tank runs but does affect maintenance. Sand keeps all the mulm on the surface so you can end up with areas full of gunk but its easy to target a siphon to suck it out. Gravel tends to let stuff settle in so gravel vaccing is necessary to get it out.

My personal preference is sand. I know Cory prefers small gravel/large sand for plants but I've been able to grow plenty of species in fine sand plus it's easier for me to find it in colors I like.

[HH Morant]

I have two 100-plus gallon tanks. One has a lava rock substrate (Bonsai Jack) with undergravel filters, and the other has coarse coal slag blasting media. Both have their advantages.

I like the UGFs with the lava rock gravel because of the biological filtration advantage. The UGFs plus the canisters keep the water very clear. I have found that biological filtration - not mechanical filtration - is the key to clear water. When I decided to have a lava rock substrate, I thought that with a UGF it would be a lot better than gravel. Not so sure about that anymore, but it is good.

The coarse blasting media substrate (second picture) is good, too. It looks better than fine or medium grit blasting media, and it is still fine enough to keep all the poop and dead plant matter on the surface so it is easy to suck out during water changes. I have a sump on this tank so I don't really need a UGF to provide extra biological filtration.

Edited April 15, 2022 by HH Morant

[nabokovfan87]

On 4/15/2022 at 5:55 AM, SunniSki said:

I have a gravel tank but have always wanted sand.  Is a gravel or sand substrate easier to take care of?  I have several fish such as plecos and cory doras that would love sand.  I just have ZERO experience with a sand substrate and Im not sure if this is harder or easier to take care of.

Actual, real, legit sand is the best thing I've ever used and I absolutely love having it in my tanks.

Because I don't want the look of having planted substrate mixed around with the sand itself, I have opted on this iteration of my tank using a fine gravel, not sand at all, but just a bit different care requirements.

Sand compacts, and tends to keep things on top of the surface of the substrate. There is going to be some mixing based on flow, thickness, and you need a strong siphon to be able to pick up some things.

Legitimately for me, that medium in my eye is my favorite one by far and is something that made it feel like a wonderfully natural place.  It sounds childish, but playing in the sand during water changes is just fun, LOL.

On 4/15/2022 at 11:25 AM, HH Morant said:

looks absolutely beautiful.  Nice work.

[Guppysnail]

On 4/15/2022 at 2:25 PM, HH Morant said:

I have two 100-plus gallon tanks. One has a lava rock substrate (Bonsai Jack) with undergravel filters, and the other has coarse coal slag blasting media. Both have their advantages.

I like the UGFs with the lava rock gravel because of the biological filtration advantage. The UGFs plus the canisters keep the water very clear. I have found that biological filtration - not mechanical filtration - is the key to clear water. When I decided to have a lava rock substrate, I thought that with a UGF it would be a lot better than gravel. Not so sure about that anymore, but it is good.

The coarse blasting media substrate (second picture) is good, too. It looks better than fine or medium grit blasting media, and it is still fine enough to keep all the poop and dead plant matter on the surface so it is easy to suck out during water changes. I have a sump on this tank so I don't really need a UGF to provide extra biological filtration.

Off topic but that tank is stunning. 

[Tanked]

On 4/15/2022 at 1:03 PM, Jacob Hill said:

If you do use sand in one of your tanks I suggest you use a coarse type sand. Cory said in one of his videos he uses sand but only the really coarse types.

My 10 gallon project tank is all pool sand. I needed the pool sand for a different project. If I could find a coarser sand at the right color/ price/quantity, I would.   I do make my own occasionally, but it is labor intensive.  The aquarium is plants and pest snails only for now, and looks like the snails toilet.  Gravel is still my substrate of choice.

[Scapexghost]

Niether is particularly difficult. If you are interested in a sand tank, you should try it, and formulate your own opinion on it. This hobby is all about trying things. Anything that has a reasonable chance of working should be tried if it interests you. Sand is hard to beat aesthetically so it's worth the minor annoyances that come with it. 

[SunniSki]

Thank you everyone for all your input 😊