BDBS and cories

[Odd Duck]

Just in case anybody was worried about how “sharp” black Diamond blasting sand (BDBS) is or isn’t and how it could affect cories barbels I’ve got a couple pics for you.  I see this question come up regularly and I don’t think it’s an issue at all.  I had a couple cories be a little more cooperative after feeding the other day so I snapped a couple pics.  These cories have been raised on BDBS since they hatched in this tank.  My BEL boys have settled down a bit and the water is more clear than it’s been in a couple weeks so I got decent pics.  These are just a couple of my bronze cories, Corydoras aeneus. They all have fabulous barbels and so do the trilineatus in the same tank.  The tri’s are less bold than the bronzes, so no pics today.  But I have cory zoomies and eggs again after the weather front that came through yesterday.  I haven’t even done a water change.  😆 

Enjoy the fabulous “mustaches” on these kids - probably both girls, BTW.

[Jennifer V]

So glad you posted this! I've been researching cories for well over a year and have found that some people are rather fanatical about the type of substrate, grain size, etc that is necessary for them. 

[Odd Duck]

I have a few cories that have had barbel issues but they were from infections not related to substrate. One of my oldest bronzes developed an infection in a bare bottom tank even when there were fry growing up in there that never had a problem at all.  And a couple of my sterbais in my angel tank don’t have barbels from when they got an infection and they’re on “smooth” pool filter sand.  They are long since over the infection but barbels didn’t grow back. I barely saved the fish!  And no, the infections weren’t related. They occurred almost 2 years apart.

I truly don’t think substrate has anything to do with cory barbels. In nature they skim over and hunt food over all different kinds of surfaces.

[dangerflower]

Oh wow, I did not realize that cory barbels could get that big 😍 they're so cute!

Good to hear about your experience with BDBS. I have a bag that I got a while back that I've been afraid to use.

[nabokovfan87]

On 10/24/2023 at 5:37 PM, Odd Duck said:

I have a few cories that have had barbel issues but they were from infections not related to substrate. One of my oldest bronzes developed an infection in a bare bottom tank even when there were fry growing up in there that never had a problem at all.  And a couple of my sterbais in my angel tank don’t have barbels from when they got an infection and they’re on “smooth” pool filter sand.  They are long since over the infection but barbels didn’t grow back. I barely saved the fish!  And no, the infections weren’t related. They occurred almost 2 years apart.

I truly don’t think substrate has anything to do with cory barbels. In nature they skim over and hunt food over all different kinds of surfaces.

That substrate always looks so unique when you get a macro shot or something up close. 

We've talked about it before and I think the only * or caveat is that what we discussed.  It really is difficult for some due to it being a recycled media. Black Diamond is the brand and you can find those details on the website.  This isn't something designed for aquarium use and I am just going to say we all should use common sense.  If it feels sharp after cleaning and all that then you might run into some issues.  If you run a magnet and it's full of metal, maybe you got a bad batch. 

I do love the look of dark, black substrate, and it's a bit difficult to really find something in the sand size.  Yours are doing well, corydoras look great, and I can say there are plenty of people running this substrate and having zero issues at all with it.  

[JChristophersAdventures]

Black Diamond Blasting Media is also available through TSC (Tractor Supply), but be careful to get the coarser version if you use a gravel vac to reduce the challenge of cleaning sand substrates. If you want a dark substrate and have large tanks (or a lot of tanks to do), why pay more? You can also mix it with other sandy substrates to get a number of interesting color variations.

I will be mixing it in about a 80% BDBS to 20% coarse white sand ratio. This will accomplish my goals of: 1. still having a generally dark substrate so the fish colors really pop, 2. add a little light reflection on the bottom surface to bring out more definition throughout the scape, and 3. mute the appearance of mulm between cleanings (black alone can look dirty pretty quick, depending on the bioload). Plus I will be using black slate and snow white quartz rock to compliment the bi-color substrate, as I think it will just look cool.

I think a lot of other interesting color combinations that could be done using that approach... imagine mostly BDBS with just a small amount of red sand... a few reddish rocks along with some black ones and then lots of red plants mixed in with the usual plant assortment... that would be amazing!

 

[Jennifer V]

On 10/25/2023 at 9:26 AM, JChristophersAdventures said:

Black Diamond Blasting Media is also available through TSC (Tractor Supply), but be careful to get the coarser version if you use a gravel vac to reduce the challenge of cleaning sand substrates. If you want a dark substrate and have large tanks (or a lot of tanks to do), why pay more? You can also mix it with other sandy substrates to get a number of interesting color variations.

I will be mixing it in about a 80% BDBS to 20% coarse white sand ratio. This will accomplish my goals of: 1. still having a generally dark substrate so the fish colors really pop, 2. add a little light reflection on the bottom surface to bring out more definition throughout the scape, and 3. mute the appearance of mulm between cleanings (black alone can look dirty pretty quick, depending on the bioload). Plus I will be using black slate and snow white quartz rock to compliment the bi-color substrate, as I think it will just look cool.

I think a lot of other interesting color combinations that could be done using that approach... imagine mostly BDBS with just a small amount of red sand... a few reddish rocks along with some black ones and then lots of red plants mixed in with the usual plant assortment... that would be amazing!

 

Oh I love the black and white theme! Do you have it setup yet? Love to see it! 

[JChristophersAdventures]

@Jennifer V Not yet set up. It is going slowly (in other words, according to available funding, lol) My progress so far can be seen here:

I have the BDBS but won't be putting it in until I am ready to finish the scaping, wash the substrate, plant the plants and fill the tank all on the same day. I think if I place washed gravel in the tank and end up waiting awhile before filling, the wet sand could get a little nasty. Honestly, it's probably going to be another month or two based on my current rate of progress.

I am in the process of cutting custom lids, for each side of the dividing brace, from clear twin wall polycarbonate. When you place HOBs on the ends of the tank, instead of the back, there are few if any pre-made lid choices available. Besides, I like to custom fit is all together anyway to make sure the livestock stays inside the aquarium. Thanks.