"Live" sand from a bag

trackfast

trackfast

Princess Trainer
(I didn't want to hijack another thread so I'm starting this one.)

The consensus about LS is that it's a waste of money or doesn't contain anything live. I'm not stating it does or doesn't but is there anywhere I can research that information? I've read it here and have seen it posted in different forums but is it just an opinion or is there test results ? I would like to see some data that's not provided by the makers of the LS. Or has anyone done a test with their own tanks cycling with dry sand and with "live" sand? Thanks for your time and info.
 
Smitty

Smitty

Premium member
I think everyone says it's not live because it has no type of micro fauna living in it. The supplier considers it live because of the live bacteria living on it, because it stayed wet and within accepted temps. As reefers we know that buying it already wet/live doesn't justify the extra dollar amount, when dry sand will do the same thing within a few days. If you look at the packaging, it states it's live because it has 1,000,000 live bacteria. So this is their selling point, and to any consumer not knowing much about live sand and the nitrogen cycle, would think that's a lot. I'm not against it at all, it's just something I've noticed myself from my own experience, that it's not worth it to me. :)
 
jcarlilesiu

jcarlilesiu

Active member
Bacteria which are the resultant of the nitrogen cycle need a few things to stay alive. Water, oxygen, and a food source. Without these things, the bacteria can not survive.

The manufacturer uses sand which is "live" or has been cycled allowing the growth of this beneficial bacteria. The manufacturer then bags it up and adds a food source. For sure that bacteria will live for a little while, how long I am unsure. But how can it sit on a store shelf for months and the quality or quantity of the bacteria remain constant? Not to mention the lack of oxygen.

Its a selling gimick in my opinion.

Any benefit you may obtain from live sand isn't worth the cost in my (and many others) opinion. You will still have to cycle the tank and as such dry sand will become just as "live" as the live sand purchased.

Live rock on the other hand is treated much differently than live sand. Live rock is shipped usually over night or next day in coolers with wet newspaper on them to the stores who immediately put it in their curing tanks.

How can live rock receive such a drastically different procedure than live sand? Because live sand isn't really live.
 
trackfast

trackfast

Princess Trainer
ThisIsFishy said:
Hey, first post, just registered but I've been reading for a while! Saw this thread a while ago with some info on both sides.

http://www.chicagoreefs.com/forums/showthread.php?t=1181
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Thanks; I do remember reading some of that thread. I've also read before that the bags are supposedly "breathable" and allow oxygen in. What I'm curious about is has anyone done a side by side test? Does a tank with LS cycle faster? Do you go with LS if $ isn't a factor?
 
T

ThisIsFishy

Banned
trackfast said:
Thanks; I do remember reading some of that thread. I've also read before that the bags are supposedly "breathable" and allow oxygen in. What I'm curious about is has anyone done a side by side test? Does a tank with LS cycle faster? Do you go with LS if $ isn't a factor?
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I read on Reef Central that it helps the water clear up faster, I duno though.
 
jcarlilesiu

jcarlilesiu

Active member
Pufferpunk said:
Are you sure they add a food source? That would be ammonia.
Click to expand...
So how do you purchase live sand? Live sand comes in a variety of forms. A lot of live sand is sold in prepackaged, superoxygenated, wet bags. Carib-Sea’s Arag-Alive product is a wonderful innovation in live sand distribution. Each prepackaged bag comes teeming with microbial life, despite being sealed in, and comes with an expiration date to assure you that your stock is fresh and viable. Though teeming with microbial life, prepackaged, wet livesand is generally devoid of micro and macrofauna like pods and worms.​
​

I read somewhere that they do put a food source in, but quickly this is all that I could find. All it would have to be is some form of decomposing matter.

I suppose the point is, what is the benefit of using live sand over dry sand? In my opinion, and I think many others, we simply don't see the benefit.
 
C

ColorMeCorals

New member
I can jump start a tank in one day with dry sand with no spike so for me why even think about wasting the money. It is still going to have to do the mature cycle to get the bug/worm goodies both ways.
 
marius

marius

New member
im glad more of you think the same. i always wondered too, how much life it has in the bag. well i am in need of 150 lbs, and it looks like it will cost me less if i get the dry one. :) i will probably seed it with 1 lb or so from an established tank, but this will be my first time doing it with dry sand. lets hope it wont take much longer to cycle :)
 
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