Habitat - Indoor :: question about ATBA sand basking

[francinemarie]

if i make an ATBA sand basking area, is it ok to use the green play sand? the type that chrisinva used in the bottom of her tank?

[ilikeadabox]

If you can find it...I can't find it anywhere near here

[Sassamo]

I hear wal-mart in the USA sells it, probley have too wait until spring tho. Home depot here in Canada has the colored sand, I don't think I have seen green here tho.

[Chrisbarnett]

Walmart has it, green, blue and purple.

[francinemarie]

Walmart has it, green, blue and purple.

haha yea i know walmart has it, i'm just wondering if it's safe to use in an ATBA basking area.

[francinemarie]

I hear wal-mart in the USA sells it, probley have too wait until spring tho. Home depot here in Canada has the colored sand, I don't think I have seen green here tho.

awww i see, thank you

[Chrisbarnett]

do you have sand in your tank already?

Yes it's safe to use, but if you don't have sand in your tank already, you will in about a week from it being carried in on the turtle. So I'd also add sand substrate if your gonna put it in the basking area.

Also, Make sure your filter intake is not near where your turtle gets off the dock. when the grains come off, they are going to be sinking right down, so if they are near a filter intake they will get sucked up, and that can and will do damage to your impeller.

[francinemarie]

do you have sand in your tank already?

Yes it's safe to use, but if you don't have sand in your tank already, you will in about a week from it being carried in on the turtle. So I'd also add sand substrate if your gonna put it in the basking area.

Also, Make sure your filter intake is not near where your turtle gets off the dock. when the grains come off, they are going to be sinking right down, so if they are near a filter intake they will get sucked up, and that can and will do damage to your impeller.

yea i had thought that the sand would eventually come out along with Crush & into the tank.

no i don't have sand in the tank because it seems like a siphon is the most used to clean sand in the tank, but my problem is that its too much of a hassle for me to use the "steps of cleaning" with a siphon. other than that, (if i were to buy the green play sand) i'm not exactly sure how to keep it clean.

also if i used sand in the tank, i wouldn't be able to keep Crush in there while the sand settles & i don't have anywhere else to keep her.

i'm still not sure what filter to save for either. i was thinking about the 1 you suggested (the Marineland Penguin 350), but then the Eheim brand HOB came out & i was curious about that 1 too. because my tank isn't that tall, i'm also worried about the inlet tube of the Marineland or any HOB sucking up the sand (if i were to have any in the tank).

[francinemarie]

Chrisbarnett - i was actually able to answer most of my questions through your sand post . i was wondering, do you think 1 inch of sand is good enough for a 20 gallon long tank? and other than the sand sifter you posted on your sticky, are there any other good sand sifters?

i'm still not sure whether the Eheim HOB brand is worth buying than the Marineland Penguin 350.

[Chrisbarnett]

I think 1" would be good. thats what I have in my 55g.

You could even make your own sand sifter if you wanted. Just buy some nylon screen and put it onto a frame with a handle. Or you could just buy a net with larger holes.

I would go with the marineland penguin 350, I haven't heard much about the eheim but when I looked at them, they seemed alright, but a little primitive looking.

Imo, the marineland is a much better hob filter.

[francinemarie]

I think 1" would be good. thats what I have in my 55g.

You could even make your own sand sifter if you wanted. Just buy some nylon screen and put it onto a frame with a handle. Or you could just buy a net with larger holes.

I would go with the marineland penguin 350, I haven't heard much about the eheim but when I looked at them, they seemed alright, but a little primitive looking.

Imo, the marineland is a much better hob filter.

oh ok. i'll be upgrading to a bigger tank soon (thanks to my aunt). she's going to give me her tank. i don't know how many gallons it is yet. just by looking at it, i would say it's about 12 inches long, four feet wide, & about 3 feet high. when i do measure it, i'll use the tank calculator here .