# Is Kinetic Sand safe?



## Pegasuswolf (Jan 20, 2016)

Hi Everyone,
I have recently been looking into getting some sort of sand-like substrate for my betta fish tank, and I came across Kinetic Sand. I think it would be really cool to have in a tank, since you can sculpt it easily and it is still semi-realistic. The company claims it is made of 98% sand and 2% polydimethylsiloxane (a type of silicone oil) that mimics the physical properties of wet sand. However, I have seen a couple reports online of dogs and cats eating kinetic sand and getting sick from it clogging their intestines. Would the same thing happen to a fish? The company claims it's non-toxic, but I definitely don't want to take any chances. I have a 5 gallon tank, and I only bought enough of the sand to fill a little less than an inch above the tank bottom. Would Kinetic Sand be safe to place in a fish tank with betta fish?


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## ThatFishThough (Jan 15, 2016)

Kinetic sand IS NOT safe! PLEASE go get regular aquarium sand!

Edit: It has certain chemicals - that make it stick together - that could potentially be harmful to the fish.


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## Hallyx (Jun 11, 2011)

Kinetic sand at the new England Aquarium: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKnA0Q9r2Z0
From Google --> "kinetic sand fish tank"
I can''t run Youtube, so I have no idea what it says. Please let us know.


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## Rainbo (Nov 23, 2015)

Hallyx said:


> Kinetic sand at the new England Aquarium: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lKnA0Q9r2Z0
> From Google --> "kinetic sand fish tank"
> I can''t run Youtube, so I have no idea what it says. Please let us know.



It's a little girl playing with the kinetic sand at the aquarium. She's explaining that it does not stick to her but that squeezing it causes to to stick to itself. What it does not show is it being used in the aquariums.


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## Rainbo (Nov 23, 2015)

This link https://www.vat19.com/item/sand-brookstone answers a lot of questions about the sand, one being Can Kinetic Sand absorb water. The answer is that water can ruin the sand.


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## Hallyx (Jun 11, 2011)

One of our experienced members uses AQ silicon-sealant to stick sand to her tank floor. Looks like sand but is easier to clean and maintain.

Give you any ideas?


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## Pegasuswolf (Jan 20, 2016)

Thank you all so much for your responses! I tested out the kinetic sand a bit and realized that it does soak up the water and turn into a messy glob of mud like Rainbo said. I hadn't thought of gluing it to the bottom, but that would look really cool I think, I'll look into that. Thank you all again for the help!


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## aussieJJDude (Jun 9, 2012)

Pegasuswolf said:


> Thank you all so much for your responses! I tested out the kinetic sand a bit and realized that it does soak up the water and turn into a messy glob of mud like Rainbo said. I hadn't thought of gluing it to the bottom, but that would look really cool I think, I'll look into that. Thank you all again for the help!


I think *Hallyx* is talking about using aquarium safe sand, not kinetic sand.  Just in case you read it wrong and start using kinetic sand. Hate to see you go all out on the sand and then it's toxic for your fishy.


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