# Need help for buying Carib Sea Tahiti Moom sand



## manami (Feb 4, 2012)

Hello! I finally got the 40g breeder tank! Yaayy!

I was told that I need to buy two bags of 20lb eco complete black substrate for the plant (still need to get that), but the sand I may have to buy it online and I don't know how many to get. The tahiti sand bag is 5 pounds...but how many bags do I need? I just want the tank to have the look of the substrate at the bottom and the sand on top. 

I'll be getting the sand because I like the look of sand on top of the substrate and for the cories to enjoy the sand. 

Please and thanks!


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

If you have some sort of garden store around you (not sure what's in your area, but Tractor Supply usually as it) you could also use Black Diamond Blasting Sand and get the 50 pound bag of it; generally waaaaay cheaper than CaribSea AND it's practically the same thing!! Actually, the Blasting Sand also helps your plants out too if you do live plants, basically helps to feed them similar as the Eco-Complete. 

But if you have to buy the CaribSea, then 30 pounds total should do it I think. Unless you're combining with the Eco-Complete which then you only need 15-20 pounds depending on what ratio you want.


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## manami (Feb 4, 2012)

I was told that a 40 pounds of Eco complete substrate is enough to cover the bottom of a 40g breeder tank...at least that's how I was told.

I want to do something like the front of the substrate/sand to look thin and in the back a little thicker and higher. I don't know how that it's called. But it gives depths and kinda look like the plants from the back look maybe far away? If I can't do that then just the normal common same level on the bottom of the tank. Just enough thickness for the roots of the plants to stick in the bottom and not have the problem that they unroot.


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## manami (Feb 4, 2012)

I just bought two 20lb Eco complete black substrate from petco and the employ that helped me told me that I need two more 20lb substrate for a 40 breeder tank...that would be a total of 80lb without even including the black sand! O_O

Isn't that too much? Or is that the ideal amount of substrate foe a 40g breeder to do the effect of thinner substrate in the front and thicker substrate on the back for the taller plants?


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

Yeah, you don't need that much. I'd go with 20lb Eco and then 20lb Black Tahitian Moon or the Black Diamond blasting sand if you want that. 

If you find you need more then you can always get more substrate I suppose.


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## manami (Feb 4, 2012)

Ok. I already got two pack of 20lb substrate and maybe in the next week or so I'll get a 20lb black sand I saw there that it's a petco brand...will that have the same quality as either the carib sea tahiti sand or the other?


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

I personally only use the PetCo black sand, it isn't sparkly like the Black Tahitian Moon Sand, it's more soft looking though the texture really isn't that different. It's up to you what you want.


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## manami (Feb 4, 2012)

Ok. The petco sand is much cheaper than the CaribSea tahiti sand and I can buy it directly at my nearest petco store.

But will it be worth the purchase or not to mix one 20lb bag of black sand with 2 (or 3) 20lb bags of substrate? I don't think I'm going to decorate the sand to stay at the top of the substrate if I'm going to be changing plants and woods around inside the tank. 

Will the black sand have benefits for the substrate or the plants?


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

I like to mix substrates so I vote for mixing the Eco and the Sand.

Neither substrate have any real benefits for plants. Eco complete will allow the plants to grow a little easier because of the clay. But it's nothing like soil that provides nutrients, you'll still have to use root tabs if you want to grow sword plants or carpet plants.


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## manami (Feb 4, 2012)

Nah, I don't think I'll be adding any sword plants. They always die on me and the two I have on my betta tank they don't grow no matter how many root tabs I add under their roots. = /

So will it be too much if I mix 40LB of black sand and 40LB black substrate?
Or maybe mix 20lb black sand and 40lb black substrate? 

I like the second option better. Less sand means less removing dust for me...but whatever that works best for the plants. = )


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## lilnaugrim (Mar 27, 2013)

Substrate is the word that encompasses all types: sand, gravel, eco-complete, flourite, soil, all of it makes up Substrate ^_^

I'd go 20 and 20. 

I never wash my PetCo Black sand, it's never really dirty so it's never been an issue for me and I use it in pretty much all my tanks.


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## manami (Feb 4, 2012)

Cool! It was always a pain to me washing two bags of 5lb...I don't want to think about washing 20lb!!

I already bought two 20lb of Eco complete substrate...and the employee gave me a good discount for the two bags. I'll wait till I fill up half the tank with water and if I feel like I want to add more at the bottom (like doing a cool bottom wave effect with the sand/substrate = 3) I'll get a 20lb of petco black sand and see how it goes = ).


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