# 3M Colorquartz sand



## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

I had nearly given up on black sand and was actually planning to stop by a pool place at lunch to pick up some filter sand when I noticed someone mention 3m colorquartz sand online. Apparently this stuff is perfectly safe for aquariums, but few people talk about it. It's not always the easiest stuff to find though as you'll need to find a 3M distributor near you, but if you have one that can get it for you, it's MUCH cheaper, around $20 for a 50 pound bag or even less I think. It comes in all different colors, including, of course, black, as well as 2 different grades. S grade which is fine beach like sand, and T grade which is more coarse.

Luckily, out of 3 distributors in my entire state, I found one that's just down the road from me, so at lunch I'm going to run by and take a look at the S vs the T grades to see which I like more and pick some up. I'll update later with price, quality, all that, and pics after I clean it and get it in the tank later tonight.

Is anyone else using this though? And if so, which grade did you get and like more?

Oh, link to 3M's site: http://solutions.3m.com/wps/portal/3M/en_U...uartz/HomePage/

There is a "Where to buy" link on the side.


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## CichlidAddict (Jul 1, 2005)

I haven't used it yet, but I will be getting the white T grade when I switch over my big tank.


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## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

Okay, just got back from the distributor. I bought 2 50 pound bags of black T grade. The S grade is definitely more fine than the T, but the T isn't a huge difference, and I figured having bigger grains would help minimize compaction in the sand. I'm excited to get home and clean it and see how it looks. I'll post a pic when I'm done.

Oh, and from what I understand, since so few places have it, price varies quite a bit. The place I got it from was a bit expensive, but still only $28 per bag totaling just shy of $60 for both. That's still cheaper than you'd get black tahitian moon sand for, not to mention I'd have to get shipped since I can't find anywhere that sells it here.


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## CichlidAddict (Jul 1, 2005)

Cool - can't wait to see pics of it in the tank.


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## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

Alright, well it's going pretty well so far. I've cleaned 50 pounds and have it in the tank, and now I'm taking a quick break before I do the other bag. I've never used tahitian moon sand, so I can't compare how dirty it is, but it's pretty dirty. You definitely need to rinse it very well before putting it in. I'm using a bucket and my python to rinse it. After a good rinse I tossed it in the tank (already had water) and it settled very quickly. I turned off my filters to dump it in and within 30 seconds to a minute it was settled enough to turn the filters back on again.

As for T grade vs S grade, I think both would work great, S would probably look really cool as fine as it is, but I think T was the right choice. It's grain size is about on par with play sand, if not even a little more fine than that. S grade is very soft and small. Like I said before, the reason I went with T is so it's less compacted on the bottom. I think with S you would have issues with that.

I really like how it's coming out though. With my dim purply blueish lights it gives it a really nice moonlight affect and you can see the ripples from the top reflecting on the sand at the bottom. I'll update more and get some pics after I finish the next bag.


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## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

Alright, here's the update after everything is finished.

First, this is why you rinse your sand:









Good thing I'm single, if I had a wife she'd kill me!

Anyway, onto the good stuff. Here are a couple of different shots of the final product in the tank. All of the pictures are links to the full size (really big) shots right off the camera in case you want to see all the detail. You'll have to excuse the cloudyness. I'm afraid I'm not the best judge of how well it settles because my tank is pretty cloudy due to the fact that it's in mid cycle. After I put the sand in I dosed it with prime, waited an hour or so, checked the ammonia which was good, so I tossed in some bacteria (I'm using Stability). The combination of stiring up the water and dumping an extra bit of bacteria in in hopes to kick the cycle into overdrive seems to have done exactly that. The bacteria bloom is causing it to get cloudier by the minute. Anyway, on to the pictures:

First up, a realistic picture of the tank. This picture is pretty accurate for the lighting, just a little darker than the real thing, and I like it a lot how it is. Probably won't have many if any plants with this little light though.


Second, slow shutter so you can see more detail.


Third, a closer shot so you can see better how the sand looks in the tank.


And finally, a close up of the sand so you can see just what T-Grade is like. S-Grade's grains are at least half the size of this if not smaller, so that can give you an idea. They had samples when I went to look so I'm sure you could see the same if you went to a distributor.


So in conclusion, it's very dirty and needs a thorough rinsing, as I said before, however that extra work rinsing it is completely worth it for the price, and I think it looks very good. I like the decision to use the T-Grade and think it looks great as a final product. I would definitely suggest that all of you look for this stuff first before you spend the money on the tahitian moon sand.

*Edit:* _By the way, no need to compliment me on my decorating... I know, I'm really good, huh? Haha, no, really, I need to go to the aquarium shop down the road this weekend and pick up a few good pieces of rock and stuff, maybe some driftwood. That's just my little guy's log that I took away from him to force him to get used to people walking around and to stop hiding all day long._


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## notaverage (Sep 10, 2005)

What kind of powerhead do you have BLASTING in there?


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## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

notaverage said:


> What kind of powerhead do you have BLASTING in there?


Haha, don't make fun of my puny powerhead. It's an Eheim Aquaball that I just threw in to get some extra oxygen flowing during cycling. It really is pathetic how tiny it is in that tank isn't it? I think it only does about 100-150 GPH, but I figured every little bit helps while I'm cycling.


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## Dezboy (Apr 2, 2006)

that sand looks pretty good to me mate....................

What are you going to be stocking the tank with???


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## Dr. Giggles (Oct 18, 2003)

I like that look. Let us know if it alters your pH on the upside in anyway.


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## pirayaman (Nov 3, 2007)

first i hate sand second your a d--k cause i like that t grade sand now wtf hahahahahahaahaha

ok very nice find man i hate sand compacting to plus it tends to get very stinky cause of all the debris it traps or something wow i love it i just printed out the distributers list im gonna try and find it wowwwwwwwwwww


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## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

Dezboy said:


> first i hate sand second your a d--k cause i like that t grade sand now wtf hahahahahahaahaha
> 
> ok very nice find man i hate sand compacting to plus it tends to get very stinky cause of all the debris it traps or something wow i love it i just printed out the distributers list im gonna try and find it wowwwwwwwwwww


Haha, sorry.







It comes in all different colors too in case you wanted just white, or anything unique.


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## CichlidAddict (Jul 1, 2005)

Looking good. Any plants you put in there are really going to stand out against the black base/background.


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## AJerman (Nov 7, 2007)

CichlidAddict said:


> Looking good. Any plants you put in there are really going to stand out against the black base/background.


Thanks, and yeah, if I can get any plants to grow in the low light conditions I have. I'll have to have a talk with the guys over in the plants section to see if they know of kind of grass type stuff that will grow in that low of light. I'm far from a plant expert.


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## CichlidAddict (Jul 1, 2005)

SVTPiranha said:


> Looking good. Any plants you put in there are really going to stand out against the black base/background.


Thanks, and yeah, if I can get any plants to grow in the low light conditions I have. I'll have to have a talk with the guys over in the plants section to see if they know of kind of grass type stuff that will grow in that low of light. I'm far from a plant expert.
[/quote]
I'd just get realistic looking fake plants. Less hassle/money.


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## xZipVi3tBoii (Jan 17, 2008)

SVTPiranha said:


> Looking good. Any plants you put in there are really going to stand out against the black base/background.


Thanks, and yeah, if I can get any plants to grow in the low light conditions I have. I'll have to have a talk with the guys over in the plants section to see if they know of kind of grass type stuff that will grow in that low of light. I'm far from a plant expert.
[/quote]

what kind of lights do u have?


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## notaverage (Sep 10, 2005)

Whatever happened to the pics here???


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## Piranha_man (Jan 29, 2005)

Yeah, pics would be great

Yeah, pics would be great


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## notaverage (Sep 10, 2005)

I got tired of waiting for the Ocean Gallery in N. Plainfield NJ.
I got Moon sand and mixed my eco complete with it.
Oh well


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## TJcali (Mar 27, 2009)

Yeah I also would like to see how it turned out ??


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