MORE INFO ON SAND:  

For fish-only tanks, larger grain sizes are often used as you can vacuum the substrate to remove detritus. In a reef tank, the finer grains are used as the gravel does not need to be vacuumed and it provides more surface area. Substrate is often added for cosmetic reason to create a natural-looking reef tank. Aside from the cosmetics, and look of the aquarium,  it also plays a very important role in aiding the biological filtration needs of your tank by providing the surface area in which nitrifying bacteria can grow. The CaribSea Arag-Alive substrate contains the nitrifying bacteria that will help to 'seed' the tank and speed up the cycling process. For fine substrate, 90 lbs covers a cubic foot. For coarser grains, 70 lbs covers a cubic foot. Other benefits from Aragonite sand is helps in controlling Nitrates, Nitrite and Ammonia and other wastes. Helps buffer aquarium and maintain proper PH. Helps delivery of calcium, carbonate buffer, and essential trace elements. Also good Aragonite is high in strontium and magnesium and other trace elements. DEEP SAND A deep sand bed will house huge colonies of denitrifying bacteria. Oolitic aragonite sand also slowly releases natural elements into the marine aquarium. This provides for a balanced type of natural living filtration and a steady buffer to help maintain calcium, alkalinity, and P.H. levels. To get these benefits one could start with a 4" + deep bed of oolitic aragonite sand placed directly on the glass bottom of the aquarium. Once the saltwater aquarium is filled with water and the correct salt mixture is added then the sand should be seeded with LIVE SAND. (If you choose crushed coral or shell instead of aragonite sand, then we recommend less than 1" on the bottom. However , a deep sand bed is proven to filter much more efficiently than a crushed coral bed.) To calculate the amount of fine sand needed to make a sand bed that will filter properly apply the following formula using inches. Width x length x depth of bed desired x .059 = pounds of sand required.   Beds comprises a 3-3.5" minimal depth layer of very fine sand, ranging from oolitic dust size particles to about 2mm. The general concept is really quite simple. As the depth of the bed increases, the level of oxygen present decreases, in a somewhat 'layered' fashion, creating progressively anoxic strata, which become inhabited by 'reducing' bacteria of various species that among other things, break nitrates down into nitrogen and oxygen gas. LIVE SAND and sand beds have a variety of functions in the reef aquarium. Live sand works much like live rock in terms of biological filtration, but in different ways. For instance, the most basic function of live sand is to provide the necessary bacteria and surface area to break down wastes that other forms of filtration may miss. The surface of the sand bed supplements aerobic biological filtration, facilitating the breakdown of ammonia to nitrite, and nitrite to nitrate. Sand beds that are adequately deep have been known to develop anaerobic pockets that allow bacteria to break down stubborn nitrates into inert nitrogen gas. These anaerobic pockets have a slightly lower pH than the rest of the water column. As a result, it is believed that in those pockets, small amounts of the aragonite sand is dissolved, providing a minor source of calcium, alkalinity, and trace element supplementation to the tank.

Live sand, like live rock, hosts a wide variety fauna and micro-fauna. This contributes to the biodiversity within the reef tank and provides another way to process waste. Bristle worms, spaghetti worms and brittle stars are common hitchhikers that help to consume dead and decaying matter. And many small crustaceans and hitchhiking gastropods contribute to consuming film and filamentous algae from the sand bed and rocks. An active live sand bed is continually turned over by the multitude of small animals, working through the detritus and carrion that accumulates on the sand surface.  Also besides filtration, an active live sand bed is usually full of a large variety of copepods, isopods, decapods and so on. These tiny crustaceans become a natural food source for planktavores and filter feeders in the aquarium. LIVE ROCK  houses large colonies of denitrifying bacteria, detritivores, macro algae, and many other beneficial organisms. Ample amounts of live rock will help to balance and filter a marine aquarium. Place around 1 pound of live rock per gallon of water in the aquarium. Try and stack the live rock with caves and crevices and also try not to have too much of the rock touching the sand bed. This will allow for good water flow and also let the sand bed filter more effectively. A good quality protein skimmer, back filter, or even a canister filter will provide extra mechanical filtration for the system. Good mechanical filtration in addition to a sufficient amount of live rock can prove to be an excellent start toward balance and filtration for your marine system.

Here at www.oceanreeflections.com we carry a large selection of different brands of sand including the Arag-Alive (live sand). Below you will find our selection of sand if you need help please contact us at service@oceanreeflections.com Below links will take you to our Sand, and also our Artificial Live Rock and Nature's Image Artificial Corals:

SAND

Carib SEA Sand (not live)
Tropic Eden Sand
Carib Sea Arag-Alive  (live sand)  

ARTIFICIAL LIVE ROCK

RED SEA Artificial Live Rock  ( much lighter then real live rock)

ARTIFICIAL CORAL

Natures Image Artificial Corals (very realistic great for fish only tanks!)