HOW TO: Add Sand To Your Aquarium - CHEAP, CLEAN and SAFE!

How to safely clean and add sand to your aquarium.
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[@thekingofdiy]

If you liked this video, you will LOVE my book: thekingofdiy.com

[@MikeKollin]

Hi, I noticed that the Pool Filter Sand at my local Home Depot is made of Dry Silica… I noticed below you said it would cut up that guys Rays!! I have Cory Cats! is this ok for Cory cats and bottom feeders such as Garra Ruffa?

[@MikeKollin]

P.s. here is what is says on it: PRODUCT DESCRIPTION QUIKRETE® Filter Sand is narrowly graded pre washed clean dry silica sand specially graded for use in swimming pool filters. Composition and Materials: QUIKRETE® Filter Sand is high quality silica sand.

[@thekingofdiy]

Mike Kollin Silica can be very sharp. It is most dangerous as a very fine sand. Typically pool sand is a larger grain and not sharp though.

[@SebastienBarrau]

***** So would the home depot pool sand be good or bad ?

[@mr473424]

***** can i use my siphon on this sand?

[@daaaaboo]

Wow, this was cool to watch your older stuff. I can tell your more comfortable in front of the camera and either your camera is better or your recording ability is better. I love watching your videos and this was nice to see how far you came. It was still a great video. Congrats on over half a decade of videos. Keep up the great work.

[@thekingofdiy]

ahhh my older stuff. I cant watch them. haha makes me cringe. The information is great, but I was horrible with presentation and production. Luckily my passion to teach was stronger than my ability to make videos. With time, i got a bit better. Still a long ways to go though. Thanks for watching though David. A lot of my best content is in these older videos.

[@kenscoring]

David Booher .

[@phoenix2190]

U are more confident and interesting nowadays Joey love ur videos.☺

[@manaskumar6703]

Hi Joye i have a tank sized of 4 feet in lenght and 2 feet wide and 2 feet tall i am trying to make a planted aquarium is it better to use ADA amozonia or the same sand that you showed as in this video i am bit confused because i am still i search of right suggestions If i use ADA amazonia soil what quantity of the soil would be required and what precautions are needed to be taken please suggest me.

[@gregdavies6717]

Jeeez man..this was ages ago!! your channel has really progressed

[@AquaticTips]

ya!

[@malakingdude]

I used a 4 inch diameter plastic packing tube to fill the sand in the tank with good results and much greater speed. it settled nicely into little hills. A dmaller dismetrr tube and s funnel can slso be used. A half inch of laterite under the sand is great for plants supplying iron and other beneficial and much needed natural minerals.

[@Chuychubacca]

I'm doing what you did, was it a PVC? This looked so time consuming

[@mauricematla1795]

I use a mixer in a drill to stirr the sand up works lik ea charm. You can do a lager amount at the time and quite quickly gets clean as a whistle

[@MorbidReigns]

Just got done setting up my tank. I used quikrete pool filter sand and I love it. It's like $6 for a 50lb bag at Home Depot. Bought 100lbs for 75g tank. Thanks great vid!!!

[@juliana.2908]

Just found your channel a few days ago, but I am hooked. Your good personality shines very brightly in all of your videos. Thanks for all the help in these videos, man. I'm just now starting to try and set up my first aquarium, and your videos have helped enormously.

[@raibeartthehairypict4696]

Joey I wash my sand like you. But usually take more water out. I then place a stoneware dish on the sand. And pour my water change onto the dish. To stop it from clouding up my aqaurium. I also find putting decorations in when the tank has about a third of water in, makes life much more easyer.

[@chelseapoirier9126]

You could wedge something under the bucket to tilt it at an angle to control the direction that the water that coming over the edge flows... just an inch or two... helps to avoid getting yourself too wet and avoid having water where you don't want it.

[@jeanettefleckenstein1156]

Odd, my phone just sent me notification for this video. Still totally watching again!

[@madcat61207]

Best sand washing video out there.

[@chrisdutoit2123]

Hi Joey. I've just finished watching your series on setting up a aquarium. I'm new to this hobby and find your video's very help full and informative. Thank you for all your advice and helpful insight to getting started.

[@kathleenchamp3764]

Hi Joey, I have to start by saying you are certainly the DIY KING! I dig all your info . I so love my aquarium ..having fish as its in my blood. My dad raised fish ..LOl LOTS of fish when I was small. Now I haven't always done things the best way but generally had a good system.. not dirty tank and fish or Pish as my eldest granddaughter called them when she was lil. lol I have almost always had a min. of one but generally two tanks running. One 10 gal for baby mollies. Loved to do live bearing fish yrs back to teach the all kids about fish and to encourage them being done in neighbors, families, and friends homes. Seeing is believing, lol. Anyway, I have had very bad health the last few yrs. and 3 yrs back when the worst was kicking in (drs never found the cause and its still ongoing but the fact I was dying and now Im sustaining is a blessing..God is Great! anyway, I always wanted a bigg tank but as you can imagine with health issues budget restraints have been rough for a long time now and prior to that I made due taking hand me downs ( love those!) always putting kids needs first. We always have been known as the family that takes in any animals that need help. so you can imagine the household at times. lol I always wanted a pond in back yard ( even though I'm in a rental lol) with many plants tropical setting as it were with large mollies I had raised from pups with turtles. Well, That hasn't happened yet lol as I've been dealing with the situation at hand. All things in good timing I recon. I digress , More to the point I suddenly found myself adopting three turtles this week say WHAT! haha I'm tickled but that brings me to the point. these lil ones need a home they can thrive in. I say lil but their not babies. 1 Is approx 3.5" across & a lil longer from head to tail on the shell. The other two a bit larger, I'd say 5" across & 6.5/7" long. You know I believe it just dawned on me you don't need all this useless info..I I I ! sry I need to know if this sand is ok for turtles. The size ? I see many folks adding sand to tere turtle tanks I just don'tout want turtles eating sand ..lol I don't even know if you will have info regarding sand & turtles. I sure pray you do. another question I had about the tank itself. I have a big tank outside I wa given for fish. Only its a mess and I never had a table to sustain the weight of it full. I used it for a plant starter. But I'm going to clean it up and use my tv table. Its not like I can out it off. These lil ones were a happy surprise. I need to use what I have It will be a lil short by maybe 3" off each end. Do you think that's safe until I can find something a lil larger? I have searched for ways to replace the trim. As in where to find the new trim. this is nasty If I'm going to clean her up Id like to do a complete job. Do you know where to purch. new trim? Oh last bit of info/question. I already purchased a big bag of sand from home depot for something else. I was wondering if that would be acceptable. its very fine. after hearing what you said Im thinking its going to clog any filtration I have or clump in bottom of tank. I'm not sure what others have used. Only that its fine & also, as usual needs a good rinsing prior to use. I sure hope I'm not wasting your time Joey. I don't know anyone else to ask or more importantly..TO TRUST! I sure appreciate you and all you do to help us. I'm praying for a new tank with fish .. the good lord knows its wonderful therapy for stress! Stay stress free Joey, God Bless you and your family!!

[@carolinesc7200]

can you please please please make a how to aquascape for beginners?

[@MsPixelatedPaint]

I just finished adding sand to my tank for the first time. I followed the vid step by step, pausing in between steps. This really helped me! thanks.

[@SunGodNikalifts]

OMG LIL JOEY!!! love your vids man just had to go back to this one as I m adding sand for the first time! Setting up my 12th tank 🙌. Love your vids man and your tank room. Huge inspiration dude! Thanks for all your knowledge!

[@thestickez]

P.S. Thank you for making these awesome you tube videos they are very helpful.

[@ripreality1914]

I'm so excited. I plan to change my freshwater tank from gravel to sand. I found the sand in a nearby river and after testing it on feeder fish, I used this method (and boiled the sand)

[@ilforever22]

One of the most useful channel on you tube, thank you.........

[@mhenry676]

I am no expert by any means, actually a re-born beginner. I suggest going with aquarium sand, its made for aquariums. You cannot do a 'sand castle' like non-aquarium sand which is what you want. It is more expensive but I've done my research, aquarium sand is the way to go. I did the same cleaning process but with more thrashing and time until the cleaning bucket water cleared in under 30secs. Once poured into the 10G tank, the sand settled and the water cleared in 2 min. Results were worth it!

[@JesusHernandez2001.]

Thank you for this, I was stressing about having to empty the water

[@soarer209]

12yrs later and still helpful was worried about clouding the tank but that seems to work nice!

[@nenapike5419]

this guy is cool i never made a tank in my life done a lot of glass work though i watched two videos and made a 55 gal first try yea and everything is ten bucks lol he always says ten bucks thanks joey i got the coolest tank in Humboldt ca

[@ThatMinidotCom]

Yep, I followed the method in " How to clean new aquariumsand the easy way "and it was very quick and easy. I simply poured the sand into the bottles using a funnel, and the whole job was done in less time than this video takes to play!

[@mannbub]

Did it yesterday, got the swimming pool filter sand, rinsed it real good and poured it in the aquarium, never messed up water or anything, went right to the bottom, looks realy realy good as compared to stones/gravel, thanks for the sujjections

[@Zariho]

Hey I'm from the future and this is still very informative. I think you are a time traveler sir

[@kapali4747]

Really?

[@Micarmn]

These videos are hidden gems

[@flippercon84]

I have been using a pillow case for the rinsing and putting into the tank. I just rinse what I can lift wet. You also don't lose any sand and it goes in no mess just like you did. Give it a shot with one bag

[@whiteautumns]

Damn joey look at you 6 years ago!!! Amazing how much your channel has grown. Btw I have a 5ft tank that is bare bottom and I'm intending to add sand.... I can't possibly add it like you do here right

[@xenonZiLLa]

Hey Joey!A little tip over here,hope you will read this comment.I recomend you not to plant the tank massivelly until the discus are at thei maximum size.A discus in a planted tank will grow uneven.After they are at thei full size i recomend a combination of hemianthus cuba,Alternanthera reineckii "lilacina",Limnophila aromatica and of course other on your taste.And some pressurized co2.

[@donthewad]

I just changed my blue gravel to sand. Thanks for the videos.

[@tomredman3129]

Here in 2024 watching this unreal explanation mate!!! Subscribed!

[@WolverineXXX21]

I come from the future to say you’re going to be one of the best in the game great job man

[@momofasherb]

Thank you, very basic, easy, and to the point! I like it!! Found it very helpful. I appreciate you making it.

[@quzygirl2]

Loved the video! Even though your video is a few years old, the information is great. I had no idea how to rinse the new sand we are using in our new tank and your video was perfect. Thank you!

[@kellrayable]

Excellent ! I have been wanting to change my duboisi tank to sand. I was worried about price and putting sand in with the fish still in the tank. I also have a lava rock grotto which will have a nice contrast with the off-white sand. Keep up the good work!!

[@Shamalishus]

I cant believe how much the discus are sulking with you here haha :P great vid again Joey

[@MR3DDev]

great video just what I was looking for as I'm switching from gravel to sand and want to keep my fish in the tank while I do it, I'm going to be posting a video to show how everything worked following your guidelines, thanks again

[@gtariman03]

If you wash the sand, it's safe for any fish. I tried this all purpose sand from Homedepot (3 bucks for 50 pounds) and never caused any problem. The only thing that sucks about it is that you really have to clean it good. The best way is to get a huge metal pasta strainer that has holes huge enough to clean out small particles and dust and small enough for the nice big grains of sand. Better than buying a pet store sand which costs a lot. With the 50 gallons, can fill about 30-40 gallons tank.

[@iseone]

Hey man nice videos I don't even own any fish besides a beta but I was searching for how to videos on building a tank for my green tree python when I came across you video on building this tank so I watched all of them up to this one and now I am gonna build my own aquarium. Thanks keep up the great videos

[@tayjamm]

So I have a problem.....I bought play sand and washed it EXTREMELY well and slowly placed it into my tank.5 days after the placement of the sand I had lost all but 2 fish! I was crushed! I have a cichlid tank and some of them I had had for yrs. I removed the sand and put my gravel back in and the 2 surviving survived. What do you guess I did wrong? Was it the sand? I put the same sand in my 10 gal fry tank and there was no problem. Thank you for all your videos. Keep posting!

[@mrvicz24]

That sand is a great idea, I have 2 55 gallon tanks I changed from gravel to sand a few months ago. The sand I used is very cheap as well, it is just sandblasting sand you can buy at any auto parts store, it comes in 50lb bags & cost me $12 a bag. I rinsed it the same way as shown in video & is great for growning plants in as well. The plants grow better with the sand then they ever did in the gravel, the fish seem to like it alot better as well, especially the Cory's, Loaches, Plecos ect.

[@TheThumbalina]

Someone told me that silice in the sand will cut the mouths of pleco sand bottom fedders, can you tell me if you had this problem, becuse i want to try it to

[@padres6116]

Love these old videos Joey! The white K-Swiss are nice!

[@clg8694]

very informational video! Thank you even if a little old, still valuable.

[@TheTomsTank]

@TheSonicChao these fish are Discus fish which is a freshwater species

[@MRCOCAINECITY1]

wow this video is a raw version of DIY good stuff Joe

[@MauriceMccomie]

This video is old in a sense, but I feel you make all your videos with me in mind LOL! Big project coming up, redoing the tank and was thinking about adding pool sand as a cap for my substrate. Entered it on KZbin and Boom! ***** has a video on what I want to know. lol Thank you again Joey.

[@thekingofdiy]

Maurice McComie Great aquarist think alike? ;)I try to cover everything.

[@MauriceMccomie]

You're doing a great job at it. Keep it up Joey

[@mrvicz24]

As for cleaning the sand, I have a gravel vacuum as well, but I just take the big attachment off & just use the hose to clean the sand as everything sits on top of the sand & just getting close with the hose will suck anything sitting on top up.

[@matthewsutton5532]

Good idea.... sounds like a great solution. what is going on underneath your tank? that looks like some kind of very good filter.

[@Jay789520]

I been using play sand for years works real good. I clean it the same way as you do in this video.

[@tacos0816]

i'm not sure of the brand but i got it at Home depot, its silica sand #4. the bag was confusing but just look for the big #4 on it and you'll know.

[@amazon3d2]

Its funny because this is exactly what I did to clean mine before I found your channel :) Love your videos Joey!

[@Soundillusions94xyz]

Do you have to regularly change the sand?

[@joeODonnell1]

Like the filter and the substrate.some great projects on the site also. loving it

[@Shahkz]

I would’ve been 8 years old when this came out lol

[@andynewen]

Can I use this if I already have tons of coarse gravel in my tank? I

[@adan1411]

This amazing video saved me a whole heck of time

[@anthonypearson8715]

2 questions... 1.) what kind of fish are in this video? And 2.) I purchased pool sand and am not exactly happy with the color (I would like it to be lighter)... Can I mix it with a lighter sand made for aquariums to achieve a brighter look?

[@laospubao]

Would you say that it'd be safe for koi fish ? Also, do you like it better than gavel beds ? Thanks for the awesome tip stud!!

[@colbolt54]

Good video, addressed the problem I had when I put sand in my tank. Did not do a good job of washing my sand

[@Brandywine6969]

You were so much calmer back then.

[@KYfishguy]

Well I just spent about 2 hrs watching your videos needless to say I am exhausted. Well done. Truly a pleasure to watch and very informative. I especially love your Canadian accent when you say words like "out". Ow-oot! :) anyways subscribed - keep em coming...

[@Paultheend]

Hi from northern Ireland :) I do this exactly the same except for putting it in the tank. Instead of using an open container I use an old bag usually one you get your fish in as they're nice and long and fit a lot of sand in. Cool vids by the way man I have a load of questions lol

[@Aquaman-wy3mg]

Hello Joey, I wrote this to you in a direct message on IG as well. I’m a big fan of you and your work. You’ve thought me a lot, and answered questions I’ve had with your videos . I wanted to ask a question about pool filter sand. You did a video a while back and thought me how clean it and what to buy. Now, with that said, do you think plants can grow in it?

[@SidKashyap]

Hi Joey...I saw this video a couple months ago and finally got pool filtration sand today...picked up 150lbs for 28 bucks for all three of my tanks. I just replaced my black gravel with this sand in my 135 gallon and followed all the steps in your video. The water is still quite cloudy and I can barely see through. Your tank actually looked quite clear even before you did the 50% water change. I had cleaned the sand thoroughly before putting it in too. Any advice on water clearing tips?

[@thestickez]

@uarujoey I thought so. I have been slowly getting things ready to start a 75 gallon reef tank. You wouldn't believe the luck I have had. I got a brand new 75 gallon glass tank for on $50 with lighting, aqua medic turboflotor 1000 protein skimmer gently used for only $25 with a brand new pump, used fluidezed bed filter $20, Brand new heater $20, RO unit used for a month $30. Now thanks to you I will get a deal on sand as well. Are there any other creative low cost substitutes for sand ?

[@keyaan1623]

actually, a lot of freshwater bottom dwellers such as corydoras have delicate barbles that would be damaged by such rough sand.

[@WielandRob]

Hi Joey, could you do an update vid on this tank. I really love the combination of rock background with discusfish. Something you don't see often. Good job on this!

[@treehumprr]

@azilee214 it just might mess up your filter. just do a water change, and add the water in really slowly.

[@richardflavor]

didn't know you were canadian until 'aboot eight dollars' hahah, thanks for the info brother

[@Sherberto95]

Helps a lot! Getting some Dwarf puffers soon...

[@marandacromwell]

Very helpful, thanks! I have a 10 gallon tropical freshwater tank and nothing but catfish in it. I think they'll be much happier with sand.

[@dixiefish0173]

Thankyou for such an informative video about doing sand in a tank , I didn’t know all that thanks buddy.

[@Potterchick15]

Could I use this sand with my Betta in a 5.5 gallon tank?

[@d.j.6937]

What about kids sand at Lowe’s,for the sand box,it’s Beach sand.Would that be ok and clean it like your doing.Its $5.00 For 40 Pds.and it has little bits of seashells in it.

[@jrctneon1964]

D. D. You can use it, but its much more dirty. It has a more fine grit to it which has its own pros and cons, but yes once thoroughly cleaned you can absolutely use it.

[@dharankoketta]

Nice vid and the way you describe is too simple and easy thanks

[@SexMusicPlants]

Cannot wait to show you what I've done to my turtle tank with your ideas!

[@tacos0816]

ok, go to home depot, then find construction supplies and it should be silica sand #4... or #6 i forget but they only have 1 of those numbers so its hard to miss, if you cant find it either ask an employee to point you to the silica sand itself or to the play sand since they're in the same isle. they nicknamed it something like San Diego beach sand or some crap like that but as long as you see the numbers listed above you should be fine

[@gtariman03]

Go to his channel. I think he has a video about it. It's called fluidized bed filter. Great bio filter.

[@ashwathiyer4485]

Bumped into this old gold from you! :D Huge fan of your work and your journey!

[@Filo011]

as always great videos, showed every step & explained it extremely well keep up the great work.

[@zeropointenergy1574]

Just what I needed. Thanks, Joey.

[@OfficerMatty]

Very nice tank. Where did you get the background and what is it exactly? It looks like a faux rock wall. Thanks!

[@dynan-spired6377]

I know it's been a long time since you set this up and I've been trying to find a completed update but I don't see one or I just can't find it. Can you show me how it looked when you finished it please? It's really cool. I want to do this in my 5 gallon aquarium that is just planted and I don't keep fish in it. I just love my plants! Thanks for sharing your ideas!

[@oakland002]

Great video but just wondering how you clean sand while it's in the fish tank if you try to suck it up with some sort of filter hose, won't the sand get suck up too... Just wondering on how you would clean the sand

[@JNguyen07Max]

Watching this in June 24th, 2018. My goodness. This video is from 2011....you've made some gains since! And by gains I mean those muscles!

[@Pure4Kicks]

That background is so epic! My Melenogenys would love that

[@gtariman03]

No problem. Or if the intake tube is too low that it will suck up the sand, you can always cut the tube to make it high enough not to suck up the sand.

[@TheTomsTank]

do you still have this sand? and could you possibly make a video about cleaning the sand when it is in the aquarium please? it would be much appreciated . oh and another informative video.

[@jezedwards190]

Hi there, just a quick thank you for the video, very helpful and very useful. Cheers dude

[@Lolilover69]

Nice tips very helpful

[@MobehTaBlues]

Very cool video... you got me interestrd in doing all sorts to my 75 gal bow front....thank you for your video...only question i have is i had used sand before but after a while turned my wster gutter like and killed my fish...do i need a soecial kind of filter to prevent this?...

[@wendellgilbertharrison7560]

like how you did the plumbing,,, I live in Italy,,, you know of any good fish vendors who ship fish for a reasonable price

[@meghano1945]

you can get pool filter sand at a hardware or pool supply store.

[@Falcone102]

Hello I hope this doesnt sound to dumb But my question is can I use pool sand for a saltwater tank Or should I pay for the live sand from the pet /fish store I also have a 30w18h13d size tank How much sand should I buy for this size tank Thank you for any advice you can share

[@pamelak819]

Omg what a baby face! (As always thanks for the great info. )

[@m0sredrum]

When I added sand; I lowered a 3' pvc pipe to the bottom and funneled that sand into the pipe then moved pipe around to evenly spread.

[@DaShishtys]

Very helpful video big thumbs up bro 💪🏼

[@justintrollface163]

you sir, are a clever man

[@Ministry_of_things]

Thanks dude, very helpful