Aquarium Substrate Showdown: Sand vs Gravel! Does it Even Matter?

Why not both?

Can you put gravel on bottom and sand on top?

my dwarf hair grass gets ripped out of the gravel so easily.

in tanks with no plants or floating plants only I use gravel. it is easy to vacuum clean. in tanks with rroted plants I use dirt and seal it with sand. never touch the sand, no cleaning needed.

Extra bit: gravel can get bubble pockets that are like cysts to the tank itself

coarse sand is the best. it's the middle of both great for plants and for bottom dwellers

Thanks!

Dude, your beard is freaking awesome!!

Thanks for your help. I decided NO change my substrate to fertilize one. I keep my gravel in my 29 gallons that I STARTED FROM THE BEGINNING....AGAIN😢. BUT thanks for your advice. Jm

For Tanganyika Biotope: simple river sand 😎

I have a mixture of sand and stones in my tank. 2 layers, Sand on the bottom and then stones on the top.

I have one full-sand, one gravel/sand-mix, & two dirted tanks w/ sand caps. QUESTION THOUGH: At what point do we need to not be so OCD about waste in a dirted, heavily-planted tank?

Sand DOES highlight blemishes, especially in the shrimp-tank. 🤨
I siphon out waste weekly, also added carpeting plants to see if that helps not show the droppings and/or cycle the droppings back into the ecosystem. Too early to tell, & I’m sure I’ll always siphon…but w/ lots of shrimplettes, siphoning waste is siphoning babies too.

My Corys are unhappy in gravel and now i have sand, then i watched this after.. lol?

I use the finest sand I can find for cory cats and it made a big difference with their health and lifespan. I saw a lot of barbel wear and deterioration with gravel. For a canister filter, if you have the kind that sucks water to the bottom of the canister first and then the motor sucks it up through the trays, the sand stays on the bottom and you can dump it back in when you do maintenance.

Put sand in aquarium and there is dust on surface. Used water clarifier and surface skimmer but it’s not working. Any ideas?

Sand is great, but it is also very easy to scratch your glass if even a tiny particle gets in your magnet/pad.

Whats the best way to keep sand out of my filters in my 75 gallon cichlid tank?? I had to switch to gravel bc my filters were getting messed up

Do you think that corys would be okay with rounded gravel? It's completely smooth but I'm a bit nervous because I want them to be happy and safe.

Very helpful, thank you! I’ve been trying to decide for a few weeks on a new tank I’m setting up. Black gravel it is.

is a a deep substrate worth it?

I think I’m going with some small to medium rocks on the bottom of mine. It’s for my Piranahs

I like a sand bed with some medium rocks and some gravel mixed in.

My favorite thing about sand is having a crew of cory cats to clean it up, no need to vacuum gravel.

Primetime Aquatics: Sand vs. Gravel.... Me: Why not both?

I'm going to use black sand and red glass stones. There shouldn't be an issue using both should there?

Wow thanks so helpful!

Which would you say is easier to clean for turtle tanks?

Hi Jason, is the Super Naturals Carib sea fine sand safe for a male Betta? I'm just concerned if he eats off the bottom if he'll ingest some sand? Love your videos Amigo!

very helpful ,thanks

Is it a bad idea to mix sand and gravel ?

Hey Jason, what are your thoughts about having a deep substrate to help with nitrates?

I love watching u very educational. I refer to your videos as the bible to fish keeping.

The only channel on Fishtube (or YT) that I don't set to 1.2x speed! Good density of information and summaries. It's almost like... this is being run by a teacher or something! :)

Aqua quartz pool filter sand is my absolute favorite substrate

What about anaerobic pockets?

Darth Vader would definitely go with gravel, because rumor has it, he doesn’t like sand. It’s rough and coarse and irritating, and it gets everywhere.

I have gravel in my two tanks, but in Cosmo's tank I had smooth river rock pebbles as I heard nightmares about maintenance with sand, but didn't want to hurt his fins. Maintenance wasn't easy with the river pebbles either, but with just Cosmo in there it wasn't too bad. Some day I'd love to try a shellie tank which will require sand.

If you plan on having turtles, don't do gravel!

No matter what kind of sponge pre filter to use, sand is sand, it will go into filtration system.
Especially if you have sand sifting fish. Aquaclear filter practically never restarts
Only mini gravel, never sand, no matter how it might look much nicer

Sand vs. gravel? No, sand and gravel together 👌🏻

7/8th sand 1/8th gravel. Nice and natural.

Thank you so much for this! I have been debating on switching to sand when I move my fish to a 150g. Do you have any recommendations on how to figure out how much you will need?

Are wave makers worth it in a fresh water tank?

Interesting video! I have gravel in my 75 gallon. I set this up about a year ago and it was kind of an impulse, I've learned a lot this past year thanks to your channel!

Question- I have been considering switching to sand .... I have cory cats and didn't realize in the beginning that they prefer sand. What is the best way to convert my tank? Will I get rid of beneficial bacteria if I switch out my substrate?

Thanks for all the great content!!

Out of curiosity, could you use sand with an under gravel filter? (I don’t have any undergravel filters any more, but I was just wondering what people thought.)