# Play sand for substrate



## jreidsma (Aug 23, 2012)

Hi everyone 

Just wanting to make sure non-colored play sand is alright for use with animals, aquatic and terrestrial.

It says washed/rinsed on it, so it should be clean. And I am guessing if it is alright to use with kids it should be alright with animals. 

I was spending $5 at the pet store for about half a gallon of sand. But I think they said something about it just being play sand so I went to menards and found a very large bag of play sand for $2. 

I have it in with my different cricket containers right now.


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## MarkmD (Aug 23, 2012)

Hi

I wouldn't use any type of sand for my Ts, I use the brick type substrate usaly in pet stores, but saying that you could mix a bit of sand with normal sunstrate but depending on the type of Ts you have, am sure ull get better answer from others that have used sand with thayr Ts.

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## jreidsma (Aug 23, 2012)

Its more for my scorpions, insects, and other inverts. And a few aquatic things.

I just use coconut coir blocks for my T's though, then just let it get really dry for the ones that like it dry.


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## Quazgar (Aug 24, 2012)

I've heard of people using it in aquariums with fish, though I'm not a big fan of sand bottom fish tanks. If you do use it in an aquarium, be careful that it won't get sucked into the filter and clog the impeller, and I would recommend having a few animals that would bury themselves in the sand (certain snails and loaches come to mind for this). I have heard of sand causing anaerobic bacteria to build up, and the snails and loaches that burrow through the sand essentially act to stir up the sand and mix some oxygen into it to avoid this issue.

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## jreidsma (Aug 24, 2012)

I probably won't be using this play sand in aquariums with store bought fish. I get higher priced aquarium sand for that. I have a couple puffer fish tanks and you have to get more rounded sand where it won't scrap or cut the fish. So I like to play it safe and get aquarium sand. 

I will be using this play sand with land animals, and the occasional aquatic invertebrate. Like my cray fish and triops. With those I shouldn't have to worry about them getting scraped or anything on the sand. 

I doubt the play sand it very sharp though, it doesn't feel like it an if it was sharp then kids wouldn't be playing in it


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## shebeen (Aug 24, 2012)

Play sand is fine to use for desert dwelling scorpions.  For obligate burrowers, such as H. arizonensis, mix the sand with 25% to 30% excavator clay, moisten the mixture, pack it down and allow to dry completely.  The clay acts as binder and allows the substrate to hold burrows and tunnels without collapsing.


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## J Morningstar (Aug 24, 2012)

Shebeen, I was thinking of doing just that Glad you mentioned it.


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## Peter Parker (Oct 15, 2012)

Clean sand has glass.  Fine if wet and mixed with something else like moist potting soil. I would not use sand dry because dust can get kicked up in the cage.  Silica is just a fancy name for sand and or aggregate.  Sand is silica. The pet may be exposed to silica dust which is a carcinogen. But would not recommend clean sand. I will be the first to own and recommend the idea of a fine ground aggregate that looks like sand but has no glass and that is Flintshot.

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## jreidsma (Oct 15, 2012)

Wait, so the sand would be dangerous? I have seen no ill effects from it yet and I have it in most of my animals.

I am doubting that play sand has some sort of carcinogen in it, cause if something is going to kick up dust it would be small children.

---------- Post added 10-15-2012 at 04:28 PM ----------

Well, I found another thread and now I want this stuff out of my tanks!

What would be safe alternative to sand? Just use dry coconutcoir?

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## Peter Parker (Oct 16, 2012)

To Jriedsma,  A sand combined substrate is fine.  The material you use is the problem.  As I said before, maybe I did not describe in enough detail.  Clean refined(manufactured)sand has glass in it. This is a fact. This particular sand can and will be used to manufacture glass. Refined sand has aggregate.  Aggregate is a loose term to describe many different substances. Sands main compound is quarts(silicone dioxide), gravel, river rock, glass, marl(river deposits), Marl(shells), oyster shells, coral, possible iron oxide minerals, second large material is calcium carbonate materials such as aragonite, limestone, crystal, and marble. Glass is the hazardous material. So if you use a aggregate stone solely by itself, the material should be safe. I would suggest and own the idea of a fine graded quarts sand or flintshot. I will not explain this again, not because I am irritated, but it bores me because this is a subject I have much knowledge of for my employment and the information is always available for those that wish to learn.  Great topic, I do appreciate your desire to know safety and readily available materials used for substrates. There is no sense paying more for a material if it is readily available.  I feel I answered it rather accurately. Thank you.

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## jreidsma (Oct 16, 2012)

Sorry, I did not mean for it to sound like I was doubting or attacking you. I was just a bit shocked that play sand could be hazardous depending on what it is made out of. Makes you wonder if it could scratch small children or something. I don't have any bags of it to look at the ingredients or anything though.

Thanks for pointing all of this out  we learn something new every day!

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## Peter Parker (Oct 17, 2012)

*Whats up bro. You where not bothering me at all.*

I am a union Concrete Finisher in MA.  I install trowel down applied epoxy flooring. We mainly install resinous and chemical flooring for bio-research laboratories, rat labs, monkey labs, schools, mechanical rooms, hospitals, containment areas, chemical processing, manufacturing plants, clean rooms, aquariums and any weird place imagine.  All silica by OSHA is considered hazardous carcinogen in certain applications. Some applications that are hazardous are sanding, grinding. shot blasting, polishing, demolition, broadcasting, uses of using dry powder such as fine grouts and cabosil which is a puff silica(if you could reach up and feel what a cloud looks like that is cabosil.)  Two products we use daily is quarts sand and flint shot, we broadcast the sand into the mixed wet troweled epoxy.  When the epoxy blows up(chemical reaction when the wet epoxy heats up to high degrees and starts to become hard.)  The Hardening epoxy sucks the silica in and can add tremendous amounts of additional strength to the already strong epoxy as well as provide aesthetics and texture. The quarts we use and flint shot are solid aggregates of one type. no glass.  The sand you find on the beach has glass in it.  The sand I guarantee you are using is something like play sand or Quickcrete, that has glass.  When I do use quarts and flint shot mixed with wet potting soil potting soil or clay(like mixing sand with cement) the two combine with each other and compliment one another together. I feel it works very well for burrowers.  You hear the name vermiculite a great deal, Vermiculite is a light weight aggregate with heat and humidity properties, this is why it it is used in applications like a floor base for pool lining, It is mixed with ? substance and screeded off and troweled prior the installation of a pool liner.  I wish you lived near me I would give you a bag of flint shot/quarts to try.  I would call your local masonry supply, not a home depot, and ask if they sell flint shot. Don't tell them its for a pet. Tell them your brother in law or something is doing a epoxy floor and you need a bag for broadcasting floor. It should come a 100 pound bag and cost 30$. Thank you.

This is for reference only, ONLY to Arachnoboard members. Not to guest or anyone surfing the world wide web that may come across any letter in this post.
   Because these are trade secrets they are legal binding.  I make epoxy products for living animals, to provide myself Garrett DeCaluwe and family with income, and other knowledgeable and professional human beings have put there time into the development of the this Industry.  Human beings make a source of living within the manufacturing of Polymers, The Chemical industry, Epoxy Flooring Construction and finishing Industry, Concrete construction, OPCMIA International. and many people throughout the world. I own the all the words in this post and any attempt to steal these words or use them for profit or gain and make them your own will be met with the strictest of legal recourse.


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## jreidsma (Oct 17, 2012)

Thanks for all the info! 

I tried to get most of the sand/coconut coir mix out, it was time to clean them all anyways. There were so many baby Eleodes in the stuff that I couldn't get them all out and just moved them over into totes, susbtrate and all. :laugh: Got to love Eleodes 

I will keep my eyes out for the stuff you mentioned.

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