Anyone use Estes black sand?

[tigmades]

This sand here: Aqua Sand - Black - 5 lb

I was wanting to get black sand for the Axie Hotel because
a) color pops
b) black sand absorbs light, so would help keep aquarium a bit darker

- grains are 0.5mm-1.0mm
- smooth
- glass-coated so helps prevent getting icky algae growth
- won't alter water parameters!

Seems PERFECT! Other aquarists love the stuff... sometimes it floats and takes a couple of days to settle, but what's 2 days for a lifetime of YAY!? It also comes in other colors, besides black...

Any experience? Opinions?

 

[GlowingCool]

I use it! Love it! But WASH it!! you need to put it in a bucket and rinse, rinse, rise before you put it in the tank. It is kinda dusty at first (I don't know why).

 

[tigmades]

That looks fantastic!! Do you have a hard one cleaning the sand because it's so fine? And tips?

 

[GlowingCool]

Cleaning it is easy, I use a long nozzled siphon and just stir it up with the tip and then lift up so that if falls out of the siphon and back to bottom. Some ends up in the bucket, if too much does I just scoop it up and put it back if just a little I dump it.