Nature's Ocean Bio-Activ Live Natural White Cichlid Sand, 2 lbs – Optimal pH Balance, Enhanced Water Clarity, and Natural Aesthetic Appeal, 100% Eco-Friendly

I read the reviews seen a lot about cloudy water problems, but I have to say that I had zero issues with cloudy water. My picture are about 8 hours after cycling my tank. No rotten egg smell.

Pros: it did jump-start a tank cycle like whoa. This, along with filter media from an established tank, had nitrite and nitrate levels spiking in one week, and ammonia and nitrite levels undetectable by the end of week 2. Also, it looks fantastic once the dust has settled (with good filtration it takes about 24 hrs to clear)Cons: HYDRA. Yep, the day I brought home the fish to stock it, while floating the bags, I noticed little 'hairs' all over the glass, waving in the currents. No plants in the tank, no snails, no wood, no trace of hydra in filter media source tank... but there they were in my new virgin tank. As the only wet thing to have gone into the tank previously is the sand, it had to have been the source. So, yeah. I'm hoping I can get the hydra eradicated before my shellies start breeding. Fun times.

This stuff is outstanding. I can’t believe people are mad because there’s water in it.. it’s supposed to have water. Where do they think the bio comes from????It starts the cycle the instant you fill your tank. BEAUTIFUL BEAUTIFUL BEAUTIFUL.....Cloudy to Clear in no time.Use prime to condition your water then fill her up. Wait a day then test your water. It’s crazy how this sand gives you readings so soon.

It took about 24 hours for the water to completely clear up, but it looks awesome once it does! Extremely fine sand and the Mbunas seem to love it. I added 1 Mbuna 24hrs after adding the sand to the tank, and he never showed any signs of stress, which seems to confirm the claim on the bag that the bacteria in the bag “instantly cycles” the aquarium. Also seems to buffer the Ph well...been holding steady around 8.0.

We added 4 bags of sand to our 75 gallon. It gave us a base of 1.5" after everything settled. Do not wash this product as it contains everything needed to cycle the tank. Once added, it took a full 3 days with filter running to be crystal clear. After adding rocks, it stirred up the sand a little but it cleared up in 4 hours. The ph of the water after 3 days was sitting at 8.2. We did a water change to get the small shells and pieces of wood from the sand and took out 10 gallons. Once we put water back into it. The ph fluctuated down to 8.0 and was back to 8.2 in less than a day. My advice is to be patient. Its a great quality product. We found no smell in the tank after adding and it was just a waiting game to see how long it would take to clear up. It looks great now. Totally recommend for African Cichlids.

I had added this 24 hours after another brand bag of black sand. It was very cloudy, which was expected, especially since I didn't rinse it, just added it as is since I wasn't sure if the beneficial stuff would get washed away if I tried to rinse it. I had stirred it up a little more after approximately 6 hours of being in there when I reached in to comb through the sands to combine the 2 colors. After 24 hours it's much clearer, still a little cloudy, but much better than it was.Water parameters were fine to move my fish into it so I was happy and know that eventually it'll be cleared up even more. The fish didn't show any issues moving directly from one tank to the other (I made sure the temperatures were about even before doing so) and have been swimming happily around. My PH is holding steady at 7.5.

i own a 55 gallon fish tank , i bought 3 bags expending almost 100 dollars , i used sand before but low quality but with 30 pounds i have enough to have 4" on my tankturns out that this product comes too wet with liquid inside the bags, so I'm gonna need another 3 bags to have 4" of sand at the button of my aquarium, what i have a barely 1"1/2 ...not enough for what i wantednot smells like eggs like others reviews sayingcolor of the sand on the bag its a little beige but with water and lights its very white and i like thatmy cichlids looks very happy and its fun for them to play aroundmake sure that you clean very well and remove every single piece of gravel before you switch to sand, gravel will find his way up to the sand and become visiblethank youthank you

A great product but like others have mentioned, it is a bit more of an off white/very light brown than a solid white but it definitely still looks like a very nice tropical beach. There are small chunks of shell in it, I am guessing this is to increase the PH level seeing as how this sand is labeled as being for African Cichlids (which require a higher PH level). With that said, I used RO water with it and the increase in PH was minimal at best, making it still very safe for my shrimp. All in all, this is a great product at a very good price. Here is how I used it in my tank. I have Seacheam Black (another great product) around the sides and in back where Im growing Dwarf Hairgrass.

Nice sand, seems to be great for the shrimps so far. It takes 1 day for the cloud water to clear up.