Flourite Black Sand, 15.4 Pound (Pack of 1)
$36.00
Price: $36.00
(as of Mar 30, 2025 04:45:30 UTC – Details)
Flourite Black Sand is a specially fracted stable porous clay gravel for the natural planted aquarium. Its appearance is best suited to planted aquaria, but may be used in any aquarium environment. Flourite Black Sand is most effective when used alone as an integral substrate bed, but it may be mixed with other gravels. Gravel modifiers such as laterite are not necessary. Flourite Black Sand is not chemically coated or treated and will not alter the pH of the water.
The Premium Substrate for the Planted Aquarium
Specially Fracted, Stable Porous Clay Gravel For The Natural Planted Aquarium
Its appearance is best suited to planted aquaria, but may be used in any aquarium environment
Never Needs Replacement And Remains Effective For The Life Of The Aquarium
Not Chemically Coated Or Treated And Will Not Alter The Ph Of The Water
Customers say
Customers find that the substrate is good for plant growth and looks great in their tanks. Many of them say it’s the best substrate they have ever used, with plants rooted well. However, some customers mention that it can be dusty and needs thorough washing.
AI-generated from the text of customer reviews
T. Strube –
Best Planted Aquarium Sand
This is the best substrate I have ever used. Not only does it help the plants, but it also helps from detritus from sinking to the bottom. I use this in my 48″x18″x36″ 75 gallon aquarium with a 2″ bed.Yes it doesn’t look completely black when illuminated in water. It looks more like a charcoal black. I have never seen it listed as being pure black.Yes it looks lighter as detritus starts to pile up on it. This is where scavengers, sand sifters, and water flow are handy.People also say that this product is very dusty. This can be true. It all depends on how it is handled. The more the grains collide with one another, the dustier this product will be. This is the same concept as two pieces of charcoal colliding with each other.If properly cleaned before placement in the tank, there will be no dust and it can handle stronger water flow without blowing everywhere. To properly clean the sand I recommend doing the following:1. Get an unused bucket.2. Fill bucket half-way with sand.3. Stick hose into bucket.4. Use hands and hose to stir sand.5. Keep performing Step 4 until the water running over the bucket is clear.For those that do not have power-heads to keep the detritus stirred up until it can be taken out by the filter, I suggest getting some sand sifters. I have two different types in my tank and they work wonders. I have two Dojo Loaches. These can grow to be 6″ long and about 1-2″ around. These work good for bigger tanks. I also have two Kuhlii Loaches. These get to be about 4″ long and 1/2″ around. These work good for smaller tanks. Both of these types of loaches are regularly seen sifting this sand in my tank. With that said, I can almost, 99%, guarantee this sand is harmless for sand sifters.Even with a 2″ bed in my tank. If you take a flashlight to the bottom, you can see plants roots spreading across the tank in all directions. The plants definitely like this sand as well. My tank is fully planted with Amazon Sword, Moneywort, Wisteria, Ludwigia, Rotala Indica, and Chainsword. Most of them need to be trimmed at least once per month. If I don’t the light at the bottom starts to diminish and the fish start running out of free room to swim. As a side note, I am not currently adding any chemicals to the aquarium and the only types of filter I use are for mechanical and bacteria.Another very beneficial reason to use this sand is due to its grain size and black color. With it having a small grain size and color, you do not have to worry about algae growing within the substrate. With gravel, there is enough pockets of little to no water moevement, that algae can grow freely. With some lighter colors of sand, algae can grow just beneath the top with relative ease. By using this color, black, it is deprived of that light.All-in-all, I am very pleased with this product. If my fish and plants love it, and I can stand looking at it, I see no reason to try anything else. I have used 3-4 different plant substrates in the past and none have worked as well as this product.As you can see from the two photos, the plants grow really good in this substrate. These photos were taken about one month apart. As I said, this is without any additives. This includes any form of CO2 additive.
Alexander Scott –
Yes it needs rinsing but afterwards your fine.
I purchased after seeing reviews about the cloudiness and needing to rinse, but the manufacturer also says that. I rinsed until it was less muddy but not completely clear. Added to tank and added water, one inch soil and two inches of the flourite to cap. It was cloudy at first but after a day or two of running filter it was completely clear. Looks good in tank and plants are definitely growing. So far so good. Cost is a little steep but it’s good for the life of tank so can’t complain too much. Overall good purchase so far.
tab –
Great for inverts and peaceful fish
This black sand is extremely fine-grained and very appealing in a peaceful aquarium. I have it as a thin layer on top of CaribSea Eco-Complete, and so far my plants don’t mind it and it looks nice. Keep in mind, since the sand is black, many things stand out on it such as poop and fish flakes, but it also makes your critters stand out (my orange mini crayfish and red-line sharks look amazing against it!).The sand is also very dusty as you see in other reviews, but I think this is because the sand is so fine. Rinsing is a good idea, but I wasn’t able to get all of the dust out (even with the pillow case trick), so it still clouded my tank but didn’t take too long to settle (few hours–give or take). Once the sand is settled it stays in the same place unless something or someone moves it. It is only an issue for the filter when putting it in the tank, so just turn the filter off when putting the sand in the tank. It could also be an issue for a filter if you have large fish or creatures that like to dig in the sand (e.g., mature turtles and oscars), but you would want a heavier sand for them like pool filter sand (what I use with my RES). Never the less, my shrimp and mini crayfish love scavenging in this flourite sand, and they (as well as the other peaceful fish in my tank up to 3 inches in size) are far from large enough to stir it up.
Christopher Lang –
Rinse it well!
This is my second experience using Flourite, but my first time using their “sand” substrate. Realistically I’m almost certain that it’s their regular Flourite Black but crushed more finely. It’s pretty uniform in size and not quite the fineness of something like beach sand, but is considerably smaller than the standard Flourite. While it’s labeled as black it’s definitely a lot more gunmetal gray under direct (LED) light. It looks great against bright green plants and brightly colored fish.The bag says it’s pre-rinsed, but you will absolutely, positively want to rinse this stuff in a bucket until your water runs clear. I made that mistake years ago the first time I used the regular Flourite and it turned my water into a brown mess. The particulate runoff with the black sand is very white/silvery. I rinsed it what I thought was reasonably well and still ended up with mildly cloudy water for about a week, even with polishing pads and Purigen. Eventually it filtered/settled out and it’s a nice uniform dark-gray colored substrate and my water has cleared up.As for performance, my plants really seem to like it. It was very easy to get roots for Amazon swords, crypts, val, and dwarf sag to establish. Within days new root growth was working its way through the substrate and within 10 days I was seeing new runners on some plants. I can’t say that’s because of the substrate specifically, but I like that the sand has enough ‘tooth’ for roots to grab and create a network but still leaves enough space for water to penetrate and carry nutrients. Seachem makes some really good stuff and I’m going to be using more of their substrate in my next project.
Stephanie Breck –
Love this sand. It looks so amazing in my planted tank and makes all our fish pop! Challenging to clean and takes lots of rinsing. Even after what felt like a million washes and very careful placement and water addiction cloudiness occurred but was easily cleared up with filter floss over a week or so.
Katherine –
Great product. I bought this for my new 4ft planted tank. Looks awesome in my tank. My plants are growing really well. My Corydoras love it (they are much more active in the Flourite Black Sand then they were in plain gravel in my old tank).It’s really easy to plant plants in it and they stay planted; this is the first time I’ve planted bunch plants that haven’t ended up floating around the tank.It does make the water cloudy for a little while at first. I did a few water changes and it cleared up within about 4 days. In saying that, I didn’t rinse it that much before putting it in my tank – I put it in my tank, added enough water to go about 30cm over the sand. I then emptied the water and carefully refilled it again after planting my plants.3 weeks later my plants are looking great! Definitely worth the money!
Student –
Plants seem to like it – looks really nice for a natural look. Not a stark black – but thats why I like it – more of a charcoal grey. Spent a hour rinsing one bag – but payed off, settles really quickly.
Newboy123 –
Excellent product, at a very reasonable price. I was using Anazonia for years which is twice as expensive. Both give amazing results with correct lighting and C02
Sarah –
Took a lot of cleaning, and I did have some water clouding issues, but now the sand is settled. The plants have grown A LOT in the couple of weeks its been in there, I had heard people say that it will grow the plants really quickly, but I didn’t expect this quick! The hard work of cleaning and getting the cloudiness down really pays off with how great the plants look. My dwarf frogs and khuli loaches also love the sand.