Do I have crushed coral...

shrkbait

Non-member
OK, So I am treating the Introductions section as being the opposite of 'Advanced Reef Talk'... Noob question. I bought my saltwater setup as a complete package off craigslist last year. Wishing some things were different, like a sump/fuge versus wet/dry. Anyways, I am trying to get a handle on why the tank is not acting quite the way I wanted/expected it too.

Every place I see the words crushed coral, it says to ditch it. So... exactly how does one distinguish CC from sand. I have been googling photos but there are different sizes and grades of each. My substrate is mostly white, I would say there is a decent amount of very little shells or pieces of shells.

Any pointers would be great, though I am hoping I have the good stuff.
 
Crushed coral is very course. 3/16" to 1/4" in size. This large particle size traps leftover food, fish poop ect. and it just basically rots adding excess nutrients to your tank.
In a reef tank you want a fine sand, sugar size or a little bigger grains.
 
C'est bon. Definitively not coarse. Some more pepply looking stuff is on top, but that is natural.
 
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