aragonite same as coral sand?

[Tommi]

Hi, being doing reading up on substrate. Can some confirm coral sand and aragonite is indeed the same?

Regards

Tommy

[Buccal]

Calcium carbonate and calcium calcite are the forms that aragonite come in,,, sometimes you'll see crushed marble being sold also so don't get that mixed up with aragonite as marble is inert and won't alter chemistry.

Aragonite will buffer the water and slightly harden it.

Crushed coral has same effects as aragonite but they aren't the same thing but similar in a broad sense.

Coral will devolve at a much faster rate as it's heaps more porous.

[Tommi]

Thanks for the reply and clearing up 

[luis]

Is aragonite a suitable substrate for mbuna or is it too coarse? (and does it look good?)

[Buccal]

It comes in all different grades,,, from almost small as sand to the river gravel sizes.

Its white, I think it looks good,,, looks better slightly aged.

[AzFish]

crushed marble is inert?? myself and many others have been using marble chips for decades on fresh and marine tanks to buffer the water; was always under the impression crushed marble chips is just calcium carbonate.

 

 

[Buccal]

Yeah it's a bit confusing, but I'm pretty sure the actual crushed marble is the actual natural state marble which is not inert completely I guess, but will hardly dissolve,,, many hard wearing marble floors would be this stuff,, and I think it's in the form of (calcite marble).

But crushed aragonite is less dense and dissolves at a respectable rate to buffer to minimal capacities,,, and this is in the form of  (aragonite marble).