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Special Kitty for Substrate

Started by Guest_Elijah_* , Jan 05 2011 12:20 AM

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22 replies to this topic

#1 Guest_Elijah_*

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Posted 05 January 2011 - 12:20 AM

So I have read on forums, including this one I think, that Special Kitty from Walmart is okay to use as a substrate. I have used organic kitty litter from the local health food store, but it is quite expensive. I went to walmart the other day and got special kitty, but I see blue granules mixed in with the gray, so I did not dare to use it.
Anyone have any knowledge about this?
Thanks!

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#2 Guest_EricaWieser_*

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Posted 05 January 2011 - 01:41 AM

I use Special Kitty (walmart) brand kitty litter in my tank and like it a lot. Here is a forum of people using it with pictures of example tanks: http://www.plantedta...trate-i-do.html

Here is a substrate analysis and Cation Exchange Capacity (CEC) analysis by Jamie Johnson: http://www.thekrib.c...rate-jamie.html

And here is a photo of my tank:

024resize.jpg 209.18KB 2 downloads
http://gallery.nanfa...resize.jpg.html

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#3 Guest_EricaWieser_*

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Posted 05 January 2011 - 01:45 AM

Here's a photo documentation of my tank's transformation from mixed gravel and kitty litter to pure litter:

http://gallery.nanfa...before.jpg.html tank before
http://gallery.nanfa...mptied.jpg.html plants removed and half emptied
http://gallery.nanfa...gravel.jpg.html removing gravel
http://gallery.nanfa... empty.jpg.html tank empty
http://gallery.nanfa...litter.jpg.html special kitty brand litter
http://gallery.nanfa...y tank.jpg.html new substrate in empty tank
http://gallery.nanfa...filled.jpg.html tank half filled
http://gallery.nanfa...n tank.jpg.html plants and statues back in tank
http://gallery.nanfa...ttling.jpg.html settling
http://gallery.nanfa... after.jpg.html tank after
http://gallery.nanfa...w home.jpg.html female Elassoma gilberti enjoys new home

Total cost: 50 pounds of Walmart brand 'Special Kitty' litter = $6.34

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#4 Guest_decal_*

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Posted 05 January 2011 - 09:11 AM

Did you rinse the litter at all before you put in the aquarium? The Special Kitty down here in Houston is very dusty. I rinsed a small portion and am in the process of seeing how it affects our tap water parameters over time. I see scattered blue granules as well, which some identify on Google as a form of activated carbon. Do you see them in your litter as well, Erica?

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#5 Guest_nativeplanter_*

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Posted 05 January 2011 - 12:16 PM

If it has blue granules, it is probably the scented kind. You want unscented.

No need to rinse the litter. Just put your gravel on top of it.

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#6 Guest_EricaWieser_*

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Posted 05 January 2011 - 04:39 PM

Do you see them in your litter as well, Erica?

Close up of what my litter looks like:
http://gallery.nanfa...03_002.JPG.html
http://gallery.nanfa...er/004.JPG.html
It foamed a bit when combined with water, but I don't see any 'blue' particles.
I did see one little blue ball pellet thing in the entire tank after pouring it in, but I figured it was just a contamination from another batch of litter. I left it in there. *shrugs* (I'm a bad fishkeeper). I wouldn't have ignored it if I had seen multiple blue things.

I didn't rinse it at all. I tried that last time, when I was enriching my gravel with it to make half kitty litter, half gravel. (That's what my substrate was in the "before" picture of that montage). Rinsing it doesn't work because as you're washing away the smaller particles, you're breaking down the larger particles into medium and then small particles, and washing those away, too. So this time I didn't rinse it at all. Just poured it in my tank, arranged it in a slope, poured the water on it, and turned the filter on and let it settle/be filtered out. It took about half a day to get clear after filling the tank, and there was a fine dust on everything. The fish didn't mind. Now that it's in the bottom, it's pretty secure. There isn't a dust cloud explosion unless I make there be one, by digging in there on purpose.

Picture of happy fish, taken about five seconds ago: http://gallery.nanfa...er/006.JPG.html

Edited by EricaWieser, 05 January 2011 - 04:49 PM.

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#7 Guest_decal_*

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Posted 05 January 2011 - 06:29 PM

Thanks Erica, I love your pygmies. Down here Special Kitty has a lot of actual dust that can be discerned from small bits of clay while rinsing. I'm planning on trying filter sand mixed with rinsed litter as a cap over potting soil.

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#8 Guest_EricaWieser_*

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Posted 05 January 2011 - 09:49 PM

Sorry, multiple post accident. An administrator can feel free to delete this.

Edited by EricaWieser, 05 January 2011 - 09:53 PM.

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#9 Guest_EricaWieser_*

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Posted 05 January 2011 - 09:51 PM

Down here Special Kitty has a lot of actual dust that can be discerned from small bits of clay while rinsing. I'm planning on trying filter sand mixed with rinsed litter as a cap over potting soil.

Mine was dusty, too. I'm gonna place a bet on you getting frustrated with rinsing it. The rinsing process creates small particles at the same time it removes them, so it doesn't actually do anything.
It would be better if you had a good filter. With my filter running, the initial dustiness in the water from filling the tank was completely gone and crystal clear again in less than a day. A good sponge-like filter media will help you more than rinsing the litter ever would.

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#10 Guest_Elijah_*

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Posted 07 January 2011 - 12:53 PM

Thanks for all the responses.
The box I have say,' "100% all natural ingredients", but in the bottom left corner it also says, "Clean, fresh scent with long lasting odor control." I guess the blue grains must be the "odor control" which I am guessing is not okay for fish. It was the only special kitty available.

As far as rinsing goes, even the fine dusty particles in kitty litter are good for the plants, I would not rinse.
I generally do soil, kitty litter, and top off with sand. My tanks that were done like this have the best plant growth and less algae issues.

Edited by Elijah, 07 January 2011 - 01:07 PM.

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#11 Guest_EricaWieser_*

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Posted 07 January 2011 - 02:49 PM

I tested the tank with kitty litter and my tap water. Here are the results:
Tap water: pH 7.5, 6 degrees of hardness
Kitty litter tank water: pH 8.0, 17 degrees of hardness.

And I just read the small print on the pH test sheet I have been using for years, and on the very bottom in tiny print is says it's the saltwater one. So I've been thinking my water was 8.0 to 8.3 and really it's been 7.5 to 8.0. *headdesk*

Edited by EricaWieser, 07 January 2011 - 02:49 PM.

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#12 Guest_mikez_*

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Posted 07 January 2011 - 03:45 PM

many years ago I used some kitty litter which was red instead of grey. It was 100% natural clay and the color as well as the results I got suggested high iron content. This was before the internet and I figured it out on my own after accidently ripping open a bag in a pet store I worked at. At the time I just knew red clay substrate was very expensive when sold as aquarium supplies but red clay litter was cheap. Being profoundly cheap and a compulsive experimenter, I figured what the heck. Unfortunately I never wrote down the brand and tossed what I had when I broke down the tank. Since then the only clay litter I can find is white or grey.

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#13 Guest_decal_*

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Posted 07 January 2011 - 03:55 PM

Rinsing in a bucket is indeed a pain and nigh impossible, but rinsing with a colander works pretty well. I would not bother rinsing it if I were using it in the place of dirt, but my intention is to use it in a 1:1 mixture with filter sand as a cap over dirt. Basically I am trying to replicate what Todd Crail described in his ultimate native fish aquarium article with Special Kitty in the place of fluorite.

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#14 Guest_EricaWieser_*

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Posted 07 January 2011 - 06:05 PM

Rinsing in a bucket is indeed a pain and nigh impossible, but rinsing with a colander works pretty well. I would not bother rinsing it if I were using it in the place of dirt, but my intention is to use it in a 1:1 mixture with filter sand as a cap over dirt. Basically I am trying to replicate what Todd Crail described in his ultimate native fish aquarium article with Special Kitty in the place of fluorite.

Special kitty would do well in place of fluorite.
If you insist upon rinsing Special Kitty, I would recommend doing it outside with a garden hose instead of inside in a sink. A hefty portion of the litter would go down the sink (and clog it). And I'm telling you, rinsing does nothing. It looks the same before and after, except that you have less of it.

Edited by EricaWieser, 07 January 2011 - 06:07 PM.

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#15 Guest_EricaWieser_*

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Posted 21 April 2011 - 09:45 PM

I thought I'd post an update to this. Kitty litter is indeed a good substrate. The tank has grown in a lot since I first set it up on December 17th. I moved the Ceratophyllum demersum over a bit and gave room to the rooted plants that, with kitty litter, finally grew well. (I've wanted cabomba for years but it never grew in my gravel). So, here's two updated photos of it half and fully grown in:

March 1st:

tank half grown in.jpg 59.52KB 0 downloads
http://gallery.nanfa...ageViewsIndex=2

April 13th:

tank fully grown in.jpg 66.26KB 0 downloads
http://gallery.nanfa...ageViewsIndex=1

The Cabomba caroliniana and Myriophyllum aquaticum never grew that well for me in gravel. I tried cabomba twice in the past and both times it just melted away. With kitty litter, it's finally not only staying alive, it's loving its life.

Edited by EricaWieser, 21 April 2011 - 09:47 PM.

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#16 Guest_nativeplanter_*

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Posted 22 April 2011 - 11:46 AM

Whether kitty litter works well as a substrate depends on where the litter comes from. Even within a single brand, it can come from different sources and different regions of the country. I have seen data that shows some cat litter as having high phosphorus content. I have used litter in the past, but was not happy with the plant health. At that time I lived in Georgia. I have not tested cat litter in VA to see if it was any different.

It seems to be one of those "your milage may vary" things.

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#17 Guest_EricaWieser_*

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Posted 04 November 2011 - 11:45 AM

Whether kitty litter works well as a substrate depends on where the litter comes from.

That is true. I moved to North Carolina and my DH went from 17 DH using the kitty litter in Cleveland, Ohio, to 0 DH using the kitty litter in Winston-Salem, NC. The hardness really changes depending on where you bought it. This litter is also a beige white in color, while the litter I bought in Cleveland was a dark gray.

Here is a picture of the fish tank taken seconds after adding Special Kitty litter from North Carolina. I filled it with a sink-faucet-hose this time instead of buckets, so there was no initial cloudiness.
Picture: http://gallery.nanfa...ageViewsIndex=1

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#18 Guest_LincolnUMike_*

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Posted 04 November 2011 - 04:31 PM

MSDS can be useful in determining the ingredients of a product.

The different kinds of Special Kitty cat litter can be found by searching "Special Kitty" at this site:

http://msds.walmarts...ns/Default.aspx

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#19 Guest_EricaWieser_*

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Posted 04 November 2011 - 05:42 PM

MSDS can be useful in determining the ingredients of a product.

The different kinds of Special Kitty cat litter can be found by searching "Special Kitty" at this site:

http://msds.walmarts...ns/Default.aspx

Your link didn't work for me when I typed in "Special Kitty" made by Walmart. Also, the only ingredient is clay, so I think the MSDS would run something like, "No eye hazard, not combustible, no poison risk" etc.

Edited by EricaWieser, 04 November 2011 - 05:42 PM.

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#20 Guest_smilingfrog_*

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Posted 04 November 2011 - 11:49 PM

Your link didn't work for me when I typed in "Special Kitty" made by Walmart. Also, the only ingredient is clay, so I think the MSDS would run something like, "No eye hazard, not combustible, no poison risk" etc.

I was able to view the link, and a few different types came up. I looked at the "Special Kitty Natural" since it was unscented. Under components it said 7-12% quartz and 88-93% Fullers Earth.
On another note, it actually did list it as a potential eye hazard and mentioned that it contains crystalline silica which could cause silicosis. Though it also says that normal use of the product is not expected to lead to either of those.
edit: Out of curiosity I looked at the Special Kitty Premium (Fragrenced), and it had the same MSDS. No mention of what is used for fragrance.

Edited by smilingfrog, 05 November 2011 - 12:48 AM.