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best sand for sand casting

14 years ago

I have been using river sand for a long time and thought there was no difference till I went to a demo where the sand really packed well. So we bought play ground sand. It was better but not as good. I have asked for an ID on what was used at the demo but no answer. I do know it was a Quickrete product. I thought someone on Garden Web would know. Please Help. Marie

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Comments (6)

bard34
14 years ago
I have used a sand that is not as uniform, and not overly well rounded or worked. If the individual grains have edges to them this allows the sand to catch and grip better, increasing the angle of repose. I use sharp or builders sand a lot, I have also cheated and added a little clay for adhesion. But I never do any fine detail sand casting....

If you looking for just the ability to get a dense packed surface - then smaller rounded grains might work better.

But if it's quikrete it will be here
http://www.quikrete.com/ProductLines/Alphabetical.asp

Commercial grade fine sand ? I've seen it at masonry supply shop but not at HD or Lowes- sort of a specialty item.
gardengalkc
Original Author
14 years ago
Bard, the sand that was used was not smooth grained. Actually I think it was the opposite with grains of different sizes. I think the sand grains tend to lock onto each other when they are different sizes and different angels. If I ever find out, I will put it out on the web. Thanks for your input. Marie
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Man,that was close,I had my thumb on the flint. Where is Don when we need him?? he is a guy that comes over here every so often that lives in S America,anyway inside floor finish 101, controled inviroment, install the T&G material sand it flat and smooth, some of the sawdust will get in the small space between the flooring the old Carpenters wanted this but latley they have vack systems hooked up,anyway the idea is to have a seamless look, clean up all the dust put on a few coats of urethane inbetween light sanding,allow plenty of time for each coat to dry in a dust free area.Outside finish 101,non controled inviroment, temp change sun,rain,hail,snow things like that. It dosent matter if the project has a roof over it its still outside exposed to weather changes,rain,cold,hot, sun this works on the finish up and down and will shatter a urethane finish,like breaking glass only on your deck the chards will be glued to your deck and will be all but impossible to get off.The finish has to move with the weather. So how do they do it in S America??? thats why I was hopeing Don was around,anyway I am thinking they do it with a hand rubbed finish,that is they are building coats with a product that sticks to the wood and to itself over time they build a finish that will hold up,actually bonding it to the wood like burnished leather,burning it in with a lot of labor. And of course its not a one time thing,them Boys are working it every now and then so you Folks will come back and have a drink with them again. Then there is the drainage thing,water is going to get thru that floor,it dosent matter how little that might be,it has no place to go so it finds a home in the ipe, the ipe being its own freindly self,swells up to make room for more and KaBongo your floor is buckled. Its not the ipe guys fault he was just being freindly,its your fault for not providing drainage and cloging what drain there was with sawdust and urethane. So how would you do it?? John you ol smarty pants! crawler thu glass know it all!!!We might want to start another topic for this,its time for my pain meds. J
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neshane
14 years ago
The sand I use is from Menards,it is contractor's white fine sand. And I use cortland cement and it makes nice smooth leaves.
billie_ann
14 years ago
gardengal, I didn't know that Quikrete made a casting sand and I don't see one on their web site. You can always contact Quikrete. Maybe the person was just using the bag that their Quikrete sand came in to carry their casting sand mix. Maybe if you look at Quikrete's web site you'll recognize the bag. I've just used builders sand. It's a coarse, angular sand.

neshane, The original poster is talking about the sand that's use in a casting mold, not making cast leaves. You use a frame to contain the damp sand, tamp it then push the piece you want to make a copy of into the sand or carve a shape in the tamped sand by hand. Then you put your cement mix into the cavity and let it setup. Billie
wannadanc
14 years ago
Last time I needed sand, I had a 10 yard load dumped in my work area. No cats used it - as it was (and still is) covered w/ blue tarp and held down w/ rebar pieces pushed through the edge holes. I had it delivered by a bark/garden type of place.
Belgianpup
14 years ago
The sand you're looking for is probably White Silica Sand, and that's the name professionals know it by. If you go to a good building materials place (not the box stores), or a place that sells concrete components, they should have it in several different sized grits. They often have small containers on their counter so you can specify which size you want.

The beauty of this stuff is that it is all sifted into the same-sized grains, so it works smoothly with concrete. You can smear it with your hands and get a really nice finish, no larger chunks pulling grooves in your surface.

Sue

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