| Hints
& Tips
When collecting sand, collect more than you need for
display. Even if you don't plan to trade now, you may in the
future.
A spoon makes the ideal tool for collecting sand. It also
keeps your hands dry and clean. Clean it between samples to
avoid cross-contamination.
If you want to sieve your sand, professional geological sieves can
be expensive. Cheap alternatives are the sieves used by
Bonsai and cacti growers.
Double-bagging your samples in the field will help
contain spills from split bags or badly secured seals and
also help prevent wet samples from leaking.
A greenhouse or conservatory is an ideal place to dry your samples, at
least during the warmer months. Not only does it warm up
quickly but it protects fine samples from blowing away
in the wind.
Carry a mini collecting kit in your car, or anywhere else
for that matter, comprising
self-seal bags, spoon and labelling pen. Keep them all
together in a
small stuff sack. Useful at any time.
When out collecting, collect samples on the return
part of the journey. Saves a lot of effort in lugging
samples all the way back to the car. Use the outward part of
your walk to
plan what to collect.
Keep a general sand-collecting note book for jotting down details of likely
sand collecting locations spotted on your travels.
When collecting sand use a standard measure such as a
35mm film canister (about 30 ml capacity), to unsure you
get enough sand to fill your display containers with enough
left over for swaps, if required.
Different rock types and local geology produce different
types of sand. Get hold of some geological maps or guide
books and visit
likely areas.
A small brick-layers trowel is useful for cleaning up
exposures along riverbanks and in gravel pits prior to
gathering a clean sample. Also useful for working hard compacted exposures such as glacial till.
A good tip for collecting fresh samples in areas you've been
to before is after extreme weather such as storms and heavy
rain.
Different shades and types of sand do not always show up
well when dry. If you look when the sand is wet, it's
easiest to find different shades and colours.
When collecting at the coast don't just stick to the main
beach. From experience, I've found that even the smallest
inlet, rock pool or cove can produce different, even unique, samples of
sand. |
