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FAQ

How we choose our sands?
How much is shipping?

Shipping is $10. Everyone knows sand is heavy and we try to make it affordable. Every box - whether the 25 or 50 lb size - is just $10!

What should I do if my box of Jurassic Sand is leaking when the Postal Carrier delivers it?

Please, refuse it. The US Postal Service is required to return your damaged product at their expense. They will use the return address we put on the box and all you have is say "I refuse it due to the damage".

If you didn't have the opportunity to refuse the package when it is delivered, don't open it. Just put a note on it saying 'Refused, delivered damaged' and put by your mailbox for your Postal Carrier. If that doesn't work then:

  1. Take a picture of the damaged box and email it to sandman@jurassicsand.com with your name and phone number. 
  2. Once we receive your notification we can take the steps necessary to get you a replacement. Expect a call or email from Robin - she handles all customer service issues and will take care of you.
How long will it take to get my sand?

I'm writing this on July 9, 2020 and want to give a short note on what's going on with delivery times. My impetus for writing this was because of this email we got today from Shannon (a customer back East):

"The suspense is killing us :) If you had told me 5 years ago that I’d be sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for a pallet of play sand, I would have told you that you lost your mind."

So we ship by two methods - the US Postal Service (think of your mail carrier) and for large orders, by truck lines.

Both delivery services are starting to experience COVID-related disruptions. In the Postal Services case, they are experiencing package volume due to all the online ordering that are equal and sometimes exceed the Thanksgiving-Christmas Holiday period!

Pre-COVID the delivery time from the Postal Service was 2-3 days. Now it can be 5-7 days in locations that are seeing a surge in new cases. The worst hit areas sometimes ask you to come in and pick up your package because they can't keep up!

Large orders (1,000 lbs or more) go by trucks and they too are seeing delays that are greater than normal. What use to take 7 days is now 10-14 days.

My message is this: PLEASE plan ahead and take the 'new (hopefully temporary) normal' into consideration when ordering. While we typically get your order on its way by the next day, we have no control over what the Postal Service does.

Allow EXTRA lead time if you have a birthday or special event coming up. And remember what another customer said after they got out Jurassic Sand - "this sand is the best babysitter ever!"

This is our 28th year in business and we know the value of sand in helping child development and your mental health. Both are equally important during these trying times so order earlier than you think you need our sand and take a deep breath of patience while it's on its way.

And remember Shannon's famous line: "The suspense is killing us :) If you had told me 5 years ago that I’d be sitting on the edge of my seat waiting for a pallet of play sand, I would have told you that you lost your mind."

Jurassic Sand is valuable to the health of you and your children, and worth waiting for ...

The Jurassic Sandman & Robin

Is shipping really only $10 to Alaska and Hawaii?
Yes! Even on 25 and 50 pound boxes of all Jurassic Sands. If you get US Postal Service mail delivery, we ship there. Be sure to give us your PO Box number if that is where you get your mail delivery!
Why does my sand come in a white bag?

If we used ‘nicer’ packaging, it wouldn’t fit in the US Postal Service Priority shipping box. Then we would have to ship via UPS or FedEx which would increase your shipping cost by $30-$40 and take up to 7 business days to receive it (instead of the three days it takes now)!

We realize the bag isn't elegant but it was designed to not leak and stand up to the beating your box of Jurassic Sand gets during the shipping and handling process.

Do I have to order online?
Only if you want to since we do business both the old-fashioned way and on our secure ecommerce website.  Whether you prefer to speak to a real person (call Robin toll-free at 877-531-8600) to get your questions answered or use our easy website to place your order, it only takes a minute or two get our sand!

Be prepared if you call though - she brings her hound dogs to work and sometimes they start 'baying' when she's on the phone! Think of Daisy & Bella as customer service trainee's.

Daisy and Bella are Jurassic Sands Playful Hounds

How to clean your Jurassic Sand?

I can't resist using that famous line by poet Elizabeth Barrett Browning (who wrote in a collection of love sonnets):

"How do I love thee, let me count the ways."

That line captures two key elements about our Jurassic Sands:

- why Geologist Jerry loves our sand, and

- I'll list (count) the ways you can clean it!

In an essence, I love our Jurassic Sands because they CAN be easily cleaned. And that means you should never throw them away because with a little cleaning effort on your part, they can be made 'like new again'.

First we have to decide how clean you want your sand to be (and I'll describe the way in the next section on 'Let me count the ways').

There are four levels of 'clean' to considered and your choice depends on what you have available, if you have specific requirements (like from the health department, etc), and how much time and effort you want to put into it.

Here are the three levels:

- getting debris like rocks, twigs, leaves or broken up toys out of the sand

- sanitizing and disinfecting your sand

- sterilizing your sand

The main point I want to make right now is all Jurassic Sands (with the exception of KnotSand which is made from corncobs) are indestructible. Yes, I know you are saying WHAT? How can that be?

The answer is easy - if you remember I am a geologist and I specialize in finding the best sands Mother Nature can make. This is another way of saying that our sands are millions of years old and therefore can out-last anything you or your children can do to them!

All our sands (except KnotSand) are composed of pure crystals of quartz, garnets and other indestructible minerals.

Collectively, they have been through fires, volcanoes, flash floods, windstorms and other natural disasters like earthquakes.  For eons they have out-lasted these effects and I'm confident they can stand up to anything your 1 to 12 year-old child can subject them to!

Counting the Ways to Clean your Jurassic Sands:

1)  For debris in sandboxes, sand trays, sand tables and sensory bins:

This one is easy - get a kitchen strainer and sieve out the any contaminants like rocks, leaves and grass clippings. If you have a lot of sand you need to clean then here is The Jurassic Sandman's secret tip - get a large container like a Rubbermaid (or even a cardboard box) and place a window screen on top of the container and start pouring sand onto the screen. The holes are the perfect size to filter out virtually everything you don't want in the sand.

2) Sanitizing and Disinfecting your sand:

This can be done but requires more work on your part. First let's talk about what sanitizing and disinfecting is going to achieve. We frequently see labels on products like mouthwashes, hand sanitizing gels and sanitizing wipes that kill 99.9% of germs - that is classified as sanitizing. Disinfecting goes further and can kill up to 99.99% (or more) of germs.

Common products that can be used on sand include Lysol, Chlorox and hydrogen peroxide-based sprays. Heavily misting the surface of the sand will help somewhat but the reality is the best way to keep your sand clean is to wash your hands before touching the sand! 

You may be sick of hearing about hand washing but done properly, it can be as effective as all the cleaning products mentioned above especially in sand.

One final action that is easy to do - use the SUN to kill germs. If you have a sandbox, leave the lid off from 10 am to 2 pm- that's when the Sun's rays are strongest. The same UV rays that give you a sunburn are effective at killing germs too!

An alternate way to disinfect your sand that is very effective but involves more work is the bucket and bleach method. I recommend you do this outside and wear gloves and long-sleeve shirt:

- Fill a 5 gallon bucket halfway with water and add bleach at a ratio of 1 part bleach to 10 parts water (that's 1.5 cups of bleach to every gallon of water)

- Next, pour the sand that needs to be cleaned into the bucket of water and bleach and stir for a moment to insure good contact

- Let the sand soak for 15 minutes (don't worry - the sand crystal can't absorb any bleach water)

- Now rinse the bleach water out by placing a garden hose in the bottom of the bucket and turning on the water slowly. Let the water run over the sides of the bucket for about 3 to 5 minutes

- Once the sand in the pail has been thoroughly rinsed, pour off excess water and either return the wet sand to play box or spread the sand out on a sheet or tarp to drain and dry.  (if you put it directly in the sandbox/sand tray make sure to leave the cover off so it can dry out

3) Sterilizing your sand:

My preferred method is to bake the sand in the oven. Clean roasting pans work best because they hold 15 to 20 lbs of sand each and with 3 racks in your oven, you can process a lot of sand. Here are the steps to follow:

- Fill the pans with sand and place in the oven at 200 degrees F around 5 pm

- Bake at 200 degrees F until you go to bed (or at least 9 pm) which is when you turn the oven off

- Leave the sand in the oven overnight to cool down

The sand will still be warm by the next morning so handle with care!

I hope these suggestions help you keep your Jurassic Sands clean and fun to use for years to come.

Yours truly-

Geologist Jerry

The Jurassic Sandman 

Are there every any sales or coupons?

You bet! Usually we have coupons for $$$ off is when we introduce a new product and want to get it out there. That's one on the few times a year we send out an email.

Get on our mailing/contact list (you can sign-up at the bottom of this page) and we’ll see you get an email when we have a sale.

Do you share my email or personal info?

We never share your email address or shipping address with anyone!

If you get something from us, it's to announce a new product, a sale or something we think is important. Like better ways to use the sand, clean it, or an activity you can do.

What's silica sand and is it safe?

Let me tell you my credentials before I answer this one and why I’m telling you this. The Jurassic Sandman is Geologist Jerry Bergosh. I have been practicing geology and engineering for over forty years, and am a registered Professional Geologist in the State of Utah with an active license. My specialties in geology includes sedimentary rocks like sand and sandstone, analytical characterization of rock materials (I ran an independent analytical testing lab for years) on projects for the Department of Defense, Dept. of Energy, and the EPA as well as oil, gas, and mining companies. I am very familiar with the technical aspects of the research on the health and safety of silica and quartz sand. These include the government warnings (and studies) that many of us see on some bags of play sand, or if you live in California, on many of the everyday products that one uses in their lives.

We are occasionally asked if our sand contains silica or quartz (which it does) because some of our competitors use the government warning labels as proof that silica or quartz sand isn’t safe and carcinogenic. The bottom-line facts are these warnings are not meant for a child in a daycare or backyard sandbox or using sand and water table in school: it is intended for workers in industrial occupations like sandblasters, miners, shipbuilders, etc that are exposed to the 5 to 10 micron-sized particles of crystalline silica respirable dust in high concentrations, full-time (8 or more hours/day, 5 days/week) for 20 to 40 years and without any breathing protection devices.

To put it more in a real-life perspective and so you can compare, here are the sizes in microns of some common products: raw sugar = 600 microns, white table sugar or salt crystals = 350 to 450 microns, powdered sugar or a snowflake = 100 microns, a human hair = 70 to 80 microns, Original Jurassic PlaySand = 300 microns. Our Jurassic Sand are all-natural sands from the deserts of the US Southwest - Utah, Arizona, Nevada and New Mexico - and are not crushed or pulverized like other sands for sale because that creates dust. Jurassic Sands also comply with all tests required by the Consumer Product Safety Commission for heavy metals.

"We love your sand in our little kindergarten room...this year I have a child with a severe gluten allergy...is your original Jurassic Sand gluten free?"

Yes, all our sands are gluten free.

Here was a good aquarium sand question from Michelle D.:

I am wondering, could the purple garnet sand be used as a substrate in an aquarium meant for goldfish? It's really pretty and I'm sure it'd be stunning under lights. I don't believe there are any chemical reasons why garnets could not be used in a fish tank. Is it because of the likelihood of scratching the glass/acrylic because garnet is hard more abrasive than silica?

Please let me know what you think, and thanks.
Hi Michelle-

I love your observation about the Purple Pink Garnet being stunning under lights! I've told many people that the PPG is my favorite sand color when it is wet - it just has such a rich, deep purple color.

Now as far as the technical side of your questions:
The garnet won't react since it is chemically inert in water so no problem there. As far as the abrasive part and your aquarium glass/acrylic, that might be a problem. I say 'might' because it is a function on how much agitation you expect to do of the substrate.
The geological hardness scale says garnet has a hardness of 6.5 to 7.5. Glass ranges from 4.5 to 6.5 depending on the type of glass you have so garnet is harder and therefore can scratch glass. (In geology class one of the first things we learned were diamonds were the hardest at 10 and quartz (silica) is a 7).

I would imagine that if you are not stirring the PPG in the tank with your hand then scratching has less of a chance of occurring. That said, you also mentioned acrylic which I know is much softer and therefore more likely to easily scratch so that would require caution.

I wish I could be more definitive but it's just too close a call. Let us know if you decide to try it and how it worked.

Best regards-
Jerry Bergosh
Chief Geologist

Does your play sand contain Silica?
Here’s an email I received recently that really captured the essence of the issue if play sand is safe. My response to Amanda from Connecticut is long but worth reading if you want the facts – thanks The Jurassic Sandman
From: Amanda Date: Mon, April 09, 2018 10:00 pm
To: sandman@jurassicsand.com
Hi there, Does your sands contain crystalline silica, asbestos or tremolite? Or any other potentially harmful materials that I have no clue about? Thank you.
Sincerely, I just wanted to get my kid a sandbox for her birthday. Now it’s complicated.
On Apr 10, 2018, at 11:30 PM, sandman@jurassicsand.com
Hi Amanda- This is Geologist Jerry, owner of Jurassic Play Sands. Thank you for the inquiry and questions. This is a very technical issue and one I am extremely familiar with. I will do my best to answer your questions. And I can understand your frustration when you said, "Now it's complicated". Let me assure you it isn't complicated but that is the Geologist in me that ran an analytical laboratory for years and must understand, and comply with government regulations as well as much of the misinformation that is out there.
First, I'll answer your questions directly. Yes, most of our sands (and most sands sold in home improvement and big box stores) have crystalline silica in them because they contain quartz sand grains (which is the common name for crystalline silica). These are the same quartz grains found on 99.9% of the ocean, lakes and stream beaches in the US. And no, none of our sands contain asbestos, tremolite or any other harmful materials! Now I would like to shed some light on the more accurate facts concerning crystalline silica because much of all the 'information' out there is re-reported by people without a clear understanding of the facts.
Additionally, some manufacturers of alternative play sand materials often refer to cancer warnings on bags or cite California Prop 65 warnings in an effort to raise concern but don’t bother to describe why the warning or who it is intended for.
Fact 1: It is not the crystalline silica that is the concern of OHSA or the California Prop 65 legislation. It is the 'respirable' portion of that material – the tiniest of particles that can get deep into your lungs. These are generally created when sand is crushed or pulverized or used in sand-blasting operations. It is these processes that create the respirable dust of concern. Most of our Jurassic Sands come from US deserts (or mountain ranges) where Mother Nature makes our sands nearly perfectly pure and they aren’t crushed or pulverized.
Fact 2: These warnings are for industrial workers who have extended periods of exposure every day, 8 hours/day for 20-40 years. That's what the epidemiological studies have determined. The US Consumer Product Safety Commission (US CPSC) has looked at the issue of crystalline silica and respirable silica, and decided it was not a hazard to children using play sand in a sandbox.
Fact 3: Makers of alternative play sand material such as feldspar, marble and limestone don't bother to explain this because they rely on people not digging deep enough to understand the what the warnings are for. And I'm only aware of one manufacturer that actually discloses their play sand contains nuisance dust. Nuisance dust occurs because the process they use to manufacture the sand makes dust, and dust is one of the worst triggers of asthma and allergies. I realize this is an exceptionally long email but the geologist in me wants families that want to have a sandbox to have all the facts. Your questions are valid and I too share your frustration that ‘all you wanted to do was get her a sandbox for her birthday’. It is a combination of the misinformation and lack of understanding on the web that seems to make it complicated when it isn't!
Playing in the sand is one of the most valuable developmentally-appropriate activities a child can do. The US CPSC even publishes a product age-rating chart and play sand is recommended for children 12 months and older. The Toy Industry Association (the trade group that monitors toy safety) says 6 months and many early childhood professionals recognize the age when an infant can sit up as an acceptable minimum age to use sand. This government agency and trade association wouldn't make these recommendations if there was a concern to children.
Yours truly- Geologist Jerry Bergosh aka The Jurassic Sandman Licensed Professional Geologist, State of Utah #5554339
PS: This is our 27th year selling the best play sand Mother Nature can make. We are just the geologists that find it and are a small company that prides itself in quality and facts. Please feel free to let me know if you have more questions.