BLUE TONGUE SKINKS

So im considering using sand as bedding. I have fine oceansand in mind. Can i use that??

yes,or no...depending on what kind of blue tongue,and what kind of sand...
and yes...the aspen is better...

I strongly recommend that you stay away from sand as substrate. There is a high risk of impaction (blockage of the digestive tract) if your lizard were to accidentally ingest a large amount of sand over time. Pick a different substrate such as shaved aspen, carefresh, or cypress mulch.

Ok

ive used sand,never had impaction issues ,had them mate on sand right through to having babies on sand and again no issues,only negatives i found with sand is its heavy and labour intensive to clean,a posative is it keeps there nails in check,id prefer a bit of sand going through digestive tract rather than cypress,aspen ,carefresh or other bark type substrates

What type of skink do you have first off, if you have a Merauke or an indo you defiantly won't want sand

I wouldn't use sand for any species, especially inside. If there happens to be some sand content in the soil in an outdoor pen, its not the end of the world, but I wouldn't use it intentionally and I would make sure my skink is eating off of a plate, tray or bowl to minimize any accidental sand ingestion.

i used to feed my northerns kept on sand on a plate,they used to push food off plate on to sand,dry washed playsand,over wuite a few years,never had impaction issues,babies ate eggsacs in it,and even raised a few on it,again never had impactions,males everted hemipenes in it dropping sperm plugs,and dragged engorged hemipenes through it,again no impactions or hemipene infections,sand isnt as bad as most make it out to be,and alot of blueys,even non desert types live in it in nature,including indos that live along coastlines

I would say no as it holds no humidity and the risk of sand impaction is high.

I don't think there is any evidence that risk of impaction is high but it does present a hygene problem because blueys excrete s large amount of fluid and invariably people attempt to clean it rather than replace it like other substrates , there are better options.

I despise sand. Not just for the possible impaction issues, but it's heavy, dusty and smelly. It can be useful when added to other substrates (my new substrate is coco-fiber with some soil & sand mixed in to bulk it up), but overall I find it a nasty substrate for almost all animals. If you do use sand, I've heard that children's playsand is the best option - many of the reptile-specific types are actually far more dangerous than regular sand.