# Miracle gro organic choice - fish safe?



## Seattle_Aquarist (Jun 15, 2008)

Hi schebbles,

You don't want to 'mix' the two; all you will end up with is a muddy mess. 

What I believe you want to do is put down 1/2" (or less) of MGOPM (Miracle-Gro Organic Potting Mix) and top it with a couple inches (preferably more) of another substrate material like your Eco Complete.


----------



## schnebbles (Jan 10, 2015)

ok, yes, after reading a little more I would layer it like that. I guess it's safe since I see it used a lot.

Thanks!


----------



## Raymond S. (Dec 29, 2012)

But it needs to be allowed to become stable. Dirt in tanks often releases ammonia.
You need an ammonia test kit to do test on it till it stops creating this ammonia
before you put fish in.


----------



## kman (Dec 11, 2013)

Raymond S. said:


> But it needs to be allowed to become stable. Dirt in tanks often releases ammonia.
> You need an ammonia test kit to do test on it till it stops creating this ammonia
> before you put fish in.


^^ THIS.

MGOC is great for a dirted tank, and your plants will love it, but until it's stable, it offgases and releases ammonia, in amounts very likely kill your fish. It takes a couple of weeks, I believe (with regular poking to release built-up gases!), before it's stable enough to think about adding fish.


----------



## lochaber (Jan 23, 2012)

I've used the potting mix (MGOCPM) with pretty good results in a couple different tanks. Up to about 2". I never noticed any ammonia spikes or serious bubble/gas generation, but I also did a fishless cycle, so it's possible there was a really small amount.


----------



## HybridHerp (May 24, 2012)

Also, idk if I'd like eco complete as a cap. It's just a light substrate that's a little on the largish size.


----------



## kman (Dec 11, 2013)

HybridHerp said:


> Also, idk if I'd like eco complete as a cap. It's just a light substrate that's a little on the largish size.


Some people like it, others don't. I use it in one of my tanks, mostly because I haven't gotten around to tearing down the tank and rescaping it from scratch. There are plants that love it, and others that don't. It's lighter weight than I like, so it kicks up easily, and it's big, so it's tough to get plants with fine root systems to root securely, but plants with robust roots really love digging into it. 

BUT in the end, it does it's job reasonably well, and should work fine as a cap over soil.


----------



## schnebbles (Jan 10, 2015)

Well, I've managed to overwhelm myself with too much reading.

I think I'm going to to a big tank (husband wants one) so...I have the 20# of eco-chem - want to use it and now I need something black to mix it with.

Petsmart has some national geographic sand - good ratings- and fairly cheap.

http://www.petsmart.com/fish/gravel-sand/national-geographic-trade-aquarium-sand-zid36-21320/cat-36-catid-300072?var_id=36-21320&_t=pfm%3Dcategory

or, Flourite, or Caribsea Instant Aquarium Tahitan moon & reef sand

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/prod_display.cfm?c=3578+9805+21432&pcatid=21432

Dirt with one of these as cap. OR the black diamond sand from TSC - so confused!


----------



## kman (Dec 11, 2013)

Black diamond blasting sand is a really popular cap for dirted tank. Super cheap, too. I wish there was a place near me that carried it!


----------



## Aplomado (Feb 20, 2013)

It has peat in it and can lower ph a lot. That's why I won't use it. Depends on what fish you want, I guess.


----------



## aaronbear (Mar 17, 2013)

You might want to look up how to mineralized top soil. I use MGOCPM in my tank capped with eco complete and I have lush growth with minimal algae and no additional fert dosing required. I mineralized mine first which took about a week but once I put it in the tank it was already stable and ready to go.


----------



## schnebbles (Jan 10, 2015)

hmm, don't know what kinds of fish we want. We tend to go for different kinds. I like tetras, he likes everything else, lol! Cichlids are pretty but I'm not thinking bettas and them go well together. Same with Angelfish

I'm also going to need a master test kit I guess. I've had fish many times but never stressed myself out like this, ha!


----------



## kman (Dec 11, 2013)

Bettas and tetras can handle anything remotely normal, as far as pH. Not sure about cichlids and angels. As to lowering pH, how much of a problem that is depends on your tap water's natural pH. My tap's pH is relatively high, so lowering pH would actually be pretty nice for me. I've seen some pH that are off the charts alkaline. So yes, get a kit and measure your tap, so you know your starting point.


----------



## Aplomado (Feb 20, 2013)

Our pH is about 8, and it lowered it to about 6 in a fish bowl.


----------



## kman (Dec 11, 2013)

Aplomado said:


> Our pH is about 8, and it lowered it to about 6 in a fish bowl.


You have to measure tap water pH after it has had a day or two to "rest" to get the true reading. Or do you mean the MG soil in your bowl lowered it?


----------



## schnebbles (Jan 10, 2015)

I got a kit last night so I'll do that. I am going to just use my eco-complete and floramax.


----------

