# Post Your Topsoil Full Tank Shots



## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

I would like to see some pics of members who have the mineralized topsoil for their substrate. 

Give a small list of what plants you have and what luck you have had with them. 

Get to shooting those pics and posting them!

I will go get some pics of my own


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## eyebeatbadgers (Aug 6, 2007)

This was a fun setup. I grew some dwarf hairgrass, downoi, bacopa monneri, blyxa japonica, Taiwan moss, java fern, and whatever the dwarf chain plant was in the middle. I had good luck with all the plants, not that there is too much luck in this hobby


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## suebe333 (Feb 17, 2009)

WOW ,, mine is too new yet ... I just got some plants in today as a matter of fact


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## jaidexl (Sep 18, 2006)

Nice little tank! Those chain swords really can make decent center pieces when they get wild, I had some reach 12".


Anyone have shots of open soil, so we can see the color and texture?


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## Green Leaf Aquariums (Feb 26, 2007)

This picture is old, but it was an fun experiment using soil.


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## NeonFlux (Apr 10, 2008)

10 gallon MS, Ember tetra tank. Full of fast growing plants, mayaca, hygros, stargrass, etc


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

Neon... if you posted a picture with it I can't see it.


Orlando.. you make me sick...


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## ingg (Jan 18, 2007)

50g breeder, 4x39 TEK, CO2.

Eleocharis sp, HC, anubias nana petite, java ferns, rotala macrandra, couple of crypts. Growing out some rotala Araguaia and Goias in it currently, both doing great.









75g, 4x54 T5, CO2.

Too many plants to list, it is a collectoritis tank.


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

ingg.. that macrandra looks awesome! great scaping too.
where are the Araguaia and Goias in the first picture?


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## jaidexl (Sep 18, 2006)

Holy trim job, Orlando! 

Ingg, that's a sweet collection, too.


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## Green Leaf Aquariums (Feb 26, 2007)

jaidexl said:


> Holy trim job, Orlando!
> 
> Ingg, that's a sweet collection, too.



Lol!!!  Yeah, it makes for a great farm/holding tank..

-O


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## jaidexl (Sep 18, 2006)

NeonFlux said:


> 10 gallon MS, Ember tetra tank. Full of fast growing plants, mayaca, hygros, stargrass, etc


Dead img


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## CL (Mar 13, 2008)

jaidexl said:


> Dead img


It works for me


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

Neon.. you tank looks great from 2500 miles away :hihi:


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## jaidexl (Sep 18, 2006)

clwatkins10 said:


> It works for me


Weird, The url takes me a to 1 x 1 pixel gif


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## Minsc (Jul 9, 2006)

Great tanks! 

EBB, Ingg, Orlando: For these tanks, were you using any supplemental dosing, or just the soil?

edit: I'm also curious about water changes, gimmee more info!

-pondering dropping EI like a bad habit Minsc


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## Green Leaf Aquariums (Feb 26, 2007)

Just mother natures sweet goodness


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## NeonFlux (Apr 10, 2008)

Torpedobarb said:


> Neon... if you posted a picture with it I can't see it.
> 
> 
> Orlando.. you make me sick...



I fixed it, Torpedo. Can you see it now?


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

Yep! Nice.. I like the mixture of plants.


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

there is mine.. no laughing. it isn't what some of you have.. but I am working on it. I am actually getting ready to switch over to 3m colorquartz sand in the next few weeks.

I am still having some trouble with brown algae on leaves.. the kind that rubs off easily. The P stellatus broad leaf on the left needs a trim and there is some A reneckii floating to the left, sorry


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## esteroali (Oct 24, 2007)

*NPT now just soil based...*

This is not true mineralized soil...kind of half way done. I started this as a NPT but now is I suppose just a soil based tank. No CO2, no ferts, no surface plants but I do have filtration and good light.


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## ingg (Jan 18, 2007)

I only supplement traces of potassium.

20-30% water changes every other week or so, top off in between. This is the single biggest plus of mineralized soil tanks for me - I don't get algae blooms by missing a dosing schedule or required huge water change, as there aren't any.

Tiny sections of Araguaia and Goias in that first pic. The Araguaia is the tall thin stems you see on left side (only 2 stems, and it is a small rotala). Goias is dead center, it creeps on the substrate so is hiding in/just behind the HC carpet.


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## Coltonorr (Mar 12, 2008)

Just over 2 weeks old so I packed it with plants...I don't think I can list them all but here are a few.
L. glandulosa
L. inclinata var. 'cuba'
B. japonica
R. wallachii
R. verticularis
R. colorata, green, indica
L. aquatica
L. aromatica
HC
P. stellatus broad and narrow
Thats all I can remember...


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

the tank looks great coltonorr! I would love to see it when it is filled in.


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

come on.. I know their are more of you out there!


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## JDowns (Mar 6, 2008)

Why would anyone get an algae bloom due to missing a dosing schedule?

Why is it that water changes are seen as an export of the nutrients we dose only. I wouldn't think this is overly complicated. If you want to do less water changes dose less. That way any "buildup" is extended. Better yet use less light and have less demand for nutrients.

I see the biggest plus of a mineralized soil whether it be ADA, soil, wc, etc, would be that if you do miss a dosing schedule you have a backup in the soil. Now you have nutrients in both locations. Attributing algae to either/or should be a myth that should be dead by now.


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## zenfish (Jan 29, 2006)

I am curious..For those of you doing minerlaized soil as opposed to dosing the WC,are you seeing more or less "ROOT" growth from the stem's of the stem plants,or the same?

Kevin


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

:thumbsup: pics


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## ingg (Jan 18, 2007)

JDowns said:


> Why would anyone get an algae bloom due to missing a dosing schedule?
> 
> Why is it that water changes are seen as an export of the nutrients we dose only. I wouldn't think this is overly complicated. If you want to do less water changes dose less. That way any "buildup" is extended. Better yet use less light and have less demand for nutrients.
> 
> I see the biggest plus of a mineralized soil whether it be ADA, soil, wc, etc, would be that if you do miss a dosing schedule you have a backup in the soil. Now you have nutrients in both locations. Attributing algae to either/or should be a myth that should be dead by now.


Algae is caused by the imbalance of nutrients in a system. That's no myth. I'd be very interested in a pm of any sites that attempt to debunk it, though, as any and every algae ID and source guide I have ever read relates them to nutrient imbalances - as does my personal and horrid experience with attempting EI dosing (I'm pretty consistent for messing up the schedule, life intrudes).


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

Here's mine. Just getting things going so there's not too much to stare at but it's there.


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## lizziotti (Mar 8, 2008)

This is a great thread I'm putting MS in this week (thanks Torpedobarb!) so this is great motivation so I don't get lazy and change my mind. I'll have pics soon.

Orlando you love your photoshop don't ya! :icon_lol: But seriously great tank!


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## Coltonorr (Mar 12, 2008)

jargonchipmunk said:


> Here's mine. Just getting things going so there's not too much to stare at but it's there.


Nice! can't wait to see that fill in!
What are you using as a foreground?


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

that's UG. I have some Downoi in the very front center rock grouping and a bit on the sides, but the rest is UG.

the journal is in the link below 

*by the way I bought my mineralized soil from torpedobarb, so if the tank does well you can partially blame him! (if it does horribly, you can totally blame him haha)


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## Homer_Simpson (May 10, 2007)

jargonchipmunk said:


> ...*by the way I bought my mineralized soil from torpedobarb, *so if the tank does well you can partially blame him! (if it does horribly, you can totally blame him haha)*


That is frakken hilarious  Although I shouldn't laugh as the soil that I end up mineralizing could end up bombing on me too


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## jargonchipmunk (Dec 8, 2008)

well the stuff I got from him is doing very well so far. The ONLY algae I've seen to date was a bit of dust algae on the glass and rocks, and the otos are chomping that up. I added 5 of them and in two days the brown rocks are almost back to their original color! I haven't seen ANY of the types I would consider "nuisance" algaes. (bba, hair, etc) I think I might have seen a couple strands of thread algae. I wouldn't really consider that one a nuisance in my experience as it's easily removed, but I only saw a couple strands (if that's what it was) and I didn't even remove them. I think the Amano shrimp might have made a meal out of them.


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## jjungle78 (Mar 23, 2009)

Wow so even cheap dirt is fine.


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## Chavez (Sep 9, 2003)

Wanted to try my hand at this after reading the Mineralized Top Soil Thread in this forum. 

*Tank -* 10g, 40 CF Lamp 10K/67K, Injected CO2 with diffsor.
*Plants - *R. macrandra, R. mini II, Ammania sp. Bonsai, T. fluviatilis, Antraxon sp., L. sp. 'Guniea', B. Japonica, E. tiandra, M. tennullus, some other stuff??? (My one and only tank so I wanted to challenge myself)

Got the Clay and Potash from Torpedobarb
All plants from Swap n Shop
You could say I did this tank via PT.net!








*
* 
Got green water for the first few weeks, but it has gone away overnight!
Tank is about 3-4wks old


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

jargonchipmunk said:


> that's ug. I have some downoi in the very front center rock grouping and a bit on the sides, but the rest is ug.
> 
> The journal is in the link below
> 
> *by the way i bought my mineralized soil from torpedobarb, so if the tank does well you can partially blame him! (if it does horribly, you can totally blame him haha)


lmao!


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## TheCryptKeeper (Mar 9, 2008)

I am glad to see that I am helping people out with doing this.. that is my main goal.


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## sewingalot (Oct 12, 2008)

I am totally wanting to try this now.


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