# Whats a good substrate ?



## jasonak (Oct 5, 2010)

Hi
New to the site and to having a planted tank.Ive had java moss and ferns in other fresh water tanks but not as haeavily planted as the tanks on here.Im setting up a 120 and was wondering what is a good substrate to use ? If anyone could give me some ideas or point me in the right direction I would appreciate it.
thanks


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## ReefkprZ (Aug 21, 2010)

depends on your budget and goal for the tank. some of the most popular substrates are (in no particular order): mineralized top soil, eco-complete, ada aquasoil II, ada aqua soil, pool filter sand, flourite, and more.

I myself have a mixed bed of topsoil, clay, laterite, playsand and eco complete.


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## rickztahone (Jul 20, 2009)

Mineralized top soil seems to be pretty popular. Search for those key words and there is plenty of info on it


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## kamikazi (Sep 3, 2010)

I got Floramax from petsmart just b/c there aren't any stores that carry Eco-Complete which was my first choice.


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## stauchistory (Sep 29, 2010)

Are there any substrates that should be avoided?


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## kamikazi (Sep 3, 2010)

those flat glass marbles that places sell aren't very good


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## jasonak (Oct 5, 2010)

Hi
thank you all for taking the time to reply.Ill try to remerber to stay away from the marbles 
Id like to have a tanks looking similiar to the members named yasmut or ingg thats what im shooting for.I dont want to use CO2 maybe at the begining to get the plants up but not a contiuous thing,just dont want to get it to complicated.Right now ive got a 180 reef which im a little burnt on as its pretty touchy and requires alot time.Budgets not a huge factor but it is a factor im not sure what this stuff cost either though


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## DANIELSON (Jul 15, 2010)

I personally like the ADA aquasoil II. Looking at growth i see a big difference in roots between my flourite and some other tanks with aquasoil. Its easy to use just a little on the pricey side expecially for the 120G tank.


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## jasonak (Oct 5, 2010)

cant find aqua soil did find eco complete also couldnt find the 3m quartz that they were talking about in the mineralised post,found somthign called flormax im looking on petcos website as they have one here and i can probably get it shipped here.Foster didnt have anythign for fresh water that I could find.
thanks agian for you replies


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## offpath (Jan 18, 2009)

jasonak said:


> cant find aqua soil did find eco complete also couldnt find the 3m quartz that they were talking about in the mineralised post,found somthign called flormax im looking on petcos website as they have one here and i can probably get it shipped here.Foster didnt have anythign for fresh water that I could find.
> thanks agian for you replies


3m colorquartz was technically discontinued, though I hear they really just sold it off to another company and now it's called "spectraquartz". It's good stuff, and I've got it in several tanks, but I find even the T-grade is a little too small grained for my taste. When I stir up my mineralized topsoil by replanting, I find it doesn't always settle back in through the colorquartz too well. 

Personally, I've found that turface works better in this regard, but it's hard to find the grey color (discontinued...), and I'm not a big fan of the other two colors. It will also pick up some of things you fertilize your tank with and make them available to plant roots (it has high CEC), which is something colorquartz won't do. YMMV.


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Jun 15, 2008)

Hi jasonak,

I see you are a newer member, welcome to TPT!

offpath is correct, substrates with high CEC values (Heat Treated Montmorillonite Clay Products) are great for aquatic plants. I have used:

Turface Pro League Grey (discontinued)









Soilmaster Select Charcoal (discontinued)









I have heard that the aquariumplants.com substate (black) is very similar to Soilmaster Select Charcoal.

BTW, if you get to Seattle on the second Tuesday of the month (except July or Aug.) visit a GSAS meeting! Or join and be a virtual member....video library lecture titles available to members via Bitorrent download include Tom Barr, Karen Randall, Ad Konings, Ghazanfar Ghori, and Luis Navarro.


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## jasonak (Oct 5, 2010)

Nice tanks Seattle aquarist
thanks for the greetings.
Im curious can I achive good growth using flormax or eco complete ? Not sure about the mineralised stuff as being up here in alaska I dont have acesss to alot of the stuff and shipping is outrageous to here.
thanks again


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## ReefkprZ (Aug 21, 2010)

jasonak said:


> Im curious can I achive good growth using flormax or eco complete ?


 definitely. (I would lean towards the eco-complete over the flormax, but thats just because I am more familiar with it)


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## jasonak (Oct 5, 2010)

Hi
Thanks again for everyones replies
Im goign to go with the ecocomplete as this is my first tank and I want to keep it kinda simple.
How much would I need for a standard 120 ? also do you put gravel on top ? and do you cover the whole bottom of the tank or just certain spots I saw this post he had it divided for som reason.

http://www.aquascapingworld.com/forum/aquascaping-showcase/104-after-rain.html

thanks again


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## ReefkprZ (Aug 21, 2010)

you dont have to cap ecocomplete, uneless you dont like the way it looks then you can cover it if you would like. I would cover the whole bottom of the tank. 3-4 inches deep, it will settle a bit after a while so 4 inches will compact a bit down to 3 etc. I'm not sure how many bags you would need in my 125 I did a mix of a bunch of stuff. including ecocomplete.


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## kamikazi (Sep 3, 2010)

I got floramax for my 29, I can't report on how it does yet b/c I haven't set the tank up yet.


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## Seattle_Aquarist (Jun 15, 2008)

Hi jasonak,

Here is a handly substrate calculator that may give you an idea as to how much to purchase.


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## sepehr (Oct 6, 2010)

From my own experience it has been the Red Sea Flora Base.


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## herns (May 6, 2008)

I have Fluorite Red substrate which is really big and it's not easy when planting stem plants like Rotalas. I want to add a layer on top of Fluorite red just to make it more compact and to make it easier when planting stem plants.

Is there any good substrate at a moderate price I can get?


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## willknowitall (Oct 3, 2010)

regular fluorite is red but smaller and would match color


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## herns (May 6, 2008)

willknowitall said:


> regular fluorite is red but smaller and would match color



Have you got product link?


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## gringostar9 (Oct 11, 2010)

kamikazi said:


> those flat glass marbles that places sell aren't very good


HAHA best answer to any question i have read in the forums.


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