Substrate For The Planted Tank–Frequently Asked Questions
Open AllClose All- 1. What is substrate? I have gravel do I need some special substrate?
- Substrate is the stuff at the bottom of your tank. Sand, gravel, marbles, clown puke or what have you.
- 2. What's “Clown Puke”?
- Clown puke is the multicolored (bright and/or fluorscent colors not normally found in natural setting. Think dayglo pink and blue mixed together) coated gravel that some people use in their tanks. If you want to use it then feel free to do so. Most of us will politely laugh behind your back.
- 3. Do I need some kind of fancy substrate to grow plants?
- Nope. Plain old uncoated inert gravel in the 1-3 mm size range will work just fine. I do however suggest that if you are just starting a tank that you place a thin layer of ground peat moss (the stuff that comes in compressed bales at the hardware store or garden center and has no added fertilizers) down first. You should still be able to see most of the glass. And if you have it 1 ounce of laterite per gallon of water will help also. And the best thing is if you can get some mulm (the stuff you vacuum out of the gravel) from an established tank. Put some of that under your gravel and your plants will be very happy. Be careful with what you use. Many gravels and sands can contain minerals that can effect water chemistry. To test ake a dry washed sample of the sand or substrate in question and pour some muratic (hydorcloric) acid over it. If it smokes/bubbles/fizzes then avoid it.
- 4. Of I have a fancy substrate do I need to fertilize my plants?
- If you have nice shoes do you still get hungry? While many of the specialty substrates have high levels of minerals they are very lacking in macro nutrients (see the fertilizer FAQ). So of course you still need to feed your plants.
- 5. What's the best substrate?
- What ever you can afford and looks good to your eyes. I have used Seachem Flourite, a mix of Flourite and fine gravel, CaribSea Eco-Complete, Seachem Onyx Sand, and plain old gravel in my planted tanks. They all work well. A newer substrate that is gaining a lot of attention is the ADA Aqua Soil. There are also other substrates that people use like Profile, Turface and Soilmaster Select. One thing I would advise is that if this is your first planted tank that you steer clear of using dirt, potting soil or kitty litter. Some people have had success with those three. But many more people have had abject failures.
- 6. How much substrate do I need?
- Most people run 2-4” of depth. If you want to know how many bags or pounds of some of the more common substrates you need then go here.
- 7. Can I use sand?
- That depends. Sand means a lot of different things to diffent people. Some people try and use Marine or Reef sand because they want the white color. This leads to two big problems. One is that these types of sand can really mess with your water chemistry. The other is that white sand looks really good till you put fish and plants in the tank. Then it shows everything that lands on it. And planted tanks can be messy tanks. Also in some areas of the country the commonly available sand is quite fine or can contain minerals that will mess with water chemistry. For size try and stick with something like this. As for the water chemistry. Take a dry washed sample of the sand or substrate in question and pour some muratic (hydorcloric) acid over it. If it smokes/bubbles/fizzes then avoid it.
- 8. Do I need a substrate heater?
- Not at all. It's the very last piece of equipement that you should purchase. And then only if you have a wad of money just burning a hole in your pocket. In fact many people wish they had never put one in the tank. Plant roots get tangeled in them and then when you pull up the plants you pull up the heater. And there has not actually been a study that I know of that shows they actually work as they are supposed to work.