Low Maintenance Tanks

[Arimus]

She's got an idea I'm up to something

But I'll give her a credit card and send her shopping....

 

[ALEXBLINGYJING]

youre all really cool

 

[ALEXBLINGYJING]

do you all thiink mlawson is wierd??

i most certainly do

 

[lljdma06]

I can't answer for other brands, but I don't know where the idea that there are fertilisers or additives in top soil!!!

In the US, Miracle grow sells a brand of topsoil and potting soil all with added Miracle grow fertiliser. It is pretty popular with gardeners and sold right next to the non-additive stuff. So that's why there's the idea not to buy soil with any additives.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

hmmm Ian's kind of put me off the whole soil thing, he reckons most soils from garden centres will have all sorts of mank in that you don't want in your tank. more hassle than it's worth for what I want to do IMHO

i think i'm just gonna go for sand, looks nice and it's dead easy and cheap.

so next question

if the eventual set up will have very little in the way of root feeding plants, do i need to put any root tabs into the soil, i'll have root feeders and stem plants in to start off with but they will be weaned out as the scape develops. I think I've used up all my root tabs so i'd have to go buy some more, is it really worth it?

 

[Arimus]

I'm currently trying a mix of the tetra pack plant substrate and sand - I'll let you know how I get on (once I persuade the bloody plants to stop floating.... they've got enough lead plant weight to skink a battleship but they still insist on floating free - any tips appreciated on how to anchor them until their roots develop.)

 

[Miss Wiggle]

I'm currently trying a mix of the tetra pack plant substrate and sand - I'll let you know how I get on (once I persuade the bloody plants to stop floating.... they've got enough lead plant weight to skink a battleship but they still insist on floating free - any tips appreciated on how to anchor them until their roots develop.)

thanks, i just leave new plants floating until they've got a good root system on them and then plant them, a shallow substrate has given me the most problems for planting, how deep is yours?

 

[Arimus]

thanks, i just leave new plants floating until they've got a good root system on them and then plant them, a shallow substrate has given me the most problems for planting, how deep is yours?

About 1.5" of sand/tetra mix.

It's only one plant now which has decided to keep floating... but this is with no fishes in yet to upset things... though if the water test shows good today that might change (the filter is running 50% new media, 50% old media from my other tanks).

 

[lljdma06]

thanks, i just leave new plants floating until they've got a good root system on them and then plant them, a shallow substrate has given me the most problems for planting, how deep is yours?

About 1.5" of sand/tetra mix.

It's only one plant now which has decided to keep floating... but this is with no fishes in yet to upset things... though if the water test shows good today that might change (the filter is running 50% new media, 50% old media from my other tanks).

There is a type of very large-grain sand. I call it gravel, but Dave when he comments on my tanks, always calls it sand. The grains are between 1-3mm, so I guess it is either very large sand or very tiny gravel. Well anyhoo, it's quite cheap, it has extra weight so it secures plants well, it's a good growing medium, it doesn't compact like sand, and I don't know, people always think that I have a sand substrate when they look at pictures of my tank and are kind of surprised when I say it's not sand. Carpeting and fine-stemmed plants do every well on it. It's your call. I've got it on all my tanks mixed with laterite and I put in rootabs every 3-4 months. I don't know how much more low-maintenance a substrate can get than that. You can easily get in and vacumn the substrate, it doesn't get disturbed like sand, and it is soft on corydora barbels. Just a thought.

llj

 

[Themuleous]

Don't worry about the root tabs, if there are no root feeds they'll be a waste of money. The early fast growers by definition will be undemanding so they wont mind not having the root tabs.

Sam

 

[Miss Wiggle]

Cool, thanks Sam

got some amano shrimpies (5 for the price of 3, woo i love our lfs) this weekend which are happily munching they're way through the worst of the algae for me. Obviously I'll give it a good scrub out before i switch things around but i hope having them in there will allow for fluctuations in conditions as the tank settles and stop algae taking hold so badly again.