Sand Substrate Issues

[Mcbenthy]

Hi, i'm just borrowing my boyfriends account because i'm at my wits end with my lovely cory's messing up the tank.

Top layer of my planted tank is sand, but underneath is a layer of soil for the plants. However the soil keeps coming up through the sand. Situation isn't helped by my corydoras habrosus, who just love to dig it all up! Is there any other base substrate that would be suitable for plants and keep the sand looking nice?
(NB can't have gravel because even the smallest grain is too big for the corys)

Thanks

 

[Dieses Madchen]

In my planted tank, I used regular sand with no base substrate. I substituded base plant substrate with under substrate fertilizer tabs and that has worked out really well. That way, when the cories did, I do not ended up with a different colored substrate showing up in the sand.

 

[Mcbenthy]

Thanks, fertilizer tabs, brilliant idea!

 

[Dieses Madchen]

The only issue I found was that the tabs i bought look similar to the wafers i feed my cories so they tried to dig up the ferts, but right after i buried them i dropped a few wafers into get the cories mind off of what i buried lol