Substrate Choice

[simbob]

hello just bought a vision 180 and am going to try at a planted tank. I will hopefully be adding co2 but firstly i need a substrate. my ideal choice would be £100s worth of eco complete but im on a very tight budget. Would childs play sand be adequate for a planted tank by itself? I look the look of sand but i wonder wether my plants would would do poorly in it. If sand wouldnt work how about tetra complete just by itself? Any thoughts and suggestions please.

 

[ALW]

Yes play sand would be fine, just make sure you give it a good wash before placing it in the tank.

 

[Ian H]

Sand will be fine but wont have any nutrients in it. What kind of plants are you looking at getting? You can always use root tabs (i do and my plants do fine ) and liquid ferts

As for co2 that depends on your lighting

 

[simbob]

Sand will be fine but wont have any nutrients in it. What kind of plants are you looking at getting? You can always use root tabs (i do and my plants do fine )

As for co2 that depends on your lighting

cheers well i have about 2wpg atm. I plan to keep vallis, hydrophilla polysperma, few crypts maybe, ferns, and maybe a type of lilly asw a centrepeice not sure on its name, not particuarlly demanding species. Do root tabs need to be buried beneath the plant if you see what i mean or can it cover large areas of substrate? cheers

 

[Ian H]

yeah they are buried near the roots of the plant. I would deff use root tabs for the crypts as they are heavy root feeders.

i have`gravel and they do well so im sure sand will be fine if not better

I use tropic plant nutrition as my liquid fert, been told its one of the best and although i havnt used a different make before i find it great!

 

[Fwapp]

You could try peat/compost or garden soil topped with sand. It's free (if you have a garden) and it's what plants usually grow in

You will need to soak the soil/compost first, and it's best to plant before adding to much water to the tank, as it takes about a million years to clear. Worth a try, and it sounds within budget.

 

[simbob]

cheers people big help going to go with playsand as its cheap and i think looks nice. just wondering can you use any type of sand ie building sand used to mix with sement or does it have to be childrens play sand? cheers

 

[RedeyesUK]

I'd steer clear of builders sand personally, it isn't very clean and can contain all sorts of nasties that might affect your water chemistry.

Play sand has been proven fine for aquarium use, is clean and looks good, and costs about £2.50 for a fairly hefty bag, so won't exactly break the bank!

 

[simbob]

I'd steer clear of builders sand personally, it isn't very clean and can contain all sorts of nasties that might affect your water chemistry.

Play sand has been proven fine for aquarium use, is clean and looks good, and costs about £2.50 for a fairly hefty bag, so won't exactly break the bank!

cool thanks ill just go for play sand then thanks alot guys.