What substrate for cory catfish?

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RainGamma

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I just got two cory catfish and right now I'm using gravel. It's not too sharp but I would like to change it in the future so what should I use? (Make sure it's at petco or petsmart pls)
 
Also if I take the gravel out will all my bacteria be gone too?
 
If you have an ace hardware or Lowe’s near you they both sell play sand that is safe for aquariums for about 4 dollars for a 50 lbs bag. More sand than you need but significantly cheaper than anything you can get from Petco or Petsmart. Just make sure you rinse it well before adding to the aquarium. Corys prefer sand and it’s better for their barbs.
 
You will lose some of your bacteria.

I use Seachem Flourite - it is a clay which is supposed to be softer on the mouth and nose (I've never tested it personally. It is expensive. It designed for planted tanks. It comes in Dark (Brown), Red, and Black. You have to rinse at least 4 times but it is worth it.
 
Definitely play sand.
Products designed for "planted tanks" are likely to leach ammonia into the water, some for a long time. Once the ammonia is gone its just expensive sand :dunno:
 
Definitely play sand.
Products designed for "planted tanks" are likely to leach ammonia into the water, some for a long time. Once the ammonia is gone its just expensive sand :dunno:
I bought substrate to use!
 
Imagitarium black sand. I heard it could change ph so what could I do about that

Do not use this. See if the store will take it back. In the other thread members go into this in a bit more detail. But substrates that change water chemistry can be problematical and risky.
 
oh and btw Seachem Flourite does NOT leach ammonia into the water. The product helps plants, helps Cory's and similar bottom feeders because it is softer and slightly smaller than gravel. it allows for better root growth and is softer on the skin of the fish when foraging. I test the first day without any ammonia (there is ammonia in our tap water so I will see that) and there is no excess ammonia - I go on to add ammonia to cycle the tank - nothing extra leaching. Once it finally cycles there is no spike in ammonia until I do a water change - then the city water causes about a 1-1.5 ppm ammonia spike. I've talked to the City Water Manager and he's looking into it - because it shouldn't be happening.

Always check the reviews on Amazon even if you're buying things locally - you'll get a lot of free advice and experience. Some reported that Imagitarium causes PH level changes (so why did you buy it?) others said they didn't notice any problems. Sometimes it's best to spend a little more money and get a quality product.

But a number of Amazon reviews said they had no problems with this substrate - so you may be just fine. I hope you rinsed and rinsed and rinsed the black substrate or you're going to have a brown cloudy water for ages.
 
Do not use this. See if the store will take it back. In the other thread members go into this in a bit more detail. But substrates that change water chemistry can be problematical and risky.
Not sure if it will. that's why I'm going to test first.
 
oh and btw Seachem Flourite does NOT leach ammonia into the water. The product helps plants, helps Cory's and similar bottom feeders because it is softer and slightly smaller than gravel. it allows for better root growth and is softer on the skin of the fish when foraging. I test the first day without any ammonia (there is ammonia in our tap water so I will see that) and there is no excess ammonia - I go on to add ammonia to cycle the tank - nothing extra leaching. Once it finally cycles there is no spike in ammonia until I do a water change - then the city water causes about a 1-1.5 ppm ammonia spike. I've talked to the City Water Manager and he's looking into it - because it shouldn't be happening.

Always check the reviews on Amazon even if you're buying things locally - you'll get a lot of free advice and experience. Some reported that Imagitarium causes PH level changes (so why did you buy it?) others said they didn't notice any problems. Sometimes it's best to spend a little more money and get a quality product.

But a number of Amazon reviews said they had no problems with this substrate - so you may be just fine. I hope you rinsed and rinsed and rinsed the black substrate or you're going to have a brown cloudy water for ages.
I didn't know when I bought it. I washed it pretty good for 30 mins. Testing the Ph for today and I will check if it does anything but reviews I seen say it's ph neutral so maybe they did something else to cause it or unless they are lying for some reason.
 
Do not use this. See if the store will take it back. In the other thread members go into this in a bit more detail. But substrates that change water chemistry can be problematical and risky.
I also put a little of my water into the tank i put my corys in. They look fine after 1 day of adjusting them.
 
(I'm keeping my corys in a small tank for a little to see how my 20 gal is doing)
 
I didn't know when I bought it. I washed it pretty good for 30 mins. Testing the Ph for today and I will check if it does anything but reviews I seen say it's ph neutral so maybe they did something else to cause it or unless they are lying for some reason.

This topic is running in two different threads, so just to keep everyone on board with developments...as essjay said in the other thread, you need to set up containers of water with the sand and one without, and test pH over several days.
 

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