Plant substrate

[Aqua]

What would you guys consider as a good substrate for a 420-odd litre planted tank?

My plan so far is to have a heavily planted tank, so I want a good substrate medium for the plants...

Also, is under-gravel heating necessary in Auckland? Do you think it would make much of a difference?

Nik

[Plantman]

I believe it is good to have undergravel heater but it is not necessary.

what you want is a healthy roots for the plant, a solid foundation.

landscape your tank well. use a narrow perspex (2mm thick and approximately 3-4 inches X what ever lenght you want.) silicon it to the base of the tank. give some support if needed. that way, plants with runner will stay in the area you want then to grow.

you may want to classified as tall and thin, medium and broad and short and small plants, or green and red plants. there are others will are more complicated such as fast growth (good intake of nutrients) and slow growth (slow intake of niutirents). this is not correct all the time, depending on the plants.

substrate fertilizer is to encourage a heathy growth in the roots. but my past experience that if we were to spray it out all over the base of the tank, the plant might not be able to use it in time before it becomes toxic for those unused fertilizer.

thus, partial substract and partial ball fertlizer will be good. concentrate a certain area for substract ferterlizer and if the plant grow beyond the allocated area, subpliment it with ball fertlizer.

of course you will need water fertlizer for the continue nutrients.

i am sure there are lots of advise other hobbyist can offer.

Cheers

[Plantman]

again for the planted tank, there is no need for high and low level of your gravel (or sand).

if you plan to have bushy plants, no one can see the height differences.

this is just a suggestion.

[Luke*]

I have red clay as the base for my tank (bout 1-2cm) then gravel on top (4-5cm front, 7-8cm back). Under gravel heating certainly helps and there is some ideas on DIY under gravel heating in the DIY section at the moment. It seems the idea is more to provide a flow of water through the roots than actual heating. You could use sand, cheap from pool shops, only use an inch (2.5cm) though to prevent pockets of toxic gases (anaerobic bacteria, i.e no water flow). It's really more about the fertilisation, light, CO2 than substrate so just get something you like then try and get the other factors right.

[Lucid]

I have a grey fine gravel substrate in most of my tanks and find it awesome for the plants as they get the chance to easily extend thier roots through it. Also i have quite a deep base for the roots to get a good hold in and it seems to have mnade all the difference.

as to the high and low level of the gravel, I have got my gravel sloping up towards the back a bit, as this gives a bit of depth to the tank, and allows you tpo place the plants to give maximum viewing and maximum conditions for the plants to grow.

B

[Aqua]

Has anybody heard of or used CaribSea Eco-complete???

http://www.aquaticplantcentral.com/reviews/showproduct.php/product/12

***More information***

Contains iron, calcium, magnesium, potassium, sulfur plus over 25 other elements to nourish your aquatic plants.

Iron rich Eco-Complete eliminates the need for laterite

Nitrate and carbonate free – will not increase pH or carbonate hardness

No artificial dyes, paints or chemical coatings

Natural black substrate encourages the most vibrant coloration in fishes and reduces fish stress

Spherical grains for optimum diffusion performance

Supplies Calcium without raising pH

Lead free

Contains live heterotrophic bacteria to rapidly convert fish waste into natural food for your aquatic plants

Creates a natural biological balance which makes cycling a new aquarium faster and safer

Packed in Liquid Amazon buffered “Black Water†solution for immediate organic water conditioning

Unsurpassed macro-porosity for healthy roots and bacterial efficiency.

[Aqua]

OK.... I'm guessing that nobody replying means that nobody has heard of it.... :-?

[Warren]

I use a gravel from Southland Sand and Gravel called Oreti Rock. It is available in some retail stores in Auckland, but it's quite expensive. I got 1000kg's of the stuff direct, cost $660.00 landed a few years ago. To buy the same quantity from the LFS was going to cost $2400 + I had to freight it from AK to Nap.

It's colour and size graded. The colour is mostly brown and grey with about 5% of each; red, green, purple and pink. It is a very pretty gravel and looks very natural. It's a bit like some of the gravel round lake Taupo.

The size is gradel at 2-4mm, perfect for plants. It's also round in shape, - no sharp edges. It's a hard non-leaching gravel. I've been using it for 10+ years in my planted tank...

I got 150kg recently through a landscape supplier who got the 150kg added to 1000kg of other stones. The minimum order amount is 1000kg, but it can be of anything. If you can find a local landscape supplier who deals with Southland Sand and Gravel, see if they can source small quantities for you. It should cost about $40-45 per 25kg bag.

Cost Breakdown: 1000kg Oreti Rock - $160, freight to Napier - $500

You can see all the cost is in freight. The gravel itself is quite cheap. These prices are a few years old and were prior to all the petrol and diesel price hikes. Since fuel has gone up so much I'd expect the freight cost to have doubled or tripled or maybe 10x as much. Nah, won't be that much higher, just quite iritated about gas price...