Do YOU Need A Sand Cap? Substrate Caps & What Are The Benefits for My Planted Aquarium & Filtration?

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Do YOU Need A Sand Cap? Substrate Caps & What Are The Benefits for My Planted Aquarium & Filtration?

Рет қаралды 77,185

Күн бұрын

The purpose of a sand cap, or any cap for that matter, can be a complex issue. In this video I hope to explain what the purpose or a cap is, for a Planted Tank aquarium, and whether or not you would benefit from adding one, or not.
From aquasoil, ada Amazonia, fluval stratum, ecocomplete, contrasoil, dirt, brightwell, coarse gravel, Pea gravel, fluorite, sand, silt or Mulm- we go over the thickness needed for proper capping and separation of ammonia, nutrites and organics so your plants are kept fertilized and happy, but the water parameters like ammonia and nitrates are kept low and seperrate from the deep substrate or sand bed!
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Пікірлер: 332

@alancarter9471 2 жыл бұрын

This was your Mona Lisa bro! Took me 3 years to learn what you just explained here. This will help so many people so much!

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Haha thanks Alan! I appreciate that...it took me 20 years to articulate it lol. I mean there are 50 ways to keep a tank properly, but you just need to do certain things for each style to be balanced, so I was trying to cover 5 or 6 set up styles in one video, if possible haha. Cheers, man.

@wallycheladyn1190 Жыл бұрын

Your channel is awesome, very down to Earth. I REALLY appreciate that there are no gimmicks, no flashy graphics, and no annoying music. Your channel provides excellent information, and you've clearly done your research rather than simply repeating what wikipedia provides. Top marks!

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

Thank you so kindly. Also, WELCOME! I'm so honored and humbled by your comment. You 100% understand the channel. Instead of time going to the trouble of editing, buying pricey fish or fluff, I try and spend the time to answer comments, and make content /do research. I'm honored that you are enjoying the videos. Have a great week!

@wallycheladyn1190 Жыл бұрын

@@Fishtory thanks! I'm new to the hobby, so your channel has been critical to my learning. What is your opinion of that fellow down in San Francisco? Aquarium Coop did a tour of his shop, the shop's name is Ocean Aquarium. His entire shop is no water change.

@user-sc7yf2xv8t 11 ай бұрын

Yesss when I read the same damn thing from the internet that I’ve read 20 times I get so aggravated. He’s a scientist, that’s where you get the good stuff!

@giftofthewild6665 4 ай бұрын

That's exactly why I love it, I hate the KZfaq cut and all the graphics they put up. Just the tanks and his voice over are perfect.

@giftofthewild6665 4 ай бұрын

Thanks, this explains why my 15 year old tank has 0 nitrates, even though I rarely do water changes. There's a 1 inch anoxic layer at the bottom of the sand bed so it must be reducing nitrates down to ammonia and being eaten by the plants. Fun!

@aquaticsbynature 10 ай бұрын

Thanks Alex, Cool subject that really needs to be more widely discussed. Once I discovered mulm is natures ultimate cap, my whole aquatic experience changed forever. I don’t think I’ve used a gravel vac in the last 20 years. :) And now I can grow plants indefinitely without fertilisers or water changes :) Definitely one of natures many wonders.

@Fishtory 10 ай бұрын

Magic eh? Haha right on

@giftofthewild6665 4 ай бұрын

I have sand so I can't gravel vac (it just sucks up the sand). The mulm doesn't build up too much because the malaysian trumpet snails churn the sand and mulm and poop gets mixed down into the sand bed rather than sitting on the top.

@marypaigeflynn4512 2 жыл бұрын

Woohoo🎉🎊 This is a subject that has absolutely changed the hobby for me. I have a hard time wrapping my brain around things like fish species and water parameters, but for some reason I understand this concept. The good part about it is that it has enabled me to keep planted (low light) aquariums that are stable and I can potentially keep different fish in. My first time around the hobby I used Amazonia and crashed a tank and burned up all the plants because I didn't know enough.🤣😭🌿 The first aquarium I set up this time around in the hobby was with Fluval Stratum and I had great success with it after I capped it with black sand over the mulm (it had been set up about 6 months) Now because I'm technically broke 🤣🤣 the only thing I invest in is a bag of sand(usually Tractor Supply's Black Diamond sandblasting sand) My magical base for me has been to use a mix of previous substrate that has been in an aquarium (gravel and sand) and mix that with some soil I get from a path that runs along the woods where a lot of oak trees grow) The first time I had ever heard or seen this was on Dustin's Fish Tanks when he did a video that was called something like "setting up a ghetto fish tank"🤣🤣 and some of MD Fish Tanks when he first started his channel♥️🌿 After that I found and became friends with Father Fish, you, Colin Barsby, Fishman and so many other amazing planted tank and fish folks. You all have helped me enjoy this hobby so much more!!♥️♥️🥰 Amber from Big City Bettas sent me The Walstead Method Book as well.. when it comes down to it nature just makes sense 🤣 go figure 🤪😁 Understanding a proper "cap" and its function is key and not disrupting that cap is very important!! Thank you for the deep dive Alex!! I always take your experience and recommendations to heart!!✔️💪 I hope you have a wonderful day!! Much love my friend 🙏🌿🐟🌿🥰

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks Mary! Really good points you make, and I've definitely learned a lot from all those same folks too 😀. Have a great day Mary! I feel you on the broke tank boogie lol

@muddyriverdogz Жыл бұрын

You need to make the cap deep. like 3 to 6 inches. That way whats under it can never get disturbed. You only put plants in the sand not through the cap. The plants roots will reach to the nutrients it needs. This is important and almost every dirt tank i see the cap is way to thin.

@Splitleaf Жыл бұрын

thanks for your comment too, between the comment section and this video I finally feel confident to start my substrate

@Just_Lurking8 Жыл бұрын

Hi Mary, do you think it’s ok to do a FF , with a 5.5 gallon tank? I was thinking of 1.5 soil and 1 or 2 inches sand ? Your thoughts on this, TIA

@patricgold3896 11 ай бұрын

I’ve got a basic tank with gravel and some plants just for fun. But this info helps me understand better what’s happening in the substrate. Also how to best keep things going well for the plants and fish. Also cool science!

@shesellsfish 2 жыл бұрын

I love these kind of videos. I've got 6 tanks running with no heater, no filter, and deep substrates. They all have plants, and fish or shrimp and snails, and are the easiest, healthiest tanks I've ever had or ever had to take care of. And yes, I agree 100% that the deeper substrates and and cap is the key to making the whole thing work. 👍❤👍

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Right on, thanks for your experience! It's always great to hear what's working for others also!

@CheeseBurgerXJ 2 жыл бұрын

I love the in depth explanation that you always do. Whenever it’s a video about substrate science I know it’s gonna be a good one 👍

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Thank you Frank. I'm just so happy that someone else finds deep dive style videos as interesting as I Do. I feel like there have been far too many times when I see something online in a video and I can't even figure real latin name of the featured species!

@CheeseBurgerXJ 2 жыл бұрын

@@Fishtory no problem they’ve been very helpful in helping me build my deep substrate tank 29g , I did dirt and clay from my backyard, pool filter sand and crushed coral and just mixed it together and I’ve let the mulm build up for 3 years now with no water changes. 😂😂and ever since your video on water conditioners I just let the water sit for 2 days

@zenplantman4730 2 жыл бұрын

Really amazing explanation Alex thank you so much for being a huge part of the community and spreading knowledge knowledge that is that is helpful to others and the hobby much appreciate you ❤

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Hey no problem, I love nerding out with folks and every day - I learn something new, and something it seems worth sharing. Thank YOU! CHEERS!

@dcphifer4307 Жыл бұрын

I just found your channel and so appreciate the way in which you speak while you are showing your topic. Much appreciated from someone who has a brain injury. I have a few fish now and I am trying to find the best combination for me and the Betta thst I started with. I now understand why I struggled so with the first tank set up using the Fluval Stratum and the lil kit filter that came with the 1.7G tank kit. I recently turned 70 and wanted to adopt a Betta from one of those cups. So, he became my birthday present to myself at the end of October 2022. I got a 6.6G, and just last week used 10G rectangle tank. I have been experimenting with gravel and substrate because I watched those lil Black Khuli Loaches and my Betta missed them when I redid the tank. From what you shared in this video, I need to redo the 1.7G according to layering concept. I am getting a 55G this coming week and need to get a plan for setting the substrate up first. My fish are doing just great where they are. I got a few Ghost Shrimp, Nerite Snails, and a small school of Neon Tetras in quarantine now getting ready. I plan to take my time with this 55G and let the tank mature a few months before I start transferring anything to this new tank. You also explained why I had so much trouble with the Fluval Stratum. It explains why I had higher levels of the not so healthy water parameters after siphoning the top level. Thanks again.

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

Oh right on! So glad you enjoyed the video. Welcome my friend. Thank you 😊

@dubiouslyyours Жыл бұрын

Welp. This should’ve been one of the first videos I watched prior to setting up any tanks; It made sense of so many things. Thanks.

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

No problem! Glad it was helpful. Welcome to the channel, my friend!

@Ceretrea 7 ай бұрын

I've kept fish before but boy am I in school right now 😅 So much to learn, and unlearn too!

@Fishtory 7 ай бұрын

You can do it! If you just focus on what interests you, youll learn the other things by proximity as well. Besf if luck!

@StarTexaspets Жыл бұрын

Been scared of sand forever, but love the look. I've always mixed soil with black gravel to make a heavy bed, then leaf litter the sh1t out of my tanks. But I'm considering a sand cap for my cory cat tank just to witness the sifting lol

@Anvion 2 жыл бұрын

Another fantastic video! I've been struggling a bit with my tanks lately, and this was just what I needed to try and get things back on track

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

I'm so glad to hear it! Have a great week and best of luck to you!

@ann7882 Жыл бұрын

This was a new much needed class for me. Thank you!

@georged822 Жыл бұрын

I have not started my first tank yet, but I loved this video because I like the look of a substrate being 3 dimensional and not just a flat 2 inches across the entire floor, but heard lots of people cautioning against deep substrates saying tank will get poisoned eventually . Really I’m concerned about aesthetics more so than nutrition for plants so I was thinking I’d have to pour some kind of epoxy to give the terrain high elevations. But what you do sounds better. And all your other videos are great too.

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

Thanks. Don't fear deep substrate. Just layer the materials, if you have 5 inches of gravel, it could spike ammonia in theory, but if you use soil, sand, aquasoil, pea gravel or fluorite, you're totally safe

@jordanforever2345 2 жыл бұрын

Dang, Alexander... you read my mind. I was about to redo my tank. This helps a lot and help to explain some of terminologies I have read or heard.

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Hehe when we were messaging back and forth, it popped into my head, and it was like then 50th time something related to the subject was asked of me... so thank YOU

@Sleeper362 2 жыл бұрын

I have found a great mix of substrate. Saf T Sorb mixed with aqua soil and capped with sand. It turned a tank I wasn’t trying to carpet into a carpeted tank. My dwarf hairgrass took right off. Only problem is you may have to add sand because it tends to sink in between the granules of Saf t sorb.

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for sharing. I've used saf t sorb 2x and really enjoyed its ability to store ammonia ions essentially! You can pre-charge it by soaking it in water that you put a bunch of liquid fertilizer in, also...like a giant root tab across the entire tank haha.

@Sleeper362 2 жыл бұрын

@@Fishtory I did not know that. I will definitely do that on my next tank. I’ve ran it on two tanks so far and they are healthy and stable. Makes sense as to why. I do run root tabs in the beginning since it didn’t seem to hold enough nutrients. I like my substrate to be at least three inches thick so having a cheap product like Saf T Sorb keeps my costs low. I’ll definitely try the priming method on my next tank.

@sairvinginthestacks 2 жыл бұрын

Love the video. My current tank stared as Brightwell Rio Escuro capped with pool filter sand. My plants were doing really well until the tank cracked during a water change in Feb. The python clogged, I removed the tube and the plastic part knocked into the rim. After an emergency run to the store for a new tank, I only had pool filter sand. Even with root tabs, the tank is just sad. I ordered a new bag of Rio Escuro and I'm redoing the substate. We have very hard water the initial buffering helps plants establish.

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Glad to hear you're getting something with a good consistency for the plants to anchor into, and minerals/nutrients. Best of luck!

@sugarsenshi9352 2 жыл бұрын

I've got a 70 gallon tank, been running for a couple months with just the gravel base in. I just put in some fish since its a cycled tank and a great quarantine opportunity before I move the inhabitants of my 20 gallon over. I want the tank unreasonably heavily planted but its been a slow budget crunch build up for plants. For the life of me can't decide what to use for nutrients or a cap. This video is a great help, I didn't realize stratum was lacking nutrients. I was really hoping to avoid root tabs. I think I like the larger sands look in your tanks!

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

So fluval has minerals and ph buffer, but no organics or nitrogen Cycle components and no phosphates. I'm glad it helped somewhat...there's no wrong or right way in the end...it just means you may need more filtration or more additives like the root tabs or daily/weekly liquid fertz

@bettyb.7971 Жыл бұрын

Very, very interesting. This is exactly what I was looking for. Thank you.

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful!

@NinniAquariums 8 ай бұрын

Thank you again for a really good video! I really feel like I know a lot more now, still having trouble deciding how to do it myself because I really want it to be as close to perfect as possible... Here's my dilemma: I now have an aquarium with some kind of soil (2-3 inches) at the bottom, a lot of plants. My small fish (luminatus) and neocaridina-shrimps are happy and every time I test the water it's perfect even tough I never do water changes (just refill since I don't use a lid). I also have a sponge filter, just because it feels safer that way. The soil was already used when I bought it, I got it when I found my little aquarium second hand. I guess that was a good thing for all the nutritions. Now I'm moving, and will get a much bigger aquarium for my fish so the substrate I already use won't be enough. I really like light stocked aquariums with a lot of plants and want it to be it's own eco system as far as possible. For substrate, if I've understand things correctly, I can go for an active substrate with sand on top OR a non active substrate with no sand on top? A non active substrate with sand on top is a bad idea? I feel like I want a layer of sand on top, to make the planting easier. I had a lot of struggle last time because the plants didn't want to get stuck in the soil 😅 I don't think it will be possible for me to get the same brands that you use (I'm not in the US and where I live the stores aren't that good) but I think I will be able to figure out what types of soil that's in the bags I can find 🙂

@Fishtory 8 ай бұрын

You understand my opinion correctly my friend. Active substrates will also cycle without a cap...but it takes many water changes and sometimes several months before fish can go in. So active with a sand cap or inactive with root tabs and a sand cap is what i recommend to any plant lover. If you have questions look through my other videos on substrate science too..or just ask. Cheers and good luck

@NinniAquariums 8 ай бұрын

@@Fishtory Thank you so much! ❤ I've spent so many hours looking through youtube now and a re-watched some of yours that I found before I got my first aquarium. This will be so much fun!

@housetalkwithdiana Жыл бұрын

WOW!!! So much knowledge. Thank you for sharing! I learned sooooo much!

@mr.m6315 Жыл бұрын

Thank you for making that easy to understand, Great video.

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

Glad it was helpful! You are very welcome

@Thomas-bm8gm 8 ай бұрын

Awesome video! Lots of great info for planted tanks

@Fishtory 8 ай бұрын

Thank you... I think you will enjoy some of the newer videos on my channel too... more plant and substrate science all over. Cheers!

@stephenluna7932 25 күн бұрын

Thanks for making this video. If I understand correct I can use 2 inches of Activ-Flora Floracor Black Planted Aquarium Substrate for my plants to get the minerals/nutrients they need then add an inch of CaribSea super naturals sand on top for my corys to have fun in and not have a negative effect on my fish. plus let it the fish waste just work its way through the substrate.

@PimpolloMorales 2 жыл бұрын

Never seen bettas with a cichlid before, and such pretty specimens to boot!

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

I hadn't either lol..I watched for the first 2 hours straight when I tried it

@dellseasandoval8187 Жыл бұрын

Keep up the good work. I love watching your videos.

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

Thank you. Im honored that you and folks like you are here to be a part of it all

@msdecleir6389 Жыл бұрын

YOUR TANKS ARE THEEEE BEST IVE SEEN ON KZfaq! Do you propagate all these plants?

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

Indeed i do. And thankn you kindly

@robinsnestfarm7322 Жыл бұрын

Oh thank you! This answered a lot of my questions about substrate. Now, I will see if you have one on plants. A little nervous about a cool water tank-- but with the right plants, I am assuming it will survive fine. I suppose I will just be losing a wider variety of plants. Have a blessed day!

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

God bless

@sarahedington7339 2 жыл бұрын

Thank you so much for explaining in such great detail. This information is incredibly useful. I really appreciate your time.

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

You are so incredibly welcome! I'm just glad folks find the videos I make useful. I like to go deep into topics, and most folks don't want more than bullet points. So I'm always very happy to read comments like yours. Have an amazing weekend, cheers! -Alex

@HippieJohn 2 жыл бұрын

Hey my Hippie brother...thanks for ANOTHER great video...Never boring always informative..✌

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

No problem-o my man

@marypaigeflynn4512 2 жыл бұрын

🥰💪

@janemarriott3389 Жыл бұрын

I always learn so much from you!

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

I'm so glad!

@atkinsnatureaquariums3552 2 жыл бұрын

I like making a layered substrate, love the brightwel substrate. Awesome video

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

100% If I can afford it, I like brightwell too

@ItsSweetShot 2 жыл бұрын

Wow such a good topic, so informative and well presented! Never really put too much thought into the substrate

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Thank you. Oh boy..yeah substrate can be a huuuuge can of worms hahah

@JoelStephen 7 ай бұрын

Thank you for discussing this topic. Verg informative

@Fishtory 7 ай бұрын

Glad you liked it!

@kdr1048 2 жыл бұрын

Love talking substrates! 👍

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Mine have never spoken to me! ;)

@CarolynnMc01 2 жыл бұрын

thank you Alex! This is more helpful information (as usual!). I totally appreciate it.

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

No problem! Glad to hear it was worthwhile!

@madhatterjones4781 Жыл бұрын

Amazing video so much technical important stuff

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

Glad you enjoyed it

@kami1928 2 жыл бұрын

this is exactly what i was looking for!! thank you for the informative video!!!

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Hey, welcome! And no problem. I'm glad you found it of some use.if you have any questions I can help with, just comment again and I'll come runnin' lol. Cheers.

@dellseasandoval8187 Жыл бұрын

To cap or not to cap is funny. Imagine how funny it would be to go back in time & listen to Shakespeare talk about fish and a fish aquarium 🤣.

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

Hahaha

@michellemoeckel4770 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for all the awesome and useful information.

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the support and dropping a line!

@needmoresilver3677 Жыл бұрын

Wow bro info overload lol. Going to have to watch a couple times

@frankridley66 8 ай бұрын

I was thinking of setting up a planted 20 gallon tank with stratum capped with sand and topped with gravel. Shrimp and neons as host

@Fishtory 8 ай бұрын

Sounds lovely

@AdriCr4ft 2 жыл бұрын

Another great video ☺️ thank you for what you do

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Thank YOU for tuning in and commenting!

@AdriCr4ft 2 жыл бұрын

@@Fishtory you’re very welcome, I’m super happy to have found your channel and I wish I did it earlier. I love that you go in depth into the topics and you try to give as much information as possible. I don’t think I ever found a channel like yours and it’s exactly what I was looking for, at the stage of the hobby that I’m in. :) I have the plants the space and the fish, but I still have a necessity to know more! It’s hard to explain.. I could google it and I do a lot, but you make this so much better than just googling it. I’m stoked. Very educational and I hope 🤞 that the laws and regulations won’t affect you and others and actually take into consideration all the great points you made. I’m from a different country, but it affects us just as much if yours starts to become limited. You definitely deserve more recognition, views and subscribers, and same as everyone else who works hard to not misinform others.. this is the kind of content that should be more pushed out rather than live feeding videos that feel like watching dog fights. so no don’t thank me, THANK YOU SIR! You’ll definitely see me more often, Can’t wait for the next. :D have a great day :)

@JimLapine 6 ай бұрын

What would you recommend for a newbie, been watching you, father fish, reading Walstad. I'll be doing a simple 10 gallon. What is my best chance at being successful growing some low-tech plants, a few nano fish, snails, and shrimp.

@FoolyLiving Жыл бұрын

My plants dont do well in a water softener water with sand (75 gallon). Because my tank crashed early this month, I went ahead and added a small bag of fluval stratum and put some under the sand and left some on the top, just around where I plant the plants. Since the complete crash of everything, my tank is still cycling and has 1 ppm ammonia right now. What would you suggest me to do with my water softener water to buffer the water to stay around 7.2 pH? It comes out of the tap at around 6.0 pH or maybe lower, but my tank right now says its at 7.2 pH. What does stratum buffer the water to? I had no buffer in my tank before, when I added seachem equilibrium and just a little bit of this crashed it, along with a bacterial bloom. My poor fish are waiting to get back in the their tank and I'm changing the water 10 to 25% every couple days to get it better. I have added some plants up top to help take the ammonia out. Should I add a small bag of crushed coral or eggshells? Will this help buffer my tank to not get a crash again?

@melwohl37 Жыл бұрын

I love this hobby i have recently done sand caps over mulmy un gravel vacced gravel so we shall.see im still root tabbing though. 😅

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

Good luck!

@brandonterry6194 4 ай бұрын

GRATITUDE 💥🐟💥

@Ed_313 Жыл бұрын

Thank you for this video 😊

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

My pleasure 😊 glad it was of use

@shawnscallan941 Жыл бұрын

this is the video I needed. I've been trying to figure out how to get that anaerobic layer without poisoning my fish. thanks for explaining all this

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

You are very welcome 🙏

@ishaanjetly8084 3 күн бұрын

carpet plants such as echinodorus tenelius will grow on sand as cap on tropica aquasoil.

@Fishtory 3 күн бұрын

True. Hair grasses too

@dalmainsnyman8703 11 ай бұрын

Thank you

@Fishtory 11 ай бұрын

You're welcome 😊

@carolinejt3544 2 жыл бұрын

Thank you. I loved this. I have sand a nd aqua soil. It works I think but I need to replant some plants. I'm a bit rubbish at this, si any advice would be great. You are a star

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

I'd watch my video on replacing an existing substrate ..I think that'll have the info you want hopefully!

@arachnophilegrrl 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks Alex!

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Of course, my friend! Thank you fir the support

@marypaigeflynn4512 2 жыл бұрын

🥰♥️

@jayjayhooksch1 Жыл бұрын

Can i grow stem plants in just 2 inches of sand? I already have a tank set up with a few fish in it, but all my plants are plastic and would like to switch over to real plants. Should i temporarily rehome my fish and put an inch of soil under my sand? Im trying to understand the capping situation, but im not quite getting it; with 2 inches of sand, will the detritus and mulm still sift to the bottom and provide nutrients for plants? I could easily add another inch of sand, if 3 inches is better than 2. Thanks for any advice! And thanks for these videos! I will watch this video again to try to wrap my head around it.

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

So if you had a sand tank and had fish pooping in it for 2 years, you'll see layers of mulm and silt under and surrounding the sand...that is plant food of the highest quality...however if you have been gravel vaccuming and cleaning it, you will need to let the process do its thing with time. If you add aquasoil then add sand...it will have the minerals the roots need...and also the sand will keep the nutrients in the soil rather than the water floating around. Besf of luck

@WhatIsMisophonia Жыл бұрын

10:32 I'm gonna have to flat out contradict this. While it's true that the aqua soil is porous, you still get much more surface area from smaller granules than larger ones. If you have progressively less space between granules as you go smaller, that's because you have more material, but also more surface area filling that space. Not only that, but organic matter is more likely going to grow more bacteria than inorganic matter: "Microbial colonization of sand particles is actually rather sparse in comparison to that of finer sediments particles (clays and humus). For example. one study showed most bacteria colonize organic particles rather than sand, even though the organic particles represented only a fraction of the available surface area. Thus, clay and organic matter (not silt or sand) are where the vast majority of bacteria are found." - Diana L. Walstad. 2012. Ecology of the Planted Aquarium (3rd edition). p. 125.

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

True but not once silt and mulm fill it in and it becomes annoxic

@WhatIsMisophonia Жыл бұрын

@@Fishtory Well, of course that can happen with gravel and aquasoil as well if you're overstocked or overfeeding, which I admit is easier to do with sand. But you weren't just talking about that; you even expanded on that by suggesting sand interlocking causes problems with beneficial bacteria growth. And that's fine and all, if you can provide evidence for that statement. At any rate, you can only grow as much bacteria as you can support, and if you have a fine substrate layer, most of the bacteria is likely in that fine layer. I'm also about to just throw up my hands and give up on the whole anoxic/anaerobic debate; Aquarists, including actual scientists, are always butting heads as to how anoxic a fish tank with a few inches or less of substrate can even get, or if your tank just crashes because of the sheer amount of TDS/POC/DOC in the water column, and waste not being properly absorbed by the soil is just a canary in the coalmine.

@swaroopsingharoy Жыл бұрын

Thank you for sharing such educational and informative videos. I am a beginner aquarium hobbyist and have been following your channel from the past one year, every video I saw seemed like a treasure trove of knowledge! They've really been very helpful. I have two questions about my tank and it'd be great if you could please share your guidance on this. My current tank is a 24"L, 18"H and 12"W in dimension and has one female kribensis, 6 cardinal tetras, 7 cherry barbs and two little bristlenose plecos with lots of plants. Lately I have been facing an issue with the ph and the tests are showing numbers above 7.5 and sometimes even upto 8.2. I took out all the pebbles and rocks, made a large water change with RO water but even that couldn't keep a consistent low ph. Initially it was around 6.5 after the water change but then again after a few days it went up to 8. Not sure what might be leaching the ph here. Is there any way I can lower the ph? Another question that I would like to ask is that, is it necessary to siphon the dirt and debris that accumulate on the substrate specially in areas with less water flow? Or should I just let it be? This dirt looks like a black powdery thing and I see them usually near the base of the plants. Some fishes often stir it up while digging for food. My tank is around a year old and I think it's well cycled by now.

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

Great questions. So the dirt, will eventually be broken down by microbes into plant fertalizer...so if you have plants, it's healthy to just let things be...but if its unplanted you probably want to clean it up for aesthetic reasons alone. As for the ph, that is interesting. Even acidic waters benefit from having some kh and gh in the water as a buffer for stability... you just want to keep it fairly low if you dont want it to increase the TDS over time. So if you have an aquasoil or a little bit of crushed coral as part of your sunstrate id say leave it be, and add some dried leaves for tannins and acidity. However if you dont have anything but gravel for substrate id add maybe a cup of crushed coral, or araganite scattered around to buffer the water...but also add some wood or leaves to help pull down the ph. Best of luck! Cheers

@Les-OZZYTHEOSCAR 2 жыл бұрын

At the moment my tank is bare bottom, but with plants growing in glass bowls. When we have replaced the carpet in this room and I reset up the tank again , I am planning on a substrate of sorts on the bottom for the plants to grow into. I have watched quite a few vids on this from Father Fish channel. I will definitely be watching this video a few more times I think, before I decide. Great info though so thanks so much.

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

I amMore than happy to help, if you have questions, feel free to ask :)

@Les-OZZYTHEOSCAR 2 жыл бұрын

@@Fishtory thank-you my friend. I will hold you to that !

@user-sc7yf2xv8t 11 ай бұрын

Awesome videos informative !

@DoobyDubNCG 2 жыл бұрын

caps and blends are the way to go regardless. pure gravel is a tricky substrate for alot of plants.

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Yes, It's probably the number 1 or 2 reason people have a hard time with plants honestly..followed by lighting being too weak on Kit tanks

@voluntaryismistheanswer 2 жыл бұрын

I'm experimenting again with undergravel filters, it's a ten gallon so not as stable yet as old deep substrate bigger tanks, but the plants seem to be doing well after a couple months rooting into the plenum (if that's the right term).

@beverlycrawford9074 Жыл бұрын

I have been lucky. I have had purely gravel substrate and my lighting came with my aquarium kit and my plants have all thrived. Fed them only root tabs. This was my first tank experience and have had it running about 8 months. It has been a successful community tank also, housing an angel, Germ Blue Ram, Drawf Gouramis, Rummy Nose Tetra, and Neons. I want to switch up to a more aquascape planted tank with driftwood and stones. Thus why I have watched this video. I will cap my stratum with my mix of small and larger stone pebbles but also have a sand beach area. Hoping that is an okay plan. Thanks for all your great info!

@DoobyDubNCG Жыл бұрын

@@beverlycrawford9074 yea totally, not that gravel is always a bad choice, some plants thrive in it. but it does usually take longer to culture, especially when people keep vacuuming it!

@karinchristensen220 Жыл бұрын

I added a layer of something I saw someone mention in a comment section. I live in the high desert with volcanic soil and lava rock littered all over. Dormant volcano cones are part of the landscape. The red ants or what some people call desert ants build cones around their colony that is all small volcanic stones consistently about 2mm in diameter. I washed some until the water was clear and made a layer about 1 1/2 inch above Landon aquarium soil. I didn't know which one was the best when I did this 3 months ago so I hope that is a good one. This is over an under-gravel filter (that's what I used 30 years ago when I had an aquarium so that is what I used). I think those tiny volcanic rocks provide a lot of surface area. 2 1/2 months in and it looks good and tests perfect.

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

I bet that works really well for bio films and bacteria

@fadillah6014 Жыл бұрын

One my problem with lava rock they too light for root to anchor are you had same issue as well?

@karinchristensen220 Жыл бұрын

@@fadillah6014 The tiny rocks do not float. The roots are going through it and into the aqua soil layer under it. So far I am happy with it.

@fadillah6014 Жыл бұрын

@@karinchristensen220 are that same lava rock? I tried using larger crushed lava rock on bottom then finer one on top of it but I struggle to put my plant on it and now the large crushed lava rock somehow got on top (probably how light it is). I'm not yet try aquasoil tho I might try it for hairgrass and shrimp do I need put base fertilizer on it?

@karinchristensen220 Жыл бұрын

@@fadillah6014 I'm not the person to ask. I have less than 4 months of experience. I followed the advice of this channel and others to set up my one tank which I wanted to be more of an ecosystem and so far it looks like it is working. One thing I have learned is that shrimp are fascinating creatures.

@mr_seth Жыл бұрын

Love this one Alex! You're probably not monitoring the comments for this one any more, but curious to know your thoughts, or anyone else's. I set up a tank using the Father Fish recipe. I have previously done conventional gravel and Walstad tanks, so I figured that I would go Father Fish on this one. I didn't get all of the same fertilizer products, but whatever I could find that is similar. All ingredients were organic. I used a really fine sand as a 2" cap. I used filtration media from some established tanks. Despite that, I had an insane ammonia spike, after about 10 days. There is now so much algae, and what could be some cyanobacteria. The whole thing is a sludgy mess, with so much ammonia that daily or every other day 80% water changes, seachem prime, and another filter full of zeolite can't seem to get under control. My API kit reads blue for ammonia all of the time (blue isn't even a colour on their charts...haha). Half of my plants died early on, but the other half are still hanging on, knock on wood. My thoughts are that I overfertilized my soil. I used different organic all purpose fertilizers, and maybe they were stronger? Maybe I've just got to through a hard battle of waiting this one out? If all of the plants die, I could let it go dark for a few months. Provided that some of my plants hang on a while longer, I am considering adding more fine sand, but maybe even a clay layer before adding more fine sand. I'm not sure what kind of clay would be appropriate. I would dig outside somewhere, but the ground is frozen and under 3 feet of snow until May. Do you think that would make sense? Is there a kind of clay that I could buy that would be aquarium safe? Any other thoughts?

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

Most new tanks hit an algae stage for several months the 3rd thru the 5th month is normal...after that...definitely add more stem plants or dial down the light time to 6 or 7 hours. I approve of father fish and his methods...but they dont accomplish all my desired goals with delicate plants and nano tanks so i take bits and pieces from his style and walsted method...mix it with several others and sort of have my own way on the channel in any aquascape builds you can see it.

@mr_seth Жыл бұрын

@@Fishtory Thanks Alex! I will continue play the waiting game on this one, with water changes, etc. Now that I think about it more, a clay layer might only delay the intial cycling and "breaking in" process. The irony is that this is the tank that needed the closest thing to an "instant cycle", given my need for a new habitat for newts. I'm trying to look at this positively and think about other ways I can use other aquaria in the meantime. I'm actually experimenting with a bare bottom filterless tank, that I threw some filter refuse, moss, and culled shrimp into, a while back. I am slowly adding other water column feeding plants, little bits of subtrate, and other critters. It will be an aquarium built with little bits and pieces at a time. It's fun to experiment! I have been following your channel for over a year. It has been enlightening and inspiring. The first video that I watched was the one in which you talked about the tank you have with the filter that broke down, and you just let it be. It truly inspired me and challenged me to think differently about the possibility of aquaria being close to self sustaining ecosystems. My girlfriend, who is not an aquarist, was totally captivated and inspired too. We watched it many times. I was hooked. Your content is truly amazing! I don't know how you find the time to do all of the research for some of your "deep dive" videos. Thanks for sharing your knowledge and being such an inspiration!

@Aedony 2 жыл бұрын

I have dirt from my garden in the tank with no cap. Works well too.

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Yeah as long as you cycle dirted tanks well, and don't plant to move things and dig up plants all the time, it's a great option

@bipolaraquatics 2 жыл бұрын

Great explanation

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Thankya

@tiffanyclark-grove1989 6 ай бұрын

I am making this decision now. Doing my first planted tank, 40G. I am doing dirt and wanted to mix in clay and humic acid. Anything I need to know about the mix? I think I use 2 teaspoons of humic acid for 40G?

@chrishowell4775 2 жыл бұрын

Great video very informative

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks Chris

@jawjagrrl 2 жыл бұрын

Researching before setting up my old 55s from the 90s again, which had just rocks and plastic plants because MBUNA! :) I have nano tanks that are all planted, doing ok with fluval stratum and nothing else. My happiest stem plants seem to be in the QT tank that is mostly sand capping maybe 1/2 of stratum. The big tanks will have geophagus that are big substrate diggers, so I suspect my plans will change because of that. I've got great river sand - should I attempt something like aquasoil underneath or not bother knowing that the cichlids will just make a mess of it anyway? Thank you so much for all you informative content - I know my shrimp are happier because of your channel.

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

If you know the cichlids dig more than an inch or two...I'd skip the aquasoils or dirt and go with gravel and or sand... and rhizome plants or bulb plants with a sand cap...like my bottom level cichlid tank. Have fun though!

@calebwatson3023 2 жыл бұрын

Great info!

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Thanks

@monsterkeys-portal4039 2 жыл бұрын

Awesome video and you've given me something to think about when I do my next planted tank, also did anyone else see the reflection of a pidgeon in one of the tanks?

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Hahahaha that is pepé the pigeon ...he keeps the cichlids from trying to jump or mess with the light/lid/filters in my uppity haplochromis cichlid colony haha. They're terrified of that bird lol

@CF_Joel 2 жыл бұрын

I bet that explains why my ludwigia miniaturized in my newer tanks. I used Stratum. Actually, all the plants miniaturized before I dosed with Flourish, but the ludwigia is the last to pull through. The new leaves are slightly bigger than the last ones, improving every day. I think I will go with Fluorite next time, what I used previously, cause the Stratum doesn’t anchor the plants very well.

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

That or light ...or both hehe most likely !

@CF_Joel 2 жыл бұрын

@@Fishtory could it be too much light? It’s in a 10 with a Kessil A80 and another 10 with an AquaRay GroBeam 600 Ultima. I put a couple pieces in my 55, the other day, that has significantly less watts per gallon, and it’s having the best recovery out of all of them. The 55 is 3 or 4 years since the last move.

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

@@CF_Joel yes 100% there is a limit to the light plants need. If they have a need for light, the stretch and reach up, growing longer stems between leave nodes, however highlight without co2 AND all their essential fertilizers, will self limit their growth and often times you can grow dwarf looking little densely leaved plants when the light is more than the co2/fertz can handle/or it's a plant that just doesn't grow any faster than the pace it already has hit. Some people do it on purpose to "bonsai" plants like moss or carpeting plants

@CF_Joel 2 жыл бұрын

@@Fishtory Bonsai-ing interesting! The Kessil has an intensity knob. I will experiment with less light.

@tessw9744 Жыл бұрын

HA! I got so much info from this video that I'm more confused.😂 Mainly because I have been keeping fish for 3 years in basic tanks with plastic and rubber decor.😂 So I don't know a lot of the products you mentioned in this video. I want to start a planted tank and I have organic soil , sand and Fluval Bio Stratum. I want the Fluval on top, so what do I put underneath? If sand blocks nutrients, then won't my plants suffer if I put sand on top of the soil?...can I just use soil with substrate on top? Or should I just use all substrate, as a beginner? Would substrate cap the soil well enough without using sand? I have snails ,a pleco algae eater and guppies. Hornwort, java moss, monte carlo. PS. I don't care if I have to do water changes. I'm not aiming for a balanced ecosystem where I don't have any maintenance. I just want a nice planted tank. Help a sistah, out. ✌🏾

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

So id recommend a 1 to 2 inch sand cap...then plant any rooted plants into the sand with the roots just barely as deep as the sand cap. Their roots will find the nutrients... but you wont get surprise ammonia spikes. The sunstrate you use, can be anything if you cap it with sand to lock in the nitrogen compounds

@infamousgamer8721 24 күн бұрын

@FISHTORY! Awesome video! I'm getting ready to set up a 40gal breeder and I was going to use fluval substrate and flourite black sand gravel in fine mesh bags and cap with fourite black sand, is this a bad idea??

@ukkiejjj Жыл бұрын

Very interesting video! I just found your channel and I really like how detailed your info is! I have a 240L tank with fine gravel (with bristlenose pleco and clown loaches, platys and tetras)that has been running for 1,5 years now. The layer is a bit thin and I'm thinking of capping it with sand, or at least most of it. maybe some gravel still exposed in a quarter of the tank. Do you think that would work without cleaning the gravel first? Its dificult finding info on this

@sarahsindeband9043 9 ай бұрын

Hey I have a couple substrate questions! Can you tell me which aquasoils do not come with ammonia already but still have the ability to hold the nutrients from the water column? And if I put a sand cap over the substrate, will it hinder the process of pulling the nutrients from the water column? Also seeking tips on stem plants with a boisterous bristlenose who is very good at uprooting them! Thanks for all of the informative content!

@Fishtory 9 ай бұрын

So id highly recommend you watch my video on active vs innactive substrate and which to use, called " the best aquarium substrate".

@sarahsindeband9043 9 ай бұрын

@@Fishtory thanks!

@irenedool1069 2 жыл бұрын

My tank has 3 inches of sand that’s been running a long time. It’s covered in mulm, well the back and my African Dwarf Aquatic frog likes to hide in, so do my julii cories. Last I counted I’d 3 but lately I’ve only seen one that worries me because I know they need a school. I have Malawian trumpet snails, corries, cherry barbs, golden barbs, Zebra danios, and one very bossy female silver Lyre tail molly ‘ms Bossy Boots’

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Sounds lovely!

@amateurastronaut5006 7 ай бұрын

Can I mix some aqua soil with organic dirt from my garden? My thoughts the aqua soil might add some long term fortification to my garden soil.

@Fishtory 7 ай бұрын

Sure! Totally fine

@matthewbishop8743 4 ай бұрын

Nice video Alex, thanks! Where did you get those racks at by the way?

@EuroGupper 2 жыл бұрын

Keep it up Alex. I like your videos and you are always there to give advice Edit: What are those white (light colored) floating particles in your tank?

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Thank you Jonathan! The white floating stuff is mostly micro bubbles from the HOB splash, but in other tanks w/o the filtration it's usually little micro fauna like seed shrimp

@EuroGupper 2 жыл бұрын

@@Fishtory I am new to this so i am guessing that micro fauna is a great indicator for having a healthy naturally cycled tank and if you have fry that can feed on the micro fauna as well. How long does it your tanks to get micro fauna?

@alisonvesper2133 10 ай бұрын

Would paver sand work for a cap or do I really need to go get pool filter sand? I plan to use potting soil, cap with paver sand, then a thin layer of small decorative rocks. I have java fern, a lotus type plant, monte carlo, & duck weed. Tank will be 2.5 gallons with hanging internal filter, heater, & led clip lamp. One betta, one snail to start, hopibg to add a few shrimp & maybe 3 rice fish.

@Fishtory 9 ай бұрын

It will work, but its messy and sometimes has crushed limestone which may or may not change your ph. Pool filter sand is about 15 to 20 bucks a bag for hth at ace or true value... lowes and home depot charge double oddly

@alisonvesper2133 9 ай бұрын

@@Fishtory Thanks! Appreciate the reply. Hope you are feeling well & thank you for all the great content 😊

@sam805236 2 жыл бұрын

2 questions...I'm going for a heavily planted aquarium, I plan on using something like fluval stratum and I'm not going to add any fish until the plant ecosystem gets established. I want a natural mulm cap, so no sand and no gravel vacuuming. My 1st question is when is it ok to add the cleaner crew (shrimp and snails). 2nd, how deep should we be adding root tabs and does doing that disturb the cap and release harmful toxins into the water column? Ok, that was technically 3 questions haha, thanks in advance for all the knowledge.

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

So first off, the natural cap sort of needs fish poop and plants...or with just snails and shrimp you can create one but it can take a year or so. (Fish...more like 4 to 6 months for nano fish in a planted tank). But I'd put root tabs in before you add any critters, and bury them 1.5 to 2 inches deep, about every 5 to 7 inches in a grid pattern. You're safe to add the clean up crew shrimp, snails and other critters, as soon as the ammonia reads 0, nitrites 0 and the nitrates are somewhere between 10 and 50ppm ideally. Best of luck to you!

@sam805236 2 жыл бұрын

@@Fishtory thanks for the quick reply, I really appreciate the help

@rab-cnesbit4181 Жыл бұрын

Hi there I gave up fish keeping because of disability and chronic pain and could not do water changes . Then I found Father fish on you tube and I got set up a 2 foot echosystem with deep substrate and plants , I could only get white sand , but the problem is brown aqua soil and black gravel bleed through the sand cap , it looks awful. I m gonna get more sand , or shall I just hide it with hair grass ?

@miscellaneousetc.4280 6 ай бұрын

Love the subpop hat. Legit

@NeoVeritas7 9 ай бұрын

Setting up my first community planted tank. Question, I have fluval stratum coming in, whats the benefit of sand at the very bottom opposed to capping with sand?

@Fishtory 9 ай бұрын

Sand at the very bottom is mostly just to be a cushion for glass so that any rocks or wood have a barrier and so the weight against the glass bottom is equal. The cap is funtional as keeping the soil fertz and nutrients seperated from your water collumn

@Funsun39 Жыл бұрын

Can you use a uv sterilizer to keep down algea? The reason I ask is because my canister filter has a uv light in it.

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

Yes it should help :)

@Isaiah-hy2xf 2 жыл бұрын

I'm a newbie and am cycling a 55 gallon which I added fluval stratum to. I am not sure if pool sand will just sink right through the stratum onto the glass so I am finding it confusing to know if I should add pool sand or pea gravel on top of the stratum or maybe both. What do you recommend? Thanks for your help!

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

I usually just add about 2 inches or so of sand...it'll mix for an inch or so, but then it creates a "cap' and locks in the nutrients of the soil and prevents leaching into the water column

@Isaiah-hy2xf 2 жыл бұрын

@@Fishtory Great, thank-you very much!

@leviluhn142 Жыл бұрын

Do Malaysian trumpet snails, rabbit snails or other burrowing creatures cause issues with the cap?

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

They can if its only 1 inch or so...if its deeper then the sand collapses back aroiund them, and doesnt cause too much trouble

@leviluhn142 Жыл бұрын

@@Fishtory Thank you!

@kinglyzard Жыл бұрын

My 65g was a gift that came with Chattahoochie gravel. How can I amend the substrate with active substrate without tearing the tank apart? Or should I just let mulm build up??

@8PistonPony Жыл бұрын

Possible stupid question here, but I was recently given a 20L tank that already had fish in it by a friend that just wasn’t being taken care of. It was open top with just a sponge filter, sand bottom, and two tetras, three Kuhli loaches, a Bristlenose, and a Flash pleco with a few Anubias. When they took the tank down for me to get, they threw the filter media away and I didn’t have any other tanks at the time, so it had to cycle all over again with the fish in it. Thanks to the plecos, there is no shortage of waste in the tank. I put a Fluval U2 filter in, glass top, Finnex Planted+ 24/7 HLC, Eheim Skim350 surface skimmer, and bought both Stratum and Flourite Black sand. Would it be advisable for me to let the waste build slightly in the sand in it now, add Stratum, then cap with the Flourite sand? If not, do you have any other recommendations? I have aspirations of turning this into a heavily planted tank and adding CO2 injection in the future, as well as pulling out some of the inhabitants and rehoming them.

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

Yeah as long as ammonia isnt building, i think that's a great idea! Good thinking

@8PistonPony Жыл бұрын

@@Fishtory thank you for the advice, I appreciate it! Definitely subscribing for more knowledge!

@8PistonPony Жыл бұрын

@@Fishtory I believe I had an ammonia spike a few days ago, the person I got the tank from had fish in it but threw the filter media away so I had to start with a new filter. I noticed the Kuhlis in it had red gills and were gasping, so I set the U2 to aerate, dropped the temp for more oxygen, added more Stability, added an Eheim Skim350 on a timer, a second filter (Fluval U3), and some Hornwort and Duckweed to hopefully suck the ammonia out because I prefer to do as much as I possibly can without chemicals. Next day everyone seemed happy and healthy again, plenty of energy, no gasping, and their gills are all a nice light pink. Gonna run these for a few weeks and make sure everything is good before I change out the substrate so I don’t crash the tank or stress everyone into an early grave since they’ve been through so much already.

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

@@8PistonPony you got this!

@assassin3003 3 ай бұрын

I tried coro/coir substrate capped with a deep sand bed and my bristnose pleco tried going under this rock and made a complete mess out or everything, about to use fluval stratum with 3 inches sand cap maybe im going to place a thin layer of smooth gravek to stop any stratum from coming up

@Fishtory 3 ай бұрын

Try providing them caves half filled with sand ...they'll dig out the rest. That keeps mine more focused on their caves than on wrecking the aquascape 😆

@heidigib01 2 жыл бұрын

So I got a little shrimp/plant cube tank came as a complete kit including substrate. I’d rather sand on top. I was going to just put sand in front over thinner layer of base substrate but it should be ok all over as long as I don’t over vacuum? Thank you.

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Yes that, or some people use a pot or Tupperware container and drill holes all over it, so the water is still ph and tds buffered (if it's shrimp specific substrate) I've seen people use glass bottoms so they can keep it spotless and see babies...and just put like 3 lbs of substrate in a Swiss cheese looking container sitting in a corner, with plant or two in there also. I hope that helps

@jamesamatore8717 11 ай бұрын

What are your thoughts on using black diamond blasting media?

@Fishtory 11 ай бұрын

Makes a good cap layer... but i don't like how dusty it can be, and how thick of sludge the dust can choke out some stem plants. All that said, some lekple swear by it.

@GOGOIchigo17 Жыл бұрын

This was very helpful thank you so much. I have a low tech 40 gal breeder that I've had for a couple of years now. I have lots of stem plants and they seem to do okay once rooted but I haven't had any luck with carpeting plants or smaller plants in general. Even the larger stem plants will get leggy at the base and almost seperate from the root system that is deeper down. I only have about 5in of eco complete as the substrate. I theorized that it was because eco complete it more of a gravel texture and the plants are having trouble rooting into the hard/heavy substrate. Is that true? I was thinking of tearing the whole thing down and restarting with aqua soil like stratum and topping with sand like you suggested. I have a large planaria problem as well so I'm ready to throw in the towel and start over. Do planaria meds work? Should I try and add a layer of stratum over the eco complete or get rid of the eco complete entirely, scrap the tank and start fresh? Any advice is appreciated. This is a cool water tank, high light, no co2, freshwater river goby setup, aiming for fully planted balanced ecosystem. First planted tank for me so I'm still learning.

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

I agree with your cap idea....and yes, "no planaria" works well, but remove any favorite snails just in case....sometimes it can kill a few snails.

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

And if you wanted a link: No planaria link: amzn.to/42alw8x

@GOGOIchigo17 Жыл бұрын

@@Fishtory Thank you so much!

@aquaauthentica7653 2 жыл бұрын

All of my attempts at sand caps just turn into... sand tombs with the planted substrate on top. It just sinks under between Cory disruption, Planting, gravel cleaning, etc

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Are you gravel vacuuming deep? Because that will speed that up... so I'm trained as an archeologist, and we had something called the rules of deposition...which #1 was the material with the greatest density will always work its way downward at a linear rate. Basically the denser and the smaller...the faster it moves downward into the earth/ substrate. So you will need to have a dense enough rock or gravel layer, so that it can rival the sand.... Pea gravel that's rounded works well. Large gravel or angular stuff like fluorite or chest, usually ends up overpowering the sand...but you can always add more sand, or stop gravel vacuuming deep...just hover above that top layer, barely digging into the sand at all...that preserves things longer, but over time the aquasoil always comes to the top, sand goes to the bottom...sometimes that's 4 or 5 years in the making.....sometimes it's only a few tank cleanings (if you gravel vacuum or have digging creatures)

@voluntaryismistheanswer 2 жыл бұрын

About four inches on top seems to work for me, lol. Good luck.

@fioregiallo 2 жыл бұрын

My tanks with $2 soil and $5 sand cap are doing so much better than the ones with controsoil and pool sand. Maybe I wasted money, but now I know lmao. My quarantine tank is planted but with no substrate. I have java ferns, guppy grass, and hornwort as well as some floating plants. Also ramshorns. So whatever needs to go in there is comfortable, but it's still easy for me to move them out without uprooting anything or disturbing a capped substrate. It's developing a wonderful natural mulm substrate. I'm wondering if I can use that mulm to start the nitrogen cycle in new tanks I'm the future? Or would that not work?

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Yes! You definitely can...it's not quite as rich as the oxygenated filter media in like a hang off the back or a sponge filter, but it will certainly inoculate the tank for you! Lucas Bretz of LRB Aquatics does that exact same thing to start all his tanks, these days.

@fioregiallo 2 жыл бұрын

@@Fishtory awesome!!!!!!! Thank you so much! I use sponge filters, some of them with biomedia and I have used that before. I typically just put some new media tied in a piece of mesh stocking in for a few weeks before getting something set up. I was so curious about the mulm, though. Thanks again lol

@JTee05 2 жыл бұрын

Which soil and sand are you using? I’m trying to be on a low budget as well ☺️

@fioregiallo 2 жыл бұрын

@@JTee05 so I've now been using a mixture of the cheapest organic topsoil I can find and black Kow, about 2:1 and then I use the American Countryside sand all from Lowes. There is some tiny gravel and clay in the sand so I do rinse a bit out which takes away from how much final product I have but it's worth it. I leave the gravel because I like the look. This sand is a more brownish sand, so if you want white I'd definitely go with pool sand, which is still definitely more worth the money than fancy name brand substrates vs soil. For the bottom layer I also saturate the soil with mulmy water from my other tanks. Oh and I use grape leaves in the soil as well for crypts, which is a tip I learned from Bentley Pascoe. My method is a lazy take on the Father Fish method. I supplement with fertilizer but I have some hongry water column feeders and I am working on setting up a CO2 system as well with the GLA paint ball regulator. I have everything I need for it, except confidence 😂 do you have any tanks currently? What substrates have you tried? I hope I helped! I'm no professional by any means lol

@JTee05 2 жыл бұрын

@@fioregiallo wow, thanks for going above and beyond with that response. I don’t have anything currently, been out of it for many years. My son had a betta which died and he’s moved on to other things. I was going to make a planted shrimp tank to see how things went to start. The only thing confusing me is all of the different information on substrate. Some use just gravel, just sand, no soil, etc etc just trying to find the easiest to start and cheapest method.

@AquaticDomain 11 ай бұрын

I have a 10g and a 15g tank with (BDBS) Black Diamond Blasting sand. There's currently 1-2 inches of existing sand. Both tanks have been setup for about 2 years. I don't gravel vac the sand. Would you suggest just adding some root tabs or add some organic potting soil and mixing it and capping with 1 inch of more BDBS? If I go the root tab route how many do you recommend I use?

@Fishtory 11 ай бұрын

Either way will work well. Id space the root tabs about 4 to 5 inches apart in a row, then stagger the next row of them ...like checkerboard squares. Best of luck! (Root tabs are less messy, but will run out a little faster than rich soil most likely, but soil can also leach quite a bit of ammonia if it's rich ...and thats always a risk for fish if the tank isnt a new one

@AquaticDomain 11 ай бұрын

@@Fishtory thanks for the reply! Keep up your amazing work. I always look forward to watching and learning from you.

@ryanrogers8211 Жыл бұрын

Do you have any plenum tanks?

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

3 currently.

@noel1512 2 жыл бұрын

Have you ever mix ECO complete with dirt in a fish tank before?

@Fishtory 2 жыл бұрын

Totally. I treat it the same as ADA or any other "Organically active" substrates. I tend to like sand capping it most the time

@gk9417 9 ай бұрын

Should you have at least 2inch cap 🤷✌️🇨🇦

@Fishtory 9 ай бұрын

Yes indeed...if using a cap method... 2 inches is a good start. Silt can be as little as 1 inch and coarse sand may need 3

@3abdangry Жыл бұрын

for a nano shrimp tani, iam planning to use aqua soil with non root plants, whats the best top layer to add. no vaccuming and no stem plants, should aqua soil be at top or bottom?

@Fishtory Жыл бұрын

Id use fluval stratum or a brightwell as the top then.. Its what most shrimp keepers do... it also has a kh and gh buffer