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Old 25-04-2004, 07:05 PM
 
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Default Substrate heater installation?

Substrate heaters are supposed to be of long term benefit. They won't make
your plants grow faster, better, or nicer. But they will allow you to grow
them for many many years without getting a stale substrate.


Thanks for that. I have read in several books now about the use of
substrate heaters. In addition, I'm the type of person who reasons any
given thing out before acting. It makes very clear sense that, in trying
to mimic a natural environment as much as possible, you would like to
provide some moderate constant heat in the base, the "earth". And that
just on the face of it. In detail, substrate heaters, I'm told, create
little eddies of upcurrent or something, helping to provide circulation
throughout the substrate.


They do NOT mimic nature at all. Why is nature better for growing
plants? Plants just grow there, it's not because that's what is BEST
for the plants.
Agricultural crops are NOT grown naturally.

Those little eddies are channelized and clog after a while. Unless you
maintain the substrate and replant, uproot etc, substrates will
accumulate too much organic matter after a few months/years.

I challenge anyone to show any significant improvement in growth using
the cables. I've used them for a decade and never saw any benefit in
some 7 tanks over the years.

It does not make any difference in the ability to make and maintain
and high level of aquascaping in a planted aquaria from anything I've
seen or heard from anyone.

Will it hurt your tank? No, but neither will sending me 20$.
You can read George and my discussions on the APD.

Reagrds,
Tom Barr