Hello,

Looking for some input here. . . what is the BEST substrate I can put in my
60 gal planted tank ? I have 260 watts of light and am injecting CO2 via
cylinder. Also, where can I buy this substrate ?

Any advice is appreciated


Carmine

Generally flourite and eco complete are the plant geeks favorites!!


Kasselmann aquarium plants book 59.99
Eco-Complete 14.99 a bag

Marcus

http://www.aquatic-store.com/

Co2 tanks on sale
Power compact bulbs and MH the lowest on the net
Co2 regulator and bubble counter with needle valve $75

JBJ lighitn, Hamilton lighting and milwaukee 5% price match find it
cheaper and buy it with us for 5% less than thier price


On Ventura JR" wrote:

Hello,

Looking for some input here. . . what is the BEST substrate I can put in my
60 gal planted tank ? I have 260 watts of light and am injecting CO2 via
cylinder. Also, where can I buy this substrate ?

Any advice is appreciated


Carmine

Looking for some input here. . . what is the BEST substrate I can put
in my 60 gal planted tank ? I have 260 watts of light and am
injecting CO2 via cylinder. Also, where can I buy this substrate ?
Any advice is appreciated
Carmine

Cute name...

Flourite, hands down... best stuff I've ever used, IMO...

should be able to get it at any PetSmart, but it'll be pricey.... My
suggestion is to mix it with similarly sized and colored gravel, same look,
cheaper by the bag... Flourite is usually $30 a 14lb bag here, but gravel is
$9 for 25lbs.... that's why I mix it...

--
RedForeman ©® future fabricator and creator of a ratbike
streetfighter!!! ==========================
2003 TRX450ES
1992 TRX-350 XX (For Sale)
'98 Tacoma Ext Cab 4X4 Lifted....
==========================
ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸¸,ø¤° `°¤ø,¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø


is that better??

Many people have the exact same results with eco-complete as they do
flourits I sell both
only problem with flourite is it can cloud the water while
eco-complete does not

Kasselmann aquarium plants book 59.99
Eco-Complete 14.99 a bag

Marcus

http://www.aquatic-store.com/

Co2 tanks on sale
Power compact bulbs and MH the lowest on the net
Co2 regulator and bubble counter with needle valve $75

JBJ lighitn, Hamilton lighting and milwaukee 5% price match find it
cheaper and buy it with us for 5% less than thier price

On Fri, 30 Apr 2004 09:35:06 -0400, "RedForeman ©®"
wrote:

Looking for some input here. . . what is the BEST substrate I can put
in my 60 gal planted tank ? I have 260 watts of light and am
injecting CO2 via cylinder. Also, where can I buy this substrate ?
Any advice is appreciated
Carmine

Cute name...

Flourite, hands down... best stuff I've ever used, IMO...

should be able to get it at any PetSmart, but it'll be pricey.... My
suggestion is to mix it with similarly sized and colored gravel, same look,
cheaper by the bag... Flourite is usually $30 a 14lb bag here, but gravel is
$9 for 25lbs.... that's why I mix it...

I use flourite and find that it is great but you have to wash it GOOD.
Also, eco-complete is great too and does not cloud water from what I
hear. You can find both on the internet, and after shipping, it is
still alot cheaper than you could get at Petsmart. Here is where I
brought mine from:

http://petsolutions.com/search.asp?t=c&c=10301

Hope this helps and good luck with plants.


RedForeman ©® wrote:
Looking for some input here. . . what is the BEST substrate I can put
in my 60 gal planted tank ? I have 260 watts of light and am
injecting CO2 via cylinder. Also, where can I buy this substrate ?
Any advice is appreciated
Carmine


Cute name...

Flourite, hands down... best stuff I've ever used, IMO...

should be able to get it at any PetSmart, but it'll be pricey.... My
suggestion is to mix it with similarly sized and colored gravel, same look,
cheaper by the bag... Flourite is usually $30 a 14lb bag here, but gravel is
$9 for 25lbs.... that's why I mix it...

"Carmine J. Ventura JR" wrote in message
...
Hello,

Looking for some input here. . . what is the BEST substrate I can put
in my
60 gal planted tank ? I have 260 watts of light and am injecting CO2
via
cylinder. Also, where can I buy this substrate ?

Any advice is appreciated


Carmine

How about at a well stocked quarry? Find a nice rounded stone (your
Corys will thank you), 1/16" to 1/8" diameter in the natural colours you
seek.

Or how about a sandblasting equipment supplier? Pick a coarse sand which
rolls easily in your hand (no sharp edges). Go for two tones (or 2
sizes), but they shouldn't be different in size _and_ colour (or it will
draw your eye to the difference). Reds, browns, tans, white and there is
some that is almost clear when it gets wet.

You can easily check if any of your purchases affect your water
parameters, and then you can buy a whole _lot_ of plants with the money
you saved ;~).
--
http://www.netmax.tk/

"Carmine J. Ventura JR" wrote in message ...
Hello,

Looking for some input here. . . what is the BEST substrate I can put in my
60 gal planted tank ? I have 260 watts of light and am injecting CO2 via
cylinder. Also, where can I buy this substrate ?

Any advice is appreciated


Carmine

Onyx sand is my favorite. Flora base is also good and same would go
for MPV turface(Profile), Eco complete and MPV turface are light
weight, that's something I do NOT like about either.

MPV turface is cheap, about 8-12$ for 50lbs and is not packed in
water.

For a new person, there's no real difference as far as growth or one
being better than another, you'd be very hard pressed to show any
differences.
I suppose you could say rinsing gravel is a techy issue for a new
person, I'd say otherwiseIt's not that hard to add water, swirl,
repeat 3x, then add to a tank.

The main issues: asethetics, weight, cost, availability(not much issue
here in the USA)

Flourite/onyx tend to be cheaper of the heavier brands which make
replanting and keeping plants down easier, vacuuming etc. I've found
12.50$ to 14$ a bag.

I suggest 100% of whatever it is with exception to MPV, it's cheap and
the added weight of plain sand(2-3mm dia) will help.

Wash each type 3x in a bucket and add to a tank. you can pass this
step with Eco complete but you pay for water/shipping.
I've never had cloudiness issues with any of these brands with rinse
3x and add to tank. If you have, you've done something wrong. Like
filling to dumping the water in too fast etc. See other 2 added items
below also to improve this issue.

Also, add about 2-3 handfuls of ground(not whole loose)peat moss to
the bottom and then some mulm, roughly 2 wet liters worth. Mulm is the
"dirt" you vacuum up from an established tank.This is what an
estblished tank has that a new one does not.

This will cycle your substrate just like an old established tank and
help the tank off to a perfect start, the peat will help add some
reducing power initially then wear off after a month or two.

By then your tank will be going along fine.

Regards,
Tom Barr

Many people have the exact same results with eco-complete as they do
flourits I sell both
only problem with flourite is it can cloud the water while
eco-complete does not

If you think the clouding is a problem, how do you explain that eco-complete
will practically float if the bag ever gets dried out, or that even when
wet, the stuff is so light, if you just do a gravel vacuuming, you can
loosen the stuff up so bad that it'll float...???

No t(h)anks... I'll just keep and continue recommending my flourite....
--
RedForeman ©® future fabricator and creator of a ratbike
streetfighter!!! ==========================
2003 TRX450ES
1992 TRX-350 XX (For Sale)
'98 Tacoma Ext Cab 4X4 Lifted....
==========================
ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø,¸¸¸,ø¤° `°¤ø,¸¸,ø¤°`°¤ø


is that better??