# Substrate help



## bigred35 (Apr 25, 2012)

OK at this time i have some eco complete in my tanks.. 150 gal. i have seen and herd of a lot of people use'n dirt in thier tanks..
and small peace of red clay(not sure what type yet) but looks like a good idea.. i plan to use if i find out what type.

alsoi was thinking of getting one bag of dirt and planned to put my mix of eco complete and sand on top cause i like the look...

any help or ideas woudl be great.. getting my c02 system next month and plants also..i want my tank up for about 2 weeks after i re make it..


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## bigred35 (Apr 25, 2012)

wow 52 views and no help.. what a great site this is..


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## Dejlig (Jan 20, 2013)

IMO if you have eco complete, you don't need to use the walstad dirt method. Laterite may be the clay product.


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## TarantulaGuy (Apr 15, 2009)

Patience man, patience. You know what they say, "Patience is a virgin." Or is it virtue.....I always get that mixed up.... Many people view a thread because they have a similar question as yours, not an answer to it. Give it some time. Insulting the site you are trying to get help from is not a quick way to win friends. 

Here's my 2 cents. You can grow great plants with just eco complete, no soil. I know this because I can, have, and do grow great plants in nothing else. Soil is good too, but the vast majority of people who do a soil substrate mineralize it first. If you are really keen on trying soil, I would highly recommend reading the mineralized topsoil thread here on APC, a simple search should pull it up. The process is possibly a bit more time consuming than you are willing to commit to. Soil is a bit messier if you are continually pulling up and re-arranging plants, hard for a meddler like me. But it produces great plants as well, no doubts about it. And yeah, most people normally cap it with something. The red "stuff" you are referring to is in all likelihood laterite. An iron enhancing subrate. Simplifying a great deal, if you have a decent fertilizing regime, and are staying on top of your dosing, you will not need any extra iron in the substrate. The main thing is balancing the ferts with the needs of your setup, that's the hard part.


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## bigred35 (Apr 25, 2012)

ok cool thanks a lot guys. sorry about the vent.. i have had other post befor that would not get a reply for many days if any... 

i really didn't want to change over to dirt .. just was a thought. i never thought about it in my tank befor i started to research...

i have seen people use the red clay in the tanks for the extra iron... just was not sure if it was a certin type of red clay....

i will look up the things you guys said thanks again... i will have my co2 system in a few days..


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## greenglow (Nov 6, 2012)

i run eco complete in my 55 gallon tank and get good growth. dirt works but sucks when u pull out plants. creats a big mess.


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## bigred35 (Apr 25, 2012)

ok i will stick with the eco...

but can anyone tell me if ceramic clay.. is the same as laterite....

i will have three amazon swords so will need the extra ironi would think on what i have been reading on how much they like to eat.


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