# Can i use this soil for my tank? (Miracle-Grow)



## somethingismikey (Nov 13, 2020)

Hi everyone! I finally have everything i need for my planted aquarium and I thought i might try out a dirted aquarium just to have the experience and see how it goes. I'm planning on doing a Dutch-style and today i bought this bag of soil. Do you think it's ok? I'm going to top it with Flourite Red plus some leftover Aqua Soil which is 100% Arcilite.


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## mistergreen (Mar 3, 2007)

looks good. I would soak the soil in bucket and skim off any large piece of bark. Drain the water and put in your tank.

I personally don't want unwanted critters so I microwave or put it in an oven until the dirt is around 200F but you don't have to do that.


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## hoppycalif (Apr 7, 2005)

Welcome to APC, "something"! I think that soil would work, but it seems to have perlite in it That stuff floats in water, so it can be a nuisance as long as you have it. The perlite doesn't make it any better for aquarium use, and it doesn't harm the plants or fish, but it can drive you nuts from always having to remove the floaters.


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## somethingismikey (Nov 13, 2020)

Thank you very much  I posted the question to The Planted Tank and got like 500 views and zero replies so I appreciate it a lot  Since i don't have all my CO2 equipment yet and my plants are being shipped, i got a bit excited and just went ahead and set up the tank without washing it, but my filter arrived yesterday so i thought of just filling the tank and letting it filter until planting. I can just empty it for planting.


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## mattk1919 (Nov 17, 2020)

I layered my soil up start with wet dirt, then a layer of gravel, then a layer of sand. You could run a bubbler up from undergravel tubes tubes then. Soak and drain is a good idea as is sterilizing though it takes nutrients out. Too much nutrients and organic matter in water can kill fish. You can run a biofilter to get things started and stabilize the tank. I let new setups run a week minimum with just the substrate and a biofilter before adding plants or critters. Do a pH and ppm test is a good idea.

Sent from my XT1635-01 using Tapatalk


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## hoppycalif (Apr 7, 2005)

Welcome to APC, mattk1919!


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