# [Wet Thumb Forum]-new gravel and sub strate



## qbal18 (Jul 19, 2004)

i am going to have to get some new gravel and substrate due to the one i have now has a bunch of sea shell in it. i was thinking of putting sand on the very bottom with a bit of larger peble in it to help it from compacting and then the uper 1/2-2/3 would be a florite mix with 2/4mm gravel would that be ok. coudl i get soem gugestions on differnet ideas. it is a 50g tank 3'x 16" i curently have about 100lbs of gravle total in it i owuld probally need about the same or just a liitle less i liek a real deep base. also i dont want it to be to expensive so can i get away with just 2 bags of florite and it still work ok or do i really need more?


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## qbal18 (Jul 19, 2004)

i am going to have to get some new gravel and substrate due to the one i have now has a bunch of sea shell in it. i was thinking of putting sand on the very bottom with a bit of larger peble in it to help it from compacting and then the uper 1/2-2/3 would be a florite mix with 2/4mm gravel would that be ok. coudl i get soem gugestions on differnet ideas. it is a 50g tank 3'x 16" i curently have about 100lbs of gravle total in it i owuld probally need about the same or just a liitle less i liek a real deep base. also i dont want it to be to expensive so can i get away with just 2 bags of florite and it still work ok or do i really need more?


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## ekim (Jan 31, 2004)

You can use what ever you think looks good!
1-3mm in size works good. I don't use the popular flourite at all, just plain gravel and have no trouble growing anything I try! You can see my tank in the gallery, there is lots of dwarf sag. and it being a root feeder has not trouble!


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## qbal18 (Jul 19, 2004)

i found a place today that hase 80lb bags of sand for $21(cilicate, or how ever you spell it) but it looked pretty good just wondering if it would help out alot to add 1-2 bags of florite or something else or nothing at all?

[This message was edited by Qbal18 on Tue February 18 2003 at 10:20 PM.]


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## chbak014 (Feb 3, 2003)

personally. i love flourite. this is what i did. 1/3 of bottom substrate flourite, the second layer was half flourite and half gravel. the top 1/3 was gravel. it has been working for me.
-charley

http://www.geocities.com/charleybak/aquarium.index.html


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## Phil Edwards (Jan 22, 2004)

Qbal,

Silica sand can be very nice...just make sure it's not fine grain. I had a horrible problem with undergravel rotting and large anaerobic patches with a fine grain sand.

Proverbs 3:7-8


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## qbal18 (Jul 19, 2004)

the stuff i was looking at was fairly fine it was pretty much like normal sand. just looked lot nicer in there tank at least. i stird up their hole tank and it almost settled instantly. with it being so fine is there anything you can do to help keep it from packing down?


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## jpmtotoro (Feb 13, 2003)

i'm going to be using onyx sand in my new tank most likely and i've been talking with some people about the packing down problem... the answers i got were to try malaysian trumpet snails (although they reproduce like rabbits) or also some kuhli loaches. perhaps a different loach, depending on how aggressive your other fish are, but those were some suggestions given to me. as soon as my onyx sand comes in i'll let you know how the kuhli loaches work if you'd like, although i suppose i won't know how effective they are for quite a while. hope this helps a bit

JP


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## qbal18 (Jul 19, 2004)

ok i think i have decided on going with silica sand. now how many bags of florite owuld be good to use any sugestions woudl 1 bag do or i guse the more the better right. also owudl you put the florite on the very botton or mix it in wiht the hole thing (so it is not a very clean sand top layer) how dose this look.


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## JamesHoftiezer (Feb 2, 2003)

I doubt a bag of flourite will really have an effect. You really need to mix half and half, with a little more flourite at the bottom and a layer of sand on the top.

The advantage of the flourite is the minerals in it which supplement your fertilizers and feed the roots directly. The recommended 'dosage' is 50 to 100%.

Many of us add fertilizers as 100-500% the recommended dosage. Why short your substrate? Your recommeded 'dosage' of flourite is 5-6 bags for 4" depth. A 50% mix would mean 3 bags.

A better mix of sand and gravel will increase the circulation and prevent compaction.

P.S> Here's jareds flourite calculator;
Flourite Calculator

James Hoftiezer


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## qbal18 (Jul 19, 2004)

ok unless i waited a month or 2 all i can aford is 1 bag florite would 1 bag under 60lb sand help out much at all or for that 1 bag am i wasting my time and just leave it out and mybe redo it abain in the summer when i can afford to put 2-4 bags under it if i fell the need.


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## JamesHoftiezer (Feb 2, 2003)

You could do one now and plan on working another one or two later. If you do I would leave the substrate as thin as possible then come back later and just add the flourite to the top and cover it with more sand.

You could also do sand and laterite. Many people use it and are happy with it. You'll still have a compaction problem and the laterite balls need to be replaced (I think







) every six months or so.

Before you commit to anything though let's hear what others have to say. I might be off base.

James Hoftiezer


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## JamesHoftiezer (Feb 2, 2003)

P.S> How much is your flourite? I just noticed that big al's has flourite for 10.99US or 29.99CAN. That's a huge difference isn't it?

James Hoftiezer


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## jpmtotoro (Feb 13, 2003)

i haven't tried sand, but i do like the all flourite instead of bare gravel. and as james said, big als has it, BUT shipping for it is more, so i think it comes to be between 19 and 20 dollars per bag. personally i like it, plus i like 100% substrates better because i'm not very careful when replanting and i'd completely mix the sand and flourite anyway so i don't bother. how big is your tank? i have a 50 gallon and was able to do all flourite for about 80 bucks. yes that's sort of a lot, but it was a decent upgrade. i don't think it's a HUGE upgrade, but a decent one. hmmm if you want 60 pounds of sand... you probably wouldn't need the same poundage of flourite to get the same depth since it won't compact like sand. just stuff to think about. maybe you could sell a kidney and be able to afford some flourite and possibly some extra left over for an ice cream cone


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## qbal18 (Jul 19, 2004)

i think i am going to go look alittle closer at the silica sand for $20 can for 80lb you cant beat it. pluse i have a habit of moveing stuff around alot so who knows maybe come summer i will want to rip iot all apart again anyways and add florite then i think it may be worth a try, or at least an experament for me to see how 100% sand dose other then the compacting part.

i wil post pics when done.

50g tank, 2.5wpg, 2-3mm, gravel Fe root tabs and jobes spreads out in gravel, 11hr full light period,


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## Wheeler (Feb 8, 2004)

Man, you guys *love* spending money on substrate. 

Flourite does *NOT* need to be used 50/50. That's the manufacturers recomendation and therefore rooted in taking your money. A .5-1" layer at the bottom is *ample* for any tank that will use water column ferts. I do it, Amano does it, all the aquarists did it long before most of us were even in the hobby.

Flourite is simply baked dirt. If you feel that, in these advancing times, you need an enriched substrate, put down a half inch or so of flourite and mix in a handfull of boiled peat. Cheap and more than you'll need.

Best wishes,
John Wheeler


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## imported_Platy (Feb 4, 2003)

I dont know if youve done this or not, seeing the last post to this thread was Feb 02 - But I use play sand from Lowes - 2.00 for 50lbs. Cant beat that price.


Dustin

ImaNewbie -
125 Gal - 3.07wpg - 99% flourite - Pressurized Co2 - Uv Sterilization when needed - Densly Planted


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## qbal18 (Jul 19, 2004)

ya i did the change already i got a 80lb bag of silica sand for 20$ i like the look.

tank specs are in my profile


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