# aquariumplants.com VS EcoComplete



## jdigiorgio (Jan 29, 2004)

I have 2 tanks, a 120 with ECO and a 90 w Aquariumplants.com's gravel. 

It seems the plants with the aquariumplants.com's gravel are growing better, but neither tank is doing "GREAT".

The question I have is...

The Eco complete tank has a morning, before lights on PH of 7.0...perfect

But the Aquariumplants.com tank has a Morning PH of 6.2.

If Turface is inert, why such a difference between the two tanks, especially when the Eco has a MUCH MUCH bigger bio load?

Anyway to raise the PH without raising the KH?


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## khanzer22 (Nov 30, 2009)

How old is your setup with ap.com's substrate (aka SMS)? I've experienced the same when I started my 120gal last January using the same substrate (ap.com)... Tank's PH has always dropped to 5.5 and it took like 3-4 weeks before it fully stabilized... I've read on some other threads that this type of substrate will lower your tank's PH during initial setup and duration also varies... What I did is just do WC almost every other day... After it stabilized, my tank's water is around 6.6-6.8, tap is 6.8...


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## WhiteDevil (May 7, 2009)

AP.com's trick is to use their liquid and root cap ferts as a total system rather then just the substrate. Two days of having the ferts in there with their black diamond substrate there is tremendous new growth. As itself the plants do OK better then eco and flourite but not great as you have said.

I didnt notice a PH change with mine as I have my Ph regulated by Co2.


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## Franzi (Dec 7, 2009)

Do you really believe that their ferts are specially made to work with the substrate? (asking in a serious manner, not being a d*ck) 
I'm not sure if I buy in to that claim.


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## WhiteDevil (May 7, 2009)

Franzi said:


> Do you really believe that their ferts are specially made to work with the substrate? (asking in a serious manner, not being a d*ck)
> I'm not sure if I buy in to that claim.


Things such as these products can be made to work with eachother better then anything else. They will work together to achieve results as opposed to different manufacturers making the same stuff but not putting the R&D into it to make them work with specific substrates, AP.com has done that and ill show you in two weeks what the results are.

I did buy it because I use grigg's dry ferts as well as seachem's liquid ferts(in two other tanks). I tried it, and NO BS I have more new growth where I put the root caps then where there is none. My O. swords,DDavila's "dwarf" grass as well as a jungle val are growing more noticeably then the other plants that consist of a bunch of low to high lights from a marimo to L. repens and giant hairgrass, a ambulia ect.

Ive only added 1ml of liquid fert to this tank since monday and 3 root caps. Like I said the plants with the root caps are growing noticeably. I cant say for sure if they work together the way they claim but it sure looks like they work great together.

I have eco complete in my 52 fbh dwarf sa planted tank, in that tank I use grigg's dry ferts, I get some growth, maybe a leaf or two total a week. Now my 10g planted MTS tank I use seachem flourish and excel and I get growth a little bit a month dosing per recommendations on the websites of grigg's and seachem.

Their gravel is now made by John Deere.(aquariumplants.com) and sells for 11 bucks per 50#


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## Diana K (Dec 20, 2007)

Soil Master Select, Turface and similar products will remove the carbonates from the water. This allows the pH to vary wildly, but usually drops to the low 6s. 
In my 29 gallon tank I added baking soda at the rate of 1 teaspoon a couple of times a week when I remembered. Finally the SMS quit removing the KH. 
In all my SMS and Turface tanks the KH is much lower than in other tanks except for one:
50% Turface + 50% Coral Sand works OK for a rift lake tank, and the substrate is darker than the coral sand by itself.


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