# Aqua Basis and Florapol



## dukydaf (Aug 31, 2004)

I'm looking forward to change my aquascape and my substrate. I bought 3 bags*5L each with Aqua basis from JBL and 1*600g florapol. I can not buy anymore so i have to deal with what i have.
On the florapol box it says JBL Florapol is a complete fertilizer for new ... effect of approx. 3years.......sufficient for...aquariums with length of 80to 100......Place a layer of approx 4 to6 cm washed gravel over the first layer( sand and florapol)
On the aquabasis bag it says" ......suuffiecent for setting up 100 litre aquarium...Place a 4cm layer with gravel with a gain size of 2-3cm on top...."

My questions are:
Is this enough??
Can i mix them together and add sand not gravel on top??
Does anyone has any experience with this product??


----------



## Laconic (Feb 11, 2005)

First of all what is your tank size? 

Frankly u only need either Aquabasis or Florapol, not both.

Aquabasis is a substrate base fertiliser and your 3 bags is more than sufficient for a 4ftX1.5ft tank. just follow the instructions on the bag. I think sand is not a good idea as it will compact over time.

I suggest u do a 3 layer substrate with around 2-3 cm Aquabasis at the bottom, then 1-2cm of Florapol and gravel mix and finally 4-5 cm of gravel (grain size 2-4mm). The thickness of your substrate will of cos depend on the depth of your tank.


----------



## dukydaf (Aug 31, 2004)

*sorry for that*

The aquarium is 250l (62.5G) with the dimensions 120*45*45 cm.
The Florapol is some kind of laterite. I read somewere that laterite needs anaerobic conditions to work am I right? 
I want to go with a substrate of 7cm. The Aquabasis will be about 2.5cm. Now i don't know with the use of floarapol. If i use it on the tp of the aquabasis when i uproot a plant this will come bt if i use it under the aquabasis it wil be to deep??
They say to mix with some 2-3mm sand the florapol so i figuered that1 cm of this florapol with sand. 
After that some 2-3mm gravel.Now here comes the problem. Here in romania i can't find any2-3 mm gravel. The one that i have in my aquarium ( the mulm from the fish keeps comming out and this is why i want sand) is about 3-10 mm. The biggest sand i can find is 1mm.
I would realy like a sand substrate because the mulm is easier to clean, plant stay there and it looks cleaner. I think that a 4 cm sand substrate will not compact so fast ( i have catfish)

What would you choose the 3-10 mm gravel ( i think it would leak the iron from the laterite) or the 1mm sand????


----------



## Laconic (Feb 11, 2005)

If the colour of the sand is the same as that of the gravel, I would suggest that u could do a mix of sand and gravel. If the colour do not match then I would go with the sand as the large gravel size would lead to nutrient leakage from the Aquabasis and florapol.

Before mixing the gravel and the sand, I think if u can, u should sift out the larger sized ones(>7mm). That would be very useful as plants cannot root effectively in large-grained gravel.

Hope all this helps.
For more advice on Aquabasis and Florapol maybe u can visit these Singaporean websites. JBL products seems to be unfamiliar to US aquarists.

http://www.aquaticquotient.com/forum/
http://www.arofanatics.com/forums/forumdisplay.php?f=8


----------

