Hi everybody,
I'm due to redo my 28 gal 3 foot tank. It's been running for about a year now, and I'm getting tired of my cheap gravel boosting the KH of my water.
I did quite a bit of reading on this forum about substrates, but I have to admit that I'm still a little confused. It could be a case of me over thinking stuff again.
The one thing that comes back over and over is that you need to set goals before you start (see Tom, you're actually getting through to some of us). Some substrates that are good for one type of biotope could be rubbish for another. Since I have some pretty soft water coming out of my tap (approx 4dKH) I'll keep it simple and go for a "typical" South American biotope. Once I plant stuff, they stay in place, I'm not a chronic tank reorganizer, so I'm, not too worried about fouling the water when moving stuff around.
My budget is rather limited right now and I would like use stuff from my local garden center if possible.
Here's what I was thinking of using.
TOP
Heavy generic gravel (non reactive quartz gravel this time...)
Play sand
Peat moss + play sand Should I "grind" the peat first as some have suggested or do I leave it as-is. On a side note, I've noticed that getting good quality peat is getting harder, could coir (coconut fiber) be used instead?
Osmocote (one pellet think)
BOTTOM
I would like my water column to be slightly acidic. I don't really think I need to make it softer though. Is good old peat moss in the canister filter still the way to go? Could coir do the job? I have to admit that I'm not terribly found of brown water. As far as I understand, it's the tannins that soften/acidify the water when using peat. If I put active carbon (I know, some here don't like it, but it's been serving me well for years) and peat will the carbon nullify the water softening/acidifying properties of peat?
Thanks a million!
I'm due to redo my 28 gal 3 foot tank. It's been running for about a year now, and I'm getting tired of my cheap gravel boosting the KH of my water.
I did quite a bit of reading on this forum about substrates, but I have to admit that I'm still a little confused. It could be a case of me over thinking stuff again.
The one thing that comes back over and over is that you need to set goals before you start (see Tom, you're actually getting through to some of us). Some substrates that are good for one type of biotope could be rubbish for another. Since I have some pretty soft water coming out of my tap (approx 4dKH) I'll keep it simple and go for a "typical" South American biotope. Once I plant stuff, they stay in place, I'm not a chronic tank reorganizer, so I'm, not too worried about fouling the water when moving stuff around.
My budget is rather limited right now and I would like use stuff from my local garden center if possible.
Here's what I was thinking of using.
TOP
Heavy generic gravel (non reactive quartz gravel this time...)
Play sand
Peat moss + play sand Should I "grind" the peat first as some have suggested or do I leave it as-is. On a side note, I've noticed that getting good quality peat is getting harder, could coir (coconut fiber) be used instead?
Osmocote (one pellet think)
BOTTOM
I would like my water column to be slightly acidic. I don't really think I need to make it softer though. Is good old peat moss in the canister filter still the way to go? Could coir do the job? I have to admit that I'm not terribly found of brown water. As far as I understand, it's the tannins that soften/acidify the water when using peat. If I put active carbon (I know, some here don't like it, but it's been serving me well for years) and peat will the carbon nullify the water softening/acidifying properties of peat?
Thanks a million!