GailLaForest Posted April 22, 2023 Share Posted April 22, 2023 Greetings, We finally got a new 75 gallon tank and cabinet. It's in a great location against an east wall that gets bright, but not direct, sunlight. Our plan is to have a lush planted tank but we can't find anything definite about what base substrate to use for a planted tank. I've seen lots of opinions - everything from potting soil to "don't worry about it, the gravel is fine". We have 60 lbs of pea gravel so far . . . . So tell us what would you put down first if you were starting fresh? Give us your opinions! Thanks! Peace, Gail 2 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fish Folk Posted April 22, 2023 Share Posted April 22, 2023 75 gal. covers a fair amount of area. Cost is typically determinative in my fishroom. If money didn’t matter, some fertilizer down first, then Active Flora black for the base few inches, with whatever larger gravel on top of that. Eco Complete is great too. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mmiller2001 Posted April 22, 2023 Share Posted April 22, 2023 (edited) Ace Hardware pool filter sand. 11 bucks for 50 pounds. Several colors to choose from. Edited April 22, 2023 by Mmiller2001 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ninjoma Posted April 22, 2023 Share Posted April 22, 2023 Depending on what plants you want to grow, the substrate may be irrelevant. If you are growing crypts, swords and other root feeders, inert gravel or sand is still fine as long as you add root tabs. You can also use a plant focused substrate, but it's more expensive and will still require root tabs to replenish it once the nutrients are depleted. Soil has a reputation for being extremely messy, so I've avoided trying it personally. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Janoš Bećar Pecaroš Posted April 26, 2023 Share Posted April 26, 2023 Look for Diana Walsted’s Ecology of Planted Aquarium. Great book. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
GailLaForest Posted April 27, 2023 Author Share Posted April 27, 2023 Thank you so much for all the great replies! I really do appreciate it 🙂 Going to the co-op tomorrow to pick up what we need for the tank, we're hoping that Brandon will be there to help, he's the best! 1 1 Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tait_007 Posted April 27, 2023 Share Posted April 27, 2023 It really does depend on the plants you use. I had regular aquarium gravel in my seventy five with a singular amazon sword in it but I did feed it some root tabs and there was goldfish in there with it. By far the best amazon sword I had ever seen. But now I have a 30 gallon with stems, pothos where its roots are in the gravel, and amazon swords where I need eco complete. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gjcarew Posted April 27, 2023 Share Posted April 27, 2023 I don't know if you got a smaller size pea gravel but it's usually a bit too big to plant into. If you're going to aquarium co-op they sell gravel there that is a perfect size, and relatively cheap. Or honestly any fine aquarium gravel from a big box store will work as well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BuzzDaddy21 Posted April 29, 2023 Share Posted April 29, 2023 On 4/22/2023 at 3:02 PM, GailLaForest said: what would you put down first if you were starting fresh? I`m only using a certain brand of kitty litter from now on and it looks like gravel to me. (Light grey to medium dark color.) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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