Planted Tank with Potting Soil questions

[danchisum]

Hello,

I'm looking to do a planted tank with fish with potting soil. I've read a lot of information about it, but I think I'm getting a bit overwhelmed with the data out there about it. Here are the questions I have about it:

1) Can I use about 1.5 inches of Miracle Grow Organic with rocks or sand on top?

2) If I use an organic soil will I need to add CO2 or do regular water changes? The information I've read says I should not need to do that.

3) Are there any fish I should avoid having in a planted tank?

Thanks in advance for any help.

 

[DMunoz84]

I would recommend organic clean soil from a hydroponic store. You definitely don't want to find out there was a fertilizer in the dirt after-the-fact lol. With or without a cap The dirt will leach staining the water brown/green. My first two weeks I did 50% water changes every other day, even now I'm doing them every fourth day. CO2 is not dependent on substrate type but more the lighting & plants you have.

 

[DMunoz84]

6 days without a water change

 

[DMunoz84]

Day of w/c it's one of the biggest things you can do for your plants& fish ?

 

[Rivercats]

You can use any type of Organic Potting Soil. Many use Miracle Grow Organic Potting Mix. I have used Just Natural Organic Potting Soil for years. Just be sure you get Organic. I normally use 1-1/2 to 2" of soil and the same amount for the cap except in very small tanks.

Dirting a tank does not mean you don't need to do weekly WC's. You may have read some information on the Walstad Method which is much different than just having a dirted tank. I've been doing dirted tanks for many years and my oldest dirted tank right now is going on 4 years old and is a 220g.

In a dirted tank you don't want any fish that are diggers and if you like to rescape and move your plants around a lot I don't suggest going dirted.

 

[danchisum]

One more thing I've thought of

I just thought of another thing. With a soil base do I need to still use a filter?

 

[Rivercats]

Yes you do. You run a dirted tank no differently than you would any other type of planted tank.

 

[adlall18]

Question for you cat, if you're not going to have fish ( or inverts for that matter) in a planted tank do you still need a filter?

 

[BBradbury]

Using Potting Soil

Hello,

I'm looking to do a planted tank with fish with potting soil. I've read a lot of information about it, but I think I'm getting a bit overwhelmed with the data out there about it. Here are the questions I have about it:

1) Can I use about 1.5 inches of Miracle Grow Organic with rocks or sand on top?

2) If I use an organic soil will I need to add CO2 or do regular water changes? The information I've read says I should not need to do that.

3) Are there any fish I should avoid having in a planted tank?

Thanks in advance for any help.

Hello dan...

Organic potting soil is fine for a planted tank with fish. I used a couple of inches and topped it with standard aquarium gravel. Of course you'll need to do any planting before filling the tank, but you already know that. The potting mixture will nourish the plants for several months, if not close to a year. After that, you can use a liquid fertilizer like Seachem's Comprehensive. If you stick to the dark green aquarium plants, you don't need CO2. These plants don't require high end lighting, so you can use bulbs from the local hardware store.

Careful performing water changes, though. You can't disturb the bottom in the least or you can have a mess on your hands. The water will still need to be changed, half the water every two weeks or so. Give it a go and see how it works.

B

 

[Rivercats]

Question for you cat, if you're not going to have fish ( or inverts for that matter) in a planted tank do you still need a filter?

Read up on the Walstad Method as that is perfect for what it sounds like your wanting. I personally would run some type of small filter as even in later years Walstad changed over to running a small filter to keep the water from becoming static.

 

[Albino Sick Led]

What each person likes individually

I think it comes down to what you would like personally. As suggested by Rivercats earlier, i wouldn't recommend it if you have fish that like to dig, like Cichlids, might become a hassle keeping your water look clean and not cloudy.

I personally like the approach of doing soil bottom and topping off with a nice substrate like Eco-complete.


Best of luck!

 

[danchisum]

I think it comes down to what you would like personally. As suggested by Rivercats earlier, i wouldn't recommend it if you have fish that like to dig, like Cichlids, might become a hassle keeping your water look clean and not cloudy.

I personally like the approach of doing soil bottom and topping off with a nice substrate like Eco-complete.


Best of luck!

I had never looked at Eco-complete before. I like the look of it. It looks like it will work well with soil. I haven't fully decided what type of fish I want yet because I like so many, but they usually aren't compatible. I like Tiger Barbs, Bala Sharks and Cichlids, but they won't work well together. I'm hoping that if the plants take off well then it will bring down the aggression in the tank overall because there will be more hiding spots.