Mixing in ?

[brant]

I have a 75 gal with several diferent types of val and some anacharis all are growing well but was wondering if mixing alittle flourite or laterite or both would be benificial? I can't use the eco complete as the tank is already partialy stocked with fish. Rite now all they are in is about 3 inches of fine gravel and under low lite and as the water I use is really soft I have been adding equalibrium and flora pride just to keep some minerals in there.

 

[malkore]

Why do you think you can't use Eco complete because the tank is already stocked?

If anything, you cannot use laterite, because it needs to be placed UNDER the top level of gravel. Laterite dissolves, and has to be replaced periodically.


Since the tank is low light, flourite isn't going to benefit you. Save your cash.

 

[brant]

I thought eco complete really clouds the water bad. So any way you are suggesting go on as is?

 

[malkore]

Flourite clouds the water really bad, even if you rinse it. Eco complete might cause a slight haze, but that's it.

And yes, since you have such low light, you're not going to benefit from the fancier plant substrates very much. At $25 per bag, its pricy. You'd need 50% of your substrate to be flourite or eco complete before it'd even be worth trying. So about 4 bags for your size tank...that's $100 and unless you double your wattage, you'll never see a difference in the plant growth.