Robbies Betta Posted November 30, 2005 Report Share Posted November 30, 2005 Ok, so you want to learn how to set up a tank. well first things first, what substrate will you use? I HAVE NO IDEA I want natural looking substrate and also don't know how much to buy for the 3ft and 2ft tanks. I want plants to grow, so enough substrate for root space. any ideas? Cheers :drool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Posted November 30, 2005 Report Share Posted November 30, 2005 My favorite is River Sand, just need to wash it really well. The plants love it! :drool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
xysti53 Posted November 30, 2005 Report Share Posted November 30, 2005 Robbie Before I would make my mind up on the type of substrate need I would have a reasonable idea of what I wanted the finished tank to look like. For example- a rocky riverbed look you could use containers with 1-2-mm gravel as plant pots and then cover the rest with a mixture or 5 - 20 mm gravel and a couple of large boulder thrown in for good measure. or the sandy river bottom just use river sand and a few bits of timber- make sure the sand is not too fine as plants like a bit of airspace between grains. I used 10 smooth black pebbles and 30 - 60mm smooth black pebbles in the planted tank that won Best Display of Show at this years RNA so you see the choice is depndant upon how you want the finished tank to look. Graeme :drool: Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbies Betta Posted December 1, 2005 Author Report Share Posted December 1, 2005 Cheers guys How much (in Kg) would u recommend for either of these tanks? I want to go the natural river stream look. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Posted December 1, 2005 Report Share Posted December 1, 2005 If you are talking about river sand, i used 2 25kg bags in my 4ft tank and that is a nice depth, i guess one bag for a 2foot and 1.5 for a 3 foot, although you could probably put 2 bags in the 3 ft :( Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jess Posted December 2, 2005 Report Share Posted December 2, 2005 River Sand My LFS (you know the one) has 20-25kg bags for $20-$25 That would do your 3ft. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuckie Posted December 2, 2005 Report Share Posted December 2, 2005 I like the look of riversand. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Phil Posted December 2, 2005 Report Share Posted December 2, 2005 Jess- $20-25? Same stuff at the hardware or nursery is $6 per bag! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbies Betta Posted December 2, 2005 Author Report Share Posted December 2, 2005 Cheers guys can't wait til I get it. The 3ft is gonna be my tetra commy tank. I've already found sum Black widow tetras :D now just need to set-up the tank :) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Callatya Posted December 3, 2005 Report Share Posted December 3, 2005 What plants are you thinking of? What type of filter? Any burrowing fishies? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jess Posted December 3, 2005 Report Share Posted December 3, 2005 Robbie you can get 5 black widow tetras for $10 up my way, they are youngish, so they would need to grow to adult size, which is quick I found. Don't pay $3.95 each for them!! They always have them in, along with Zebra danios for the same price Phil, I guess your right, I always see river sand at my local garden centre, never gave much thought into it It's like $30 for a trailer load!! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chuckie Posted December 3, 2005 Report Share Posted December 3, 2005 that would do a LOT of tanks! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbies Betta Posted December 4, 2005 Author Report Share Posted December 4, 2005 Think I'll get normal lowish light plants. The filter is gonna be a powerhead one. Cheers for the heads up Jess I think I'll turn the 2ft into a boy bottle holding tank for now, as I've run out of barracks space but hopefully I'll be able to set-up the 3ft before christmas. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mango4Jade Posted December 22, 2005 Report Share Posted December 22, 2005 Aqua-Clay Rich in Iron and is a very light substrate. Perfect for plants...but expensive... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Robbies Betta Posted December 24, 2005 Author Report Share Posted December 24, 2005 I ended up just getting bout 10kg of 3mm "Gold" pebbles/sand, so It looks like river sand I went looking VERYWHERE for river sand. couldn't find it in Kmart or Bunnings or Mitre 10 so just went to one of my LFS and bought the sand from there (10kg, under $20) Pics of my commy ta k can be seen in the Commy tank forum bit :P Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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