ninoid12 Posted July 4, 2009 Report Share Posted July 4, 2009 Ive been reading the posts about what is the best ground cover in different tanks depending on light, substrate etc. What are the pros and cons of having this ground cover? I absolutely love the look of a field of plants, so thats a pro. Cons... is it easy to clean the fish waste from the bottom of the tank? do you need to trim plants? are they ok with undergravel fiters etc? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
holycow Posted July 4, 2009 Report Share Posted July 4, 2009 (edited) initially having to plant the buggers and then having to maintain them, and yes, this means having to trim plants. you can just vac the crap off, otherwise the plants will utilize the poo. having plants creates a far healthier environment for the little fishies. Edited July 4, 2009 by holycow Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Bettarazzi Posted July 4, 2009 Report Share Posted July 4, 2009 In a heavily planted tank you don't need to remove the poo. Just acts as fertiliser. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Akythara Posted July 4, 2009 Report Share Posted July 4, 2009 Pro - its pretty! Makes a better environment for the tank and (most importantly) makes people exclaim, be amazed and astonished when they see how awesome fish tanks can be. Con - they tend to need high light and Co2 which = more money going out the drain Did i get that the right way around? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Peter16 Posted July 5, 2009 Report Share Posted July 5, 2009 Its not money down the drain because you have a beautiful aquarium to show for it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ghengis Posted July 8, 2009 Report Share Posted July 8, 2009 Pros - Looks awesome! So much better than plain substrate or BB. Not all groundcover needs high light or CO2, but it does help. My Riccia grows like wildfire and needs trimming every week...but I do have those two elements mentioned in the last sentence, plus I dose Excel. No need to vacuum...as 'razzi says, the poo just acts as fertilizer. I cannot recall the last time I actually vac'd my tank...in fact water changes have just become a fortnightly top off of evaporated water. Finally, my Cory's absolutely LOVE foraging around in the soft, lush "lawn"! Cons - Can't think of any. Seriously! Maybe one thing (in the case of my unstoppable Riccia), is the eternal trimming that I need to do. And tying all the offcuts to new rocks can be a real PITA. That will soon end, though, cos I nearly have the entire tank floor covered. I guess if you're growing HC or the like, then yes, the added nutrient etc requirements could be an issue, as well as the waiting for it to fill in properly... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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