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Would Eco-Complete African Cichlid Sand...

6K views 17 replies 6 participants last post by  bf2king 
#1 ·
Would Eco-Complete African Cichlid Sand be good for my tank? its the tank listed below. also is $35 is a good deal for this substrate?
 
#3 ·
thats the problem with haveing unique fish but i cant seem to accept that the "normal" fish are just as good lol

any sujestions on a sand substrate i could possibly use?
 
#5 ·
I just put play sand in my new 85 gallon, and I have to say, I love it. Plus, at $4 for 50 lbs, it really can't be beat! My tank's going to be very heavily planted, so I'm not that worried about the light color, as most of it won't be visible. There are two things that make me worry about using such a fine sand: the sand compacting around the roots of my plants, and 'evil air bubbles of death' (as some might call it). I've decided to combat both by adding lotsa malasian trumpet snails, so hopefully it won't be a problem.
 
#6 ·
i would like a darker substrate so would these work for my tank?

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/group/11124/product.web

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/group/233/product.web

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/group/10859/product.web

just the gravel in my tank is about 10 years old and is anoyingly hard to syphon... i mean blood worms and brine shrimp sink right through it out of the reach of my fish... not even the suply of feeder ghost shrimp i keep in the tank can get at it and it anoys me...

sry for my rant :oops:
 
#7 ·
I like the look of the Eco-Complete because it doesn't change the pH. I've also heard REALLY good things about AquariumPlants.com own substrate- it's dark (if you click the picture, you can see more), it's on sale cuz it's new, and they give free shipping. http://www.aquariumplants.com/product_p/ss-1.htm

The Tahitian Moon sand is really pretty- been drooling over it since I first saw it. I have no idea how good it is though, and it does change the pH of the water.
 
#8 ·
well i keep my pH at 7 because its tolerated or prefered by most fish. if it lowers pH thats not to bad but if it raises it i could have problems.

im just looking for a darker substrate thats easier to clean then gravel... sry for pestering but i HATE gravel... i think its the amount of frozen foods i feed my fish and if they wouldnt sink into the gravel i could feed less and have less mess... idk i could be searching hopelessly or i could not be.

also im on a budget so $50 is alittle to much for now.
 
#9 ·
That Aquariumplants substrate looks good,thats probably what I'm going to end up using in my 55 just because I cant afford $160 or so for eco or Flourite Black Sand.
Another option would be Soilmaster Select or Turface ( if you look at pics,it is the exact same as the AquariumPlants substrate) for around $14 for 50# if you have a Lesco nearby or distributer.I don't have one close by ..some Landscaping places or nurseries may have it too,although its main use is baseball fields and golf courses.

I posted a Q about the AP stuff look here:

http://www.aquariacentral.com/forums/showthread.php?t=143025

I dont know if you can see the pics posted or not without registering,but heres a close-up of the AP and Turface...looks the same to me..

 
#10 ·
Go to a landscaping supply yard or a rock yard. My lfs sells slate rock for the tank at $3.99 a pound...my supply yard had it for $0.06 a pound. Huge differance for the broke person who wants a nice tank. Check it out later tonight under pics, you'll get an idea of the slate I got for $0.78!!! LOL
 
#11 ·
okiemavis said:
I like the look of the Eco-Complete because it doesn't change the pH. I've also heard REALLY good things about AquariumPlants.com own substrate- it's dark (if you click the picture, you can see more), it's on sale cuz it's new, and they give free shipping. http://www.aquariumplants.com/product_p/ss-1.htm

The Tahitian Moon sand is really pretty- been drooling over it since I first saw it. I have no idea how good it is though, and it does change the pH of the water.
only if the order is $150 or more click on the quallfies for free shiiping
on there and see

and the Tahitian Moon sand has no effect on PH,it is an inert substance..don't know where you got that idea,everything I've ever seen on it makes no mention of it raising the PH,it says it has no effect on PH.
I have the Tahitian Moon Sand in one of tanks and it didn't change a thing. The price is rather high,about $20 for a 20 lb bag...fOR THAT YOU MIGHT AS WELL JUST USE Eco,ADA Aquasoil etc..especially if you want live plants..i cant get much to grow in my tank with the moon sand in it..its getting switched out with eco next week-end
 
#12 ·
Be careful and do your research about new substrates, as many of them will cause an ammonia spike when added to new tanks. This was a consideration I had to take into account when changing my substrate, I didn't have any other tank for the fish to stay in for too long so I didn't want to add any substrate that would radically change the water parameters. I decided to use turface. It is cheap, looks good, and the plants like it. You have a limited budget and all of the substrates you were looking at would be well over $100 to cover the bottom of the tank well (including shipping). Really, your only options for under 50 dollars are play sand and turface. I would recommend turface.

One other thing, most substrates cannot be cleaned in the same way as gravel. If you stick the syphon down into the substrate it will just get sucked up. Turface is this way, it isn't really a problem, I just kind of swirl the syphon over the top of the substrate to get up the big pieces.

Also, what is your pH out of the tap? Do you add pH-changing chemicals to your water?
 
#13 ·
my pH out of the tap apears to be 7 cause without adding chemicals (i havent got any drift wood yet and only 1 plant [silver dollars eat everything]) all my tanks are consistently at pH 7.0 for a 15-20 lb bag of those would cost around 35 dollars including shipping. would 20lbs not be enough? i only cover it in about a 1/4 of an inch do i need to add more?
 
#16 ·
The cichlid sand will definatly raise your ph so I don't think that's the way to go since you have some fish that like the ph lower. 7 is a happy medium for everyone. I think the cichlid sand holds the ph at 7.8 or something like that. Dr Fosters has it for $20 per 20 lb bag. That would be closer to the price I would expect to pay. $35 seems really high. What size is the tank and are you going to plant it?

BTW..I just changed my substrate last night and put 70lbs in my 55 which gave me 2-3 inches
 
#18 ·
well i will be getting some money in the next week or 2 for this. So i will probably get something like 40 lbs of it.

Ok so no eco complete. what would u recomend thats sandy and easily gotten?

I have a 55 gallon tank as it is the tank in my Signature
 
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