Massive Problem
I have never heard of anyone advising the use of topsoil, certainly not in a tank you wish to keep fish in. This would be fine in a very large body of water but not in a tank. Flourite is fine but topsoil is a disaster just waiting to happen. The depth of the substrate alone will produce anoxic poinsonous gases which will eventually leak into the water. I would learn from it, remove the top soil and start again. If left it will cause problems in the future, if you want to try and keep some fish that is.
-
Catfishmutant
- Posts: 19
- Joined: 11 Jul 2005, 05:11
- Location 1: United States
-
sidguppy
- Posts: 3827
- Joined: 18 Jan 2004, 12:26
- My articles: 1
- My images: 28
- My aquaria list: 5 (i:0)
- Spotted: 9
- Location 1: Southern Netherlands near Belgium
- Location 2: Noord Brabant, Netherlands
- Interests: African catfishes and oddballs, Madagascar cichlids; stoner doom and heavy rock; old school choppers and riding them, fantasy novels, travelling and diving in the tropics and all things nature.
- Contact:
-
Deb
- Posts: 485
- Joined: 12 Jan 2005, 02:42
- I've donated: $75.00!
- My articles: 1
- My images: 8
- My cats species list: 38 (i:21, k:0)
- My aquaria list: 4 (i:4)
- Spotted: 11
- Location 2: Virginia USA
- Contact:
Small catfish would be fine:
Otocinclus
Corydoras
Farlowella
Ancictrus
Parotocinclus
These would all work in a heavily planted tank. I know.
Panaque is getting too big. Anything bigger than that is much too big. Flourite would be much too rough for a Panaque, or IMO most bottom-dwellers. Did anyone say this, yet?
People who go in for natural aquariums have been using topsoil, and they know what they're doing. They use it with a covering of gravel, and they keep mostly livebearers, and fish that don't dig much or eat plants.
There is more than one way to do it.
Sometimes they keep the plants in pots, to protect them from boisterous fish. Topsoil in the pot, covered with gravel.
It is a whole other topic, and a whole other field of endeavor. There are many websites that specialize in information for this kind of tank.
I think topsoil and Flourite is overkill, but so what? They don't work against each other. Just keep those stem plants in there! As thick as you can!
If I had seen this post when it first went up, I would have said don't worry about the Flourite - it always settles out. Don't overrinse it, either. You need the "fines" to enrich the iron delivery.
Excellent job, Catfishmutant!
Deborah
Otocinclus
Corydoras
Farlowella
Ancictrus
Parotocinclus
These would all work in a heavily planted tank. I know.
Panaque is getting too big. Anything bigger than that is much too big. Flourite would be much too rough for a Panaque, or IMO most bottom-dwellers. Did anyone say this, yet?
People who go in for natural aquariums have been using topsoil, and they know what they're doing. They use it with a covering of gravel, and they keep mostly livebearers, and fish that don't dig much or eat plants.
There is more than one way to do it.
Sometimes they keep the plants in pots, to protect them from boisterous fish. Topsoil in the pot, covered with gravel.
It is a whole other topic, and a whole other field of endeavor. There are many websites that specialize in information for this kind of tank.
I think topsoil and Flourite is overkill, but so what? They don't work against each other. Just keep those stem plants in there! As thick as you can!
If I had seen this post when it first went up, I would have said don't worry about the Flourite - it always settles out. Don't overrinse it, either. You need the "fines" to enrich the iron delivery.
Excellent job, Catfishmutant!
Deborah