Substrate thickness
- Thread starter jay733
- Start date
for NON planted tanks, no more than 1.5 inches of gravel should be used. 3/4-1" is best.
in planted tanks, up to 3 inches is best. ideally, the substrate should be sloped and about 3" in the back and slope down to 1.5" in the front. this is because the larger plants you would put in the back of the tank have more extensive root systems, and small foreground plants have smaller root systems. the plants roots will spread through the substrait and prevent anaerobic pockets from forming, or from mulm building up in the gravel. you still should vaccume in all the places where there are not plants, but its unesecary to vaccume the gravel where you have plants.
in planted tanks, up to 3 inches is best. ideally, the substrate should be sloped and about 3" in the back and slope down to 1.5" in the front. this is because the larger plants you would put in the back of the tank have more extensive root systems, and small foreground plants have smaller root systems. the plants roots will spread through the substrait and prevent anaerobic pockets from forming, or from mulm building up in the gravel. you still should vaccume in all the places where there are not plants, but its unesecary to vaccume the gravel where you have plants.
the gravel should be thinner in an unplanted tank because all the gravel does in a non planted tank is trap gunk in it and cause anaerobic pockets to form where bacteria grow and create deadly gases.
in a planted tank, you need enough substrait for the roots to hold onto and to really get covered, and because the roots are pushing through the substrait and absorbing nutrients, no anaerobic pockets can form. trust me, the plants are just happier with more substrait. i only have about 1.5 inches of sand in my 20g long planted tank and i am really wishing i had more right now. it makes it really hard to get plants to stay in the sand, you have no room to bury the roots.
in a planted tank, you need enough substrait for the roots to hold onto and to really get covered, and because the roots are pushing through the substrait and absorbing nutrients, no anaerobic pockets can form. trust me, the plants are just happier with more substrait. i only have about 1.5 inches of sand in my 20g long planted tank and i am really wishing i had more right now. it makes it really hard to get plants to stay in the sand, you have no room to bury the roots.
I disagree with the "up to 3" rule for planted tanks. Even some of the extreme veterans on this website will vouch for 4" or sometimes up to 6". I personally average about 4" in all my planted setups, with no less than 3" in the front. Even forground plants like smaller crypts and chain-swords need some room for the roots to establish properly and fully. I have NEVER had any issues with toxic gasses building up in any tanks even though my substrates are often up to 5" or so in certain spots.
I have one tank that was formerly a planted tank with 50/50 sand/Flourite, and now is home to a large cichlid with NO PLANTS! He digs like a madman in certain areas of the tank going all the way to the bottom, but in other areas he simply cannot get to the sand (this is where I allow my pleco to hide from him- lots of driftwood/etc.). So in many ways this tank is a worse-case scenario, and I've still never had a problem. This fish often builds huge piles about 10" or so high (usually in the middle of the front glass which SUX) and still NOTHING. I've had this fish for over 4 years.
I'm not saying that toxic gasses cannot build up in closed aquaria, but in my opinion, there is so much unmeritted "hype" being spread out that cause people to fear setting up an appropriate aquascape and environment for their plants and fish. Fish can get by with less substrate (although you may miss some very interesting behavior) but plants will not thrive for extended periods without an adequate supply of substrate. Take care of the roots and most often the plant will flourish.
I have one tank that was formerly a planted tank with 50/50 sand/Flourite, and now is home to a large cichlid with NO PLANTS! He digs like a madman in certain areas of the tank going all the way to the bottom, but in other areas he simply cannot get to the sand (this is where I allow my pleco to hide from him- lots of driftwood/etc.). So in many ways this tank is a worse-case scenario, and I've still never had a problem. This fish often builds huge piles about 10" or so high (usually in the middle of the front glass which SUX) and still NOTHING. I've had this fish for over 4 years.
I'm not saying that toxic gasses cannot build up in closed aquaria, but in my opinion, there is so much unmeritted "hype" being spread out that cause people to fear setting up an appropriate aquascape and environment for their plants and fish. Fish can get by with less substrate (although you may miss some very interesting behavior) but plants will not thrive for extended periods without an adequate supply of substrate. Take care of the roots and most often the plant will flourish.