Schultz Soil Conditioner As A Substrate!!

[djlen]

I recently heard about this stuff and since I'm setting up a 55 gal. I bought a 40lb. bag at a local nursery. Schultz has, in the past made "Aquatic Plant Soil" but I wasn't able to find it anywhere. I called the company and was told that the "Soil Conditioner" and the aquatic plant soil were the same product. I just loaded it into my tank(quite dusty, but not as bad as Flourite) and it looks and feels just like Flourite. The bag states "100% Arcillite". It's made of 100% natural minerals that are kiln-fired to create ceramic granules. I've talked with people who have used it for years and report that it doesn't breakdown. I'm sure it doesn't have all the properties of Flourite because it's only $15 a 40lb. bag. My intention was to mix it with Flourite, but I may just give it a try without.
You can find more info on it at www.shultz.com and look for soil conditioner or Profile products. Also there are extensive write-ups about it on the krib.
Len

[K_S_W_I_S_S]

the aquatic plant soil is sold in walmart.... (at least in the one i go to.... but i dont like how light it is (i mean the weight of the soild, not the color)

[djlen]

It gets about 5 shades darker when wet. I'm sitting here looking at Flourite in one tank and this stuff in the other and can barely see a difference when submerged. I didn't notice much difference in weight, but one of the main features of the Schultz stuff is that it is very porous which helps with aeration and gives more area for biological filtration so it might be slightly lighter.
Len

[plantbrain]

To add weight you can mix it with regular 2-3mm sand about 50/50.

The color is nice.

Since you are trying to be cheap, why not get a 50lb bag for 8 $ of MPV turface, same stuff for lots less.

Regards,
Tom Barr

[nvision]

djlen, i'm eager to await on your follow up report on how well this stuff performs. i've been thinking about flourite for a while and can never get myself to blow over $100 just on substrate. i think, and hoping, that what you've found will be a good alternative.

there's a walmart near my work, and i will hop over there first thing monday to check it out.

plantbrain, i'm not familiar with MPV. is that just a brand name or an acronym for a particular type of material?

[djlen]

I couldn't find the Turface anywhere. Looked high and low for it. This stuff looks very similar to the red Flourite under lights. I'm going to invest in a couple of bags of the dark flourite to darken it up.
Len

[plantbrain]

It's the stuff they put on baseball diamonds. They also use it as a soil amendment etc.
I'd just mix with heavy sand, forget mixing with flourite, do it one way or the other.

Remember, you were trying to be cheap?

Regards,
Tom Barr

[Glenstorm]

I have used the Aquatic Soil by itself and wish I had mixed it with something. The results growthwise have been great. I added some fish to the tank and they leave troughs and peaks all over the substrate. Because it is so light their wash from swimming swishes the substrate all over. . . I think I am going to add some sand. . .

So bottome line. . .

As a plant substrate it works great!

As a substrate for fish it isn't so great.

[nvision]

now you've done it! i just came back from walmart after compulsively buying a bag of schultz to play with. i hate you all! :p

this stuff doesn't feel that light, but definately lighter than normal gravel or sand. should be ok, hopefully, with smaller fish that don't splash around too strongly. i'm planning to mix with fine sand to help smaller-sized glosso and marsilea get a better foothold, and plan to plant everything else a bit deeper.

about $7 at walmart. thought i'd sacrafice a nice lunch burger to play with a bag of these...

[djlen]

nvision, it's really not all that bad. I've talked with a bunch of people who have used it and love it. The closest I came to hearing a complaint was one person said that he had to be a bit more careful when vacuuming the substrate.
I think you'll be happy with the results that you see in your plants by using it, and as Tom says, you can mix it with something a bit heavier. I had intended from the beginning to mix it with Flourite in my 55 and that's what I'm going to do. I'm only having to buy two bags of Flourite instead of six. Big savings.
And Tom, it's not "Cheap", it's common sense.
:p
Len

[RTR]

I'm one of the folks who will not use the material. I set one test tank up and decided quickly (~3 months) that it was not for me - it is way too light for me. Broke that setup down and reset with gravel+laterite. I found it was a PITA to work with, but I am accustomed to gravel/laterite or Flourite, both much higher-density materials

[PikeLee]

Here’s some info on using it in case you haven’t seen this site yet http://www.csd.net/~cgadd/aqua/art_plant_substrate.htm

I have a 30g tank that is 50% Clay soil and 50% Sand. I don’t see any problems at all. My crypts are doing fine. And I have no problem with it holding anything down. I got some glosso that I just plugged in and none have come to the top yet.

Although it doesn’t have any nutrients in it or anything like Flourite, it’s suggested to mix at least 50% Flourite with it.

I just re-did my 90g and I got 30lbs of Red Flourite, 30lbs of Regular Flourite, and 40lbs of the Clay soil Conditioner and everything mixed in fine. The colors blend nicely and I’m sure all the soot from the fluorite is enough to go around. :D I put the fluorite in about a week ago and it still hasn’t fully cleared up yet.
:mad:

Good luck with it.

[djlen]

Ah, the old Flourite(wait for it to clear) game. You know, I had more of a wait for the Schultz stuff to clear than the Flourite. I think it's because I wash the Flourite so well, knowing that if you don't it will make your tank look like a big bowl of coffee.
Anyway I just threw in 30# of Flourite along with 40# of the other stuff an it looks great and I know it'll be great for the plants.
This tank is going to be 3 to 1 light to water so it's going to be interesting to see how it works out.
Len

[Sumpin'fishy]

I keep hearing about Schultz, but everyone has mentioned Turface, MVP, etc. I went to Lowes and looked around and only found small bags of Profile (from Shultz, I believe). Anyone use this stuff? Is it also known to be very light weight? Supposedly NASA has approved it.....like that means anything! Anyone hear about that beautiful planted show tank they had on the Space Shuttle??......exactly....point made.

I'm sure that even conventional hydroponics in space isn't going to worry about the weight of the substrate....you know what I mean?

[djlen]

Sumpin', you're a trip!!!!:D
What some people complain about is that Schultz's Soil conditioner(Turface is the same stuff, but cheaper) is a little more difficult to plant in. By that I mean it is less dense than Flourite and so doesn't hold plants down as firmly as other substrates. That's why I bought it knowing that I would mix it with Flourite.
The good thing about it being less dense it that it's VERY, VERY porous which means it gives lots of area for good bacteria to attach itself to.
Len

[BluEyes]

the shultz aquatic plant soil, and clay soil conditioner are the same thing - both 100% arcilite (at least, last time I checked)
It's the good ole add "aquatic" to the name = double the price!

I've got two tanks set up running CSC - very nice. Yes, very dusty, even after much rinsing, and it IS very light, so be careful vacuuming or else you can just suck up a siphon-full of the stuff!
That said, the plants love it - lots of roots, and whenever I pull anything up, lots of roots are clinging to grains of the stuff.
I find it easy enough to plant things in - the grain size is small enough that it holds well untill the plant gets rooted unless you have a big fish that knocks things loose (like my Bichir).
Overall, I'm very happy - 40# for next-to-nothing at wal mart is an absolute steal! Anyone with more money might consider Flourite or Onyx, but for us on a budget, it's perfect.

[Sumpin'fishy]

So the Arcilite is called "Clay Soil Conditioner" from Walmart? I want to make sure I'm looking for the right stuff! I have bought the wrong stuff (ferts) in the past and I'm still recovering!:o

I looked at Lowes today and only saw the "Aquatic Soil" by Schultz. Where else would I look for this clay substrate? Are they at least iron enriched?

[nvision]

all right i just jumped ship. :eek:

not in any way to disapprove the soil, but i finally broke down and ordered 6 bags of onyx sand for my 50g. i've always wanted a darker substrate and i think onyx would be able to keep me happy for a while. plus a friend offered me a deal for $15 per bag as opposed to the lfs' standard of $20. that saved me about $40 if i was to order from big als including extra shipping.

speaking of big als, those from the west coast who are thinking about ordering heavy items such as substrate should check out thatpetplace.com. i find their shipping cheaper, enough to even offset their slightly higher prices than big als. reason being that they don't have to ship from the opposite end of the coast.

[djlen]

Sumpin', that's the stuff. Should run you no more than $15 for a 40# bag.
Len