Gravel or Bare Bottom?

I Ate A Cake

I Ate A Cake

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Nov 2, 2009
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I will be setting up a Goldfish tank soon (A temporary 20G for two small fancies), and I am not sure if I should use gravel or just go bare bottom.

If I do go bare bottom, I would spraypaint the underside so there is still some color. However, with gravel, I would just use a shallow layer.

I know it is all personal preference, but I would like to hear some opinions.

Thanks.
 
Considering the uphill battle it'll become to keep a 20 gallon clean with 2 goldfish, I would definitely go with bare bottom. Some may chalk it up to personal preference, but ultimately, it comes down to priority imo. A pretty tank is all well and good, but there is no getting around the fact that it is far easier to maintain extremely high water quality in a bare bottom tank than it is in a tank with any kind of substrate.
 
That's what I was thinking. Thanks for your input.
 
You know what, you can still put some colored marbles and ornaments in there if you like -- brighten up the tank a little and gives the fish something to look at, other than eachother.
 
I'll have decorations in the tank. I plan to put four or so potted plants placed around the tank, and maybe some other accessories.

I've never really been a fan of marbles either. I don't even like gravel or sand very much.
 
I've seen tanks that had the inside bottom painted with epoxy paint and a bunch of sand dumped on top. When it dried and the sand was dumped out the bottom was like a piece of sandpaper. It looked good and there was really nowhere for dirt to hide. It seems to me that a smaller gravel could also work if the epoxy went on a bit thicker.
 
good idea with the epoxy paint and the sand or if you dont want to do that ill go with bare bottom less maintenance and very easy to clean
 
:dance2:

Well, I figure I should add these questions here instead of making a new thread. It goes along with the tank setup.

1) Mystery Snails. Could I add a few Mystery Snails to the tank?
2) I will be putting the plants in pots. In the Pots, should I put gravel to establish a root system? Or something else besides gravel?
 
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