i keep my qt barebottom for ease of cleaning and break down, but prefer to have substrate in my display tanks. Its a matter of preference really.
Is substrate really necessary?
- Thread starter evedamnededen
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many folks keep bare bottom and use driftwood with plants anchored to them or potted plants in the tank..I even saw one person who drilled a pot in a piece of driftwood..added substrate and planted rooted plants in this.(it was either a crypt or a sword.)
Is colored little ROCKS natural though? no.. sand is, but little colorful rocks aren't. But I still agree, I don't think my fish would like not having a substrate, idk, its kind of weird to think about but it just seems right to have something at the bottom.
i dont have colored rocks either , but i know what you mean . but even then its something to hold pieces of food for them to fourage in .
When I have the time (and money...)I think I will get substrate and plants for the tank. I think I might get those aquarium bulbs that grow into aquarium plants
Don't forget that substrate is a great place for beneficial bacteria to grow. If its ease of cleaning you want then go with a larger diameter gravel and just lightly cover the bottom of the tank ( less than 1 inch ) or use a combination of Driftwood and large rocks. I personally like to use gravel with high and low spots to break up the even surface of the glass.
in addition to the comments above..
something else to remember. if you have no substrate, then 99.5% of your nitrifying bacteria is going to be colonized in your filter.
what happens when the power goes out, or the filter breaks? what do you do when you have to swap out filter floss, or media?
substrate is an excellent buffer against mini-cycles.
something else to remember. if you have no substrate, then 99.5% of your nitrifying bacteria is going to be colonized in your filter.
what happens when the power goes out, or the filter breaks? what do you do when you have to swap out filter floss, or media?
substrate is an excellent buffer against mini-cycles.
and also a good buffer for water quality and ph . anything in contact with the tank water will have beneficial bacteria on / in it .
