OhioPlantedtankguy

I recently talked on the Phone with a Plant grower for one of the Plant sales web Sites, cant remember which one right off hand. He made some comments that Startled me a bit.

He said that Amano's Soils are and i quote "CRAP".
He said Eco Complete is a far better Product.
Also recommended Plain Pea Gravel over Amano Soils(with root tabs).
Said he used Amano's Line and Striped it out of the tank in favor of Eco Complete.

I just found those statements Shocking as i was under the impression that Amano was the Top Go To Guy in Planted tanks.Other than that only Advice i found to be Odd was he highly recommended In gravel Heating cords.Thoughts on this?I am in the middle of a disability claim and If approved i will be getting a big back check and was considering setting up a tank with Amanos Products but after hearing this from a guy who grows Aquatic plants for a living im not so sure.

Tex Gal

I don't understand what he's talking about. ADA AquaSoil is recommended as the best by far! I used pea gravel, flourite for years. Last year I switched to ADA AS and all I can say is WOW! I now have only difficult plants in my tank (barring a few). It's like a tank on steriods!!! LOVE IT! (Besides, who recommends heating coils now days??... your first clue....)

OhioPlantedtankguy

Well i admit that Coils are Old School But Old School isn't always bad. For Example i have 2 10g tanks setting Side by side, One has a New School HOB filter the Other Has An old School Bubble Filter(will be my Shrimp tank) the Water in the one with the HOB filter is Yellowish Where as the water in the one with the Bubble filter is Crystal Clear. Makes ya think.

Another Example. SW tanks are Known to be TOUCHY, Overly Sensitive Fish Etc. I know a gentleman Locally, Him and a Friend Both bought 150g tanks they found on sale the Same Day. Both Set up their tanks in a Similar Fashion. IE Live rock, Crushed Coral Substrate, Under Gravel Filters. 1 year later My buddy Was about to quite the SW hobby all together, because he kept losing fish. He went to his buddy's house to see if he wanted his tank, And When he looked at his friends tank he said "Oh your giving up too huh" His friend said no why. Well short Version you could not See in the tank, all 4 sides were completely over grown with algae, BUT when you looked in the top His fish had tripled in size, and were Beautiful Show quality fish.The Difference My buddy was almost always messing with his tank trying to adjust the water to what he read was "Perfect", His friend Set up his tank and Didn't even clean the glass, No Top off Nothing, the water was Down to Half, Salinity Was OFF the charts but the fish were in PERFECT health. So they clean the glass and Over the next Month Slowly refilled the tank to full a few gallons at a time. It is one of the Most breathtaking tanks i have seen, He Still to this day Doesn't change the water EVER but now he does keep it topped off.

The Moral of the Story. Anyone in SW Today(well MOST i know One other guy that Doesn't do water changes So 3 total because my buddy has stopped messing with his tank lol) will tell you to change at least 25% of the water Volume Weekly, They will tell you UGF is Outdated and Not Safe for your tank, They will tell you NOT to use Crushed Coral Substrate.This tank WAS started As a FOWLR NO CORALS were added, No Sponges were Added BUT they have GROWN in the tank on their own, From what was Left of them on the live rock. This is an OLD school SW set up. Doesn't even have a Protein Skimmer, and It is Thriving. So many Pods that he doesn't even have to feed his fish, the tank feeds it self. Old School isn't always bad.

OhioPlantedtankguy

sorry double post

niko

This funny debate comes up over and over again. Is Aquasoil better than the other substrates?

Fact is you can grow aquatic plants in very much any substrate.

The substrate that I've seen best growth in was gravel used as a base to build roads known as "chat". It's better to say that the growth was shocking, not just "best". About 4 lbs. of cuttings every week from a 55 gal. tank. The chat released tons of calcium and made the water milky. There was a constant 1" thick dirty foam on the top of the tank that could not be skimmed or removed. No fertilization at all. Lots of CO2. 110 watts of AHSupply CFs.

Bottom line -the chat grew plants like crazy and had issues. Same with EcoComplete (buffers the pH, releases Ca to high heavens), Onyx (releases crazy amount of Mg, also sold for saltwater tanks, go figure), Fluorite (what does that do again?), Peat/Laterite under inert sand (Old School is nice and proven, can't deny that fact, just like film photography), Clean sand (it works well once it gets dirty) and so on.

My point is that a substrate that can grow plants well and has minimal issues is the best one. Aquasoil does this best. Releases some ammonia in the first few weeks to help the just planted plants, provides an acidic environment for the roots, sequesters nutrients from the water but makes them available for the roots, can be dried and reused undefinetely. Only issue is - it lightly stains the water for the first few or several months. Saying this in car terms - Aquasoil is the Bugatti of substrates - it's "it". Everything else is the ice cream truck - it will take you where you are going if you are really, really up for the ride.

--Nikolay

Six

You talked to a sales person for another product- of course they tried to tell you theirs was better.

Or maybe that person did have better results for his specific needs with the ecocomplete. Not everyone intends to keep an amano tank. Maybe he had oscars and it created a really big algae bloom because thats not its intended purpose. Who knows.

Nelumbo74

ADA products are overrated and overpriced. The person you spoke to seems to feel the same way, just not very tactful in communicating it. Save your money. There are other excellent substrates and aquatic plant products available.

hoppycalif

Aquasoil is not more expensive than other commercial substrates. Because you get a fixed volume of Aquasoil in a bag, vs a fixed weight of the others, you can't compare price per bag. Besides, with EC you are buying water along with the substrate. I don't use Aquasoil, but I am convinced by the many who do and find it to be the best, that it really is the best.

Anyone who doesn't keep up with the latest information in this hobby, even if he does his hobby to make a living, is not a good source of information. That plant grower probably has developed his techniques based on EC and gets very good results. That isn't surprising since EC is also a good substrate. But, that doesn't mean his negative opinion of a substrate material he doesn't use is valid.

bsmith782

If your going to go all out do it right with the best the first time, and save your second guessing for the flora and funa options.

ADA is the best.

chagovatoloco

I think the sales man is behind where a lot of us are at. With sites like this we have the luxury of having experts and pioneers in the business at out disposal. Several of the people on here are leading the industry, thus why a lot of thing we use are house hold and not commercially available or just becoming commercially available. Just look at some of the tank the people on here have. I wouldn't argue with this guy just smile and get what you came for. I don't use ada either (out of my budget), but from what I have read it has to be handled differently than other substrates. It is also more forgiving I have even hear that some do not use ferts with it. I'm sure if you ask him this guy knows nothing of ei dosing or 4dkh water for co2 testing. Have you seen pictures of his tank?