substrate

ktrigger · #1 02-14-2007, 03:56 AM

anybody use no substrate? i have been advised not to use substrate with a fish only system. any thoughts would be great!

Beverly · #2 02-14-2007, 04:07 AM

We don't have substate in our reef and it's great. We siphon out the crud weekly and it's kind of disgusting to see how dirty the water in the outgoing pail is. In a FOWLR tank, I would think you'd get the same amount of crud out of your system, maybe more depending on bioload. Go for it!

ktrigger · #3 02-14-2007, 04:52 AM

can you do anything to the bottom to make the tank look more natural? i have heard good things about no substrate but i am not sold on the look of it.

mark · #4 02-14-2007, 05:11 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ktrigger

can you do anything to the bottom to make the tank look more natural? i have heard good things about no substrate but i am not sold on the look of it.

Still not big on the BB compared to sand but after coralline covers the bottom, you start to get use to it (at least I am).

GreenSpottedPuffer · #5 02-14-2007, 06:04 AM

Starboard is great to put down if you want to cover the glass with something. It also gets covered in coraline very fast. Its marine grade, so safe in aquaria.

niloc16 · #6 02-14-2007, 06:37 AM

another option you can do is i believe it is epoxy used and mixed with substrate and then laid out on the bottom. when it cures you get the benefits of BB but looks of substrate. search on here for it. i believe chin lee used it on his tank. search for his tank thread and see it there. i know on other forums they have used it with success. it seems a little easier to do with smaller tanks because you can actual lean the tank up to one end and allow the mixture to spread across the bottom evenly.

Beverly · #7 02-14-2007, 02:56 PM

The bottom glass ends up covered in coralline in awhile anyway. IMO, no reason to put starboard or anything else on the bottom. If starboard isn't completely sealed around the edges, crud gets under it, defeating the whole purpose of being able to siphon it out.

Also, don't worry about the look of a BB tank. You'll get used to it over time and you'll wonder how you ever had a sandbed trapping all that detritus all the years you've been reefing.