im a noob that is looking into it all before I get my aquarium, VERY helpful, thank you so much!

Hi Dustin, I am stuck inside due to an ice storm in my area this week, so I am binge watching your videos to prepare for my new planted tank set up. I want to mention one thing I appreciate about your videos in addition to the advice on the topic of aquatics. Also that you speak as an expert in self help. Your positive messages and sound uplifting advice is just as beneficial as your on topic messages. Your channels is a positive place to learn. Much appreciated.

@yourtap

2 жыл бұрын

I'm happy you noticed my subtle attempts to get people to focus on mental health. Both subjects are important to me as the hobby was what I personally needed in my toolbox to help with trauma.

Man I wish I’d found your channel months ago.I started a 37 gallon dirted tank using father fish method and it was a disaster. I lost hundreds of dollars in plants and even after 3 months the smell coming from it was foul af! I ended up removing all of the dirt and just leaving 2.5” of sand in the tank. I have to use root tabs for my root plants,but they are finally growing instead of dying at the roots. Really enjoying your content.

@yourtap

3 ай бұрын

I appreciate 🤙

Thinking of trying it

It was the same case for finding blasting sand at Lowe’s. Appreciate hearing your substrate method.

@yourtap

6 ай бұрын

I'm happy you found some value in this video 🤙

Another Father Fish fan here! Three deep substrate planted tanks with sand and a food web. Instead of removing the old soil you can freeze cubes of new soil and push them down under your sand cap.

@yourtap

5 ай бұрын

Nice 🤙

Thanks mister. Starting a small fish tank and wanted to put live plants in it. This is perfect. 😊

@yourtap

9 ай бұрын

You're welcome 🤙

I'm having great results with organic soil + fine gravel to lock it down and make it anoxic + a good layer of stratum, but it's still been less than a year.

Thanks. I was trying to decide how to layer Fluorite, Eco complete and sand. And I found your video. Ps. It’s not Seechum as in sea Chimp it’s See Kem as in Sea Chemistry 😂.

@yourtap

Жыл бұрын

Lol! Hey! I like that. Hahaha! I think that's why those "seechum" people have been emailing me 🥸 Thanks for watching.

Interesting video. Thanks for sharing. My local dirt is clay based - brown loam - which makes me think I am getting the clay in my plant tanks by default. Clay does seem to be important for plant growth. Even my ADA aquasoil is clay based (I think it has some clay in it but not sure), so come to think of it almost every tank I have has clay in it of some sort. And as you know back in the 90s laterite (an ancient form of clay) was a big thing in plant tanks. Very informative video. Depleted dirt substrates is exactly where I am at now, after 1 year of good plant growth. Hard problem to solve.😢

@yourtap

7 ай бұрын

Clay is great for taking care of Iron, that's in the 4 major macro elements plants need. Your dirt will have the nitrogen, phosphates, potash. Finally your fish and plants that die replenish your dirt. It's all great science and fun. Thanks for watching 🤙

@yourtap

7 ай бұрын

FYI, root tabs will help replenish dirt.

Thank you so much for making this video. I'm new to planted aquariums, and I've already had to restet a tank because I over did it with stratum. I became really good at growing algae and killing fish. What are your thoughts about the dark start method? That's what i'm going to try next.

@yourtap

29 күн бұрын

I don't have a opinion on it because I haven't done it before. Never be scared to try something new. Let me know how it turns out 🤙

I don't mind long videos as long as it's about good knowledge that helps people with their aquariums or what you're next project is or working on a tank. What we don't like is when the person doesn't answer back & ignores us, that's rude but then again that's becoming the new norm for most you tubers.

@yourtap

Жыл бұрын

I just woke up. Never ignored a question by anyone. How can I help?

@raisinggoldfishonabudget7058

Жыл бұрын

@@yourtap I don't need anything right now hope you got plenty of sleep cause we all need that, I'm just getting up myself (1 am)

Ive just done similar in the last few days. Wish id found the vid first. Would have saved me a ton of googling. Ive got an inch of stratum as the base, an inch of flourite black sand and then a half inch gravel. I like the look of gravel amd its good to hold the plants in place. Aslo thought it would let more detritus through to the fluorite layer as its not packed as tight as sand.

@yourtap

9 ай бұрын

This tank is now 3yrs old and still going strong. You didn't make any mistakes. It probably didn't need the sand but it's nothing that's going to cost you later. I'll bet it looks really nice. Thanks for sharing your story. Nothing is permanent. I have tanks that I'll completely redo on occasion just because I want to. Dirt definitely makes it cheaper for me. 🤙

@bryanjohnston8383

9 ай бұрын

@@yourtap thanks for the reply. 3 years, thats fantastic. Yeah i think ill do dirt next time round. The stratum was pricey but i had heard a lot of good things so thought id give it a try. Im used to my rocky hardscapes and keeping larger cichlids so doing a planted tank to this degree is a bit of a first but im definitely enjoying the journey. Went with Rainbow fish for this tank. Theyre still young but they really compliment the planted setup.

@yourtap

9 ай бұрын

@@bryanjohnston8383 you're going to have fun with it. I'm excited for you. Feel free to drop a line or question about anything in this hobby. I don't post regularly because this is just a hobby for me. However, there's nearly 200 videos of knowledge to consume. Thanks again for saying Hi 🤙

Great video by the way!

Stumbled upon your video and it caught my attention because I am currently in the process of doing something very similar. I'm going to mix some Fluorite into the organic soil which I mineralized. And do 1.5" of pavers sand on top. You can also do kitty litter (fragrance free) to safe more money but it wouldn't have the iron for red plants. Great video. I am wondering how long would this last?

@yourtap

5 ай бұрын

It last indefinitely. The ecosystem I did this too was completed 3yrs ago and is still going strong. Thanks for watching 🤙

thanks so much for the good information!

@yourtap

6 ай бұрын

You're welcome 🤙

Actually, our tap water is pretty good some of the best in the world by law.

I was just going to use pea gravel in my aquarium for low maintenance plants. Would I be able to use the pea gravel instead of the blasting sand?

@yourtap

Ай бұрын

If you're going to be using Rhizome plants like ferns and Anubis, pebbles are fine. If you're trying to use it in conjunction with dirt; eventually the pebbles will make their way below the dirt.

I like how you are doing your videos and teaching in a simple way to understand and not get. Confused. I have subscribed to your channel for this reason. I have 3 aquariums and a 4th one I have set up yet. The new tank I want to set up better substrate for my plants. I did get some play sand that is pre- washed and filtered from lowes. I was planning on using this for the top layer to cover the organic soil. From this video I have the impression that using this sand wii be a bad decision. Can you elaborate on this more and why it will not work at all? Thanks. I live in Florida and just started learning about plants..

@yourtap

2 жыл бұрын

I appreciate the kind words and thanks for following 🤙 I'm going to drop a link for you on a more in depth video about why you shouldn't use anything other than pool filter sand or blasting sand. However, I'd be glad to give you a breakdown as to what will happen with play sand. I've used it. For one, it's not dense enough to trap the nutrients of your soil below it. Elements from your dirt will escape into your water column; ergo creating a never ending battle of water changes. Secondly, it's heavier than dirt. Eventually it'll sink below your dirt, therefore ruining the purpose of having a cap. Thanks for subscribing! I'll look forward to seeing you in the future! 🤙kzread.info/dash/bejne/iKGYl8GeiKjXo5c.html

@yourtap

2 жыл бұрын

kzread.info/dash/bejne/dmuMj9amd5zVeJM.html

@donnybrown6047

2 жыл бұрын

Thanks for the advice and lessons. I liked seeing your son help with the mixing manure. He is so funny. He had me laughing.

Hi, thanks for the information. Have you thought about using anoxic filtration with a plenum? You may have the long lasting substrate you are looking for.

@yourtap

2 жыл бұрын

I haven't. I believe someone mentioned this before. I've maxed out the number of tanks my wife will allow. Eventually something will need a rescape and I start completely over. Thanks for the suggestion!

@jupercio

2 жыл бұрын

@@yourtap I understand I have a 10 gallon and plans (wife permit dependant) for set up a 75 gallon. Anyway I've been watching a while Dr Novak's channel and he is the specialist in anoxic filtration, but I'd like to ask you to watch the following video and tell your thoughts based on your experience, regarding what he says about the substrate getting depleted. kzread.info/dash/bejne/gYVn2ddrkZyslKw.html I'm new to the hobby and set up my tank with the undergravel filter with a plenum but before finding about anoxic filtration (I had a tank in the 80's with undergravel filter and it worked pretty good, I'm a fan of this setup), but I'd like to hear from people who have experience with other setups. Best regards

Hey, the idea of combining a nutrient-rich substrate with some kind of accumulator/buffer before capping it with something neutral/innert is really BRILLIANT!!!!! 👍👍👍 But is Seachem Fluorite really a good choice for this job, as i read it has only a low CEC of 1.7? Dirty cheap Lava gravel has a much higher CEC of 15-40 and therefore should do this job much better. Or maybe some (calcined) clay gravel (clay kitty litter, hard to get here in Europe) with CEC 30-40. Vermiculite has a CEC of 150, but i don't know if this would work submerged and mixed with soil and under a layer of sand over a long period??? Or how about common expanded clay/Hydroton?? Or might that influence the PH as i heard somewhere?

@yourtap

9 ай бұрын

Never used vermiculite for anything other than growing fungus. People using Kitty litter is a popular choice. I haven't tried either. Currently this tank is now nearly 3yrs old and everything has been doing well. If I'm ever allowed to do another aquarium, I'll keep what you mentioned in mind 🤙

@HarryH.P

9 ай бұрын

@@yourtap I know exactly, what you mean. Same thing here in Germany: Has been a long way to get the special permit for only a second fish tank 😉

What grid size or mesh size did you use for the blasting sand?

@yourtap

2 ай бұрын

Fine

First off, is this still holding up? Second, what measurements do you recommend? You said an inch for the organic soil, but didn't specify for the Flourite or the blasting sand. Should I do an inch on each as well, more or less?

@yourtap

Жыл бұрын

Sorry for the delay in my response. This tank is still going with the same substrate and animals. The fluorite was just a single 8lb bag. I used all of it. It wasn't even a quarter inch deep. It serves it's purpose well for it's intended use. 3inch of blasting sand on top. After a couple years of Val growth and crowding. I had to uproot so many plants all the way across the tank that I ended up needing to add another inch of blasting sand because I had disturbed the substrate all the way across. If I could choose to do one thing different; I would've kept up with the plants so I wouldn't have had to remove so much all at once. Hope that helps 🤙

Hi Dustin, searching for the best organic soil/compost to use. I cannot get the same soil you use in your videos (joys of living on a small island 😆 ). A lot of organic soil has booster additives I think I should avoid. So just that I'm clear, am I looking at organic--multipurpose compost, peat, vegetable compost, top soil or farmyard manure? Or should I get pond plant soil?

@yourtap

2 жыл бұрын

Use the organic multipurpose compost, it will have lots of peat moss in it, if you have farmyard manure that's been converted into soil that's great too. People get away with using potting soil, it will have synthetic ferts in it that can make your water column toxic if your cap of blasting sand isn't thick enough. I don't go by brand of organic soil. I pick based off the guaranteed analysis. You want to see that it has at least 10% of Nitrogen, and water soluble Nitrogen. Potash, and phosphates. If you find any with Iron and calcium as well. Those are a bonus. Feel free to pick something out and message me it's contents. Hope that helps. 🙂

@kerrybuncombe7864

2 жыл бұрын

@@yourtap thanks for the info. There are so many products out there but you've summed it up perfectly. The hunt begins 👍

@yourtap

2 жыл бұрын

@@kerrybuncombe7864 no problem. Happy to help!

Being flourite is a clay base, I've heard that you could use cat liter instead is that true ? The only thing I don't like with the blasting sand is it holds all the muck on top of it. I just took it out & put pea gravel & river rock in for the time being till I get what I want to do with the tank then set it up.

@yourtap

Жыл бұрын

I have heard that you can use cat litter as well. I've never used it before. I don't have an opinion on cat litter because of that. It's ok to try new things. Give it a shot. Test your water. If everything checks out then great. If it has a negative impact; worse case scenario you have to replace it again but you can definitely have fun in the process 🤙

@raisinggoldfishonabudget7058

Жыл бұрын

@@yourtap I rather not & say I did ha ha ha cause working with a 75 gal & 65 yrs old isn't very easy to just trying stuff, I just thought I'd ask being you said you've tried it all.

@yourtap

Жыл бұрын

I suppose I can be quoted saying that. Shit 🤦

Very helpful. I’m going to try this. This video is a year old though, how do you still feel about this substrate layering?

@yourtap

Жыл бұрын

Thanks for your question. This tank is still going and flooded with plant life. Watch my lastest video and you can see it for yourself. I stand by that combination. 🤙

@yourtap

Жыл бұрын

kzread.info/dash/bejne/loRhz8GEm6Xcc5s.html This is the link. Enjoy

I can't tell you how many videos I watched today trying to understand the "layering" of substrates. I just watched this video and I NOW get the importance of layering which substrate on the bottom, the middle and the top. I have only ONE QUESTION: what can I substitute for the blasting sand that I can easily get from any store. I just don't need a huge bag of blasting sand whereas I can get 5-10 lbs of aquarium sand more easily. Should the sand be fine or medium or coarse for planting fine root plants? Thanks!

@yourtap

Жыл бұрын

If using dirt in your tank, you need it as fine and dense as possible. The only other sand I would trust is pool filter sand. Everything else I used elements will escape. Both can be found at any hardware store. 50lbs for $8 bucks is much cheaper than spending $8 on 3lbs of fish store sand and it isn't nearly as dense. It's better to have too much than not enough. Plus it covers many tanks if you get the bug or need to add another layer of sand. Hope that helps 🤙

@marlenyr7121

Жыл бұрын

@@yourtap thank you for your quick response; very much appreciated.

Like diamond blasting sand?? 100 grit 120...60 grit

I know this is late, you mention you could not find the Black Diamond Blasting Sand at the hardware I got mine at Tractor Supply Store (for anyone looking for it)

@yourtap

Жыл бұрын

Thank you my friend 🤙

Flourite Red elemental compounds: Iron, Barium, Calcium, Cobalt, Copper, Magnesium, Nickel, and Zinc. Yes, I went through hell to obtain this information. I'll be making a video about that.

Are there not concerns regarding the top layer of fine sand leading to issues with the bacteria colony in the deeper layers of the substrate? I was under the impression that since nothing can get IN to the deeper layers once fine sand gets compacted enough, the anaerobic bacteria can turn aerobic which can lead to pockets of ammonia developing in the substrate which is risky for your fish.

@yourtap

Жыл бұрын

No. Because I didn't put animals in this tank for nearly 6 months. Sometimes I wait a year. Bubbles are going to happen. Wether or not it's a dangerous situation really depends on how established your ecosystem is. It's been nearly 2yrs since I made this tank. It has the same school of tetras in it, that it had at that time. Thanks for your question 🤙

I watched this video on 2024

keep researching lol

I use the Father Fish method, on all of my aquariums. I've done this method in nine tanks now my oldest aquarium is 6 years old all aquariums are beautifully planted.

@yourtap

9 ай бұрын

That sounds epic. Thank you for sharing 🤙

@tiffanyclark-grove1989

5 ай бұрын

I am doing a dirted tank. The dirt is ready and in and I need to cap it. I’m going to use a sponge filter for a 20 gallon inside of a 40 gallon so can I use gravel? Won’t the sand ruin a sponge filter?

@frankcarrington5283

5 ай бұрын

@tiffanyclark-grove1989 No a sponge filter will fine for your set up!

@tiffanyclark-grove1989

5 ай бұрын

@@frankcarrington5283 thank you. I have been waiting for an answer till I did it❤️ would you put the sponge filter towards the bottom or an inch above the substrate or halfway up or towards the top?

@Palatard

2 ай бұрын

@@tiffanyclark-grove1989 Just put it on the bottom they are weighted and are usually just placed on the substrate. Shouldn't have any issues because of the sand.