Planted Tank Substrates

APT Feast has a reputation as a soil for advanced aquascapers, but a beginner can get the same fast, strong growth. The rich soil releases ammonia in the first weeks, which regular water changes clear out. The dark start everyone mentions is optional, not required.

Many aquarists start a new tank and immediately face a diatom bloom. This guide lays out two reliable ways to start an APT Feast tank, dark start or plant on day one, and grow in fast without the algae stage.

Aquasoils are now standard in many planted tank setups, but there are very few sources if any, that cover how to maintain aquasoil substrates over the long run. Excess organic detritus should be removed and aquasoil substrates also need enriching over time to perform optimally.

How to create a pathway as part of an aquascape? These are a couple of different approaches.

How to create high slopes and manage high soil depth? Here I go into some techniques and approaches.

There is widespread belief that if one uses deep soil more than a few inches deep, it will result in an anaerobic substrate & create harmful gases...

With so many choices and different pros & cons, which one should I ultimately pick? Let this guide help.

A detailed 101 introduction to the world of freshwater aquarium substrates and how to make sense of the brands and options in the market...

This is a short video on how to create slopes and height in planted aquarium using very basic materials.