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To stop landslides, I use garden edging. It's a kind of plastic which is corrugated. Have a look at garden centres. I have a role of about 20m and it's lasted me about 4 years to date.

No, not at all. If handled right, you'll be fine. My latest 120cm contains pre-used aquasoil. Constant rooting and uprooting of plants can cause the aquasoil to break down, so once planted it's best to leave it alone. I take the old aquasoil out of the tank, place in the original bag, cut...

wqatch from about 2.50sec

I wouldnt worry about it. On rare ocasions, you'll get odd and starnge plants growing. I had a plant grow which could not be identified....Tropica were really curious about that.

Thanks George. I've just edited actually, adding 1 more sentence at the end to even it up for the retailer.

I'll come in nice and simple. I've used ADA power sand, and thought WOW!!! Then I set up another layout, same size tank, smiler plants etc....no power sand. I thought....WOW!!!!! I was sold on it initially, but to be honest, it's damn expensive, and for me, does not give anything extra in...

:shock: oooops. :jawdrop

Just thought I'd share something I've noticed with the new ADA amazonia. Unlike the older versions, the new soil gives really clear water from the beginning. I thought for many that may have gone away from ADA due to cloudy water, this may be the time to change back :thumbup:

Your fine to leave it for a week or 2 with no problems. I do it all the time.

2 at least. I'd go with 3.

company's rarely do. They'd never sell any otherwise. I've never tested for ammonia, but i'm certain it does leach the damn stuff. My way to combat it is to water change as a safeguard

columbo is like nature soil and ADA. there's not a lot in it price wise, maybe a bit cheaper. for any doubters of columbo, here's a couple of tanks done with the stuff. There's no doubting it works, but then gravel with good co2 and water column dosing can work also.

google it mate. here's a tank in india using the stuff... http://nswamy.com/dawn/wp-content/uploa ... C06304.jpg http://nswamy.com/dawn/tag/diatoms/

no mate. simply put it in the tank and fill carefully. It's the best on the market for it's clarity. With regards to any ammonia release or spikes, and depending on which way your going to do the tank...high/low tech a high tech route would see larger, more frequent water changes. Your cycled...

My nano has been ongoing for about 3 months now with No Co2, ferts, easycarbo or water changes and looks radiant driven only by stock equipment. My latest 120cm is the biggest test as it's a high tec set-up so only time will really tell if the substrate holds up to the competition, but...

in terms of holding it's form, it's the worst according to ADA It actually contains hardly any nitrogen and is the least packed with nutrients. question 1 http://www.aquajournal.net/qanda/index.html

you gotta remember, its shrimp breeders ranting about manado. I set up an iwagumi using seryiou stone and the KH went off the scale. if it's plants your keen on, you'll be OK. just follow the usual planted tank rules. i'll join that club...sllleerr hiccup :shifty:

you certainly dont wash aquabasis. you'll end up with sludge if you do and it's not nice to work with. Always buy more than stated as it depletes quite quickly.

now there's a good idea :P

Here's what's possible with a JBL set up. everything is JBL. This tank was designed by a member of staff at MA east bridgford. i gave a little advise on layout and regimes. Ryan, who designed this has never done a planted tank in his life. I think it's safe to say he's done a good job indeed...

this is why IMVHO nature soil is becoming king 8)

this was a direct question to amano with his reply...... Q.1)　 What are the major differences in the characteristics of Aqua Soil Amazonia, Malaya, and Africana? What are they specifically in terms of the ability to decrease pH, the effect on KH, and the brittleness of soil particles? A.1)...

I'll try and help.... when i used it a year ago, it stripped my KH completely. was about 9 then read 0. :shock: slowly increased to about 5 over time, then i stopped checking. with the addition of co2 my PH went down to about 5 from 7.5 ish. again i stopped checking. GH....don't know same...

i was the type to give my last sweet at school :angel: rolo anybody?

done!...approx 1 second to clear. IMO/E any substrate will be clear if you fill slow enough and in the correct manner. it's pretty clean. going back to the scratching, I guess it's no different to using normal gravels which you'd have to be careful with. anyway, I'll be setting up a 35...

yeah, I'd be careful, more so than AS or NS which can be thrown about a bit. it's very fine indeed, probably a winner for HC and fine rooters.

ok, as promised an image of the JBL substrate. this is the only thing I can supply regards to info as i've not used it in a set up yet. The phone is there for scale To the touch, it's quite rough, more than ordinary gravel. not the clay like feel you get from NS or AS, but then it does a...

i've just received my trial bag form JBL so I'll get some images up shortly :D

here's what i use.... it's about £5 i think and would last forever!

little has been covered on this subject. i use garden edging which is found in garden centres. I'll mail you the right one later. it's plastic and can be cut with sciccors real easy! it's about 6 inches wide so there's no real limit as to what width you may require.it's wafer thin too i had...

i'd get 2 of the same. either substrates are good and will help give a good start and maintain a nutritious base. here for tropica stuff... http://www.thegreenmachineaquatics.com/ ... 0Substrate and here for the other.... http://www.aquaessentials.co.uk/index.p ... cts_id=192

good question, if they were the same...AS V NS wouldn't this doubt the effectiveness of ADA powders? penac, bacter 100 etc etc 8) i've used ADA iron bottom on at least 3 set ups and i would of sworn blind it was good...but i cant be sure.

yeah, sorry for the short sharp answer...was up 250 feet church spire on my I phone :shock: Anyway, I don't have scientific proof, but I do have my eyes. firstly, there's been lots of recent talk about certain folk being unhappy with ADA A II. ammonia, cloudiness etc....BUT..... ADA Amazonia...

I've used both Ada and nature soil... Nature soil hands down. It's far better

I'm finding with the "normal" grain size of NS that the HC is doing just as good as it did in my MA scape with a powder type substrate. is aesthetics really IMO. oli knott substrate is a brilliant choice BTW :wink:

i just would like to mention, my new scape featuring nature soil all by itself, is doing absolutely wonderful. spotless water, plants doing the best ever. i've used all types of ADA soils except amazoni 2. there good of course, but consider nature soil as an alternative.

clive, my conclusion only consists of saying it does not have NPK. which is straight from JBL. they also told me that it has the ability to eventually start storing nutrients. that's it. i don't feel that i've stretched the boundaries of making my own assessments. :D if JBL stretch the truth...

my collaboration with JBl has given me inside knowledge that this forthcoming product does not contain nutrients (NPK) but it has the capabilities to store nutrients introduced via the water column. i'll be getting some soon to try, so I'll report back on this one soon. i'd like to see JBL...

for me it's a case of getting everything positioned right, then fill slowly (the newspaper way) and bingo leave it for a few months. i'm using aquabsis at the shop and it's crystal from day 2, but it will be if you leave it alone :wink:

to clarify, 2 and a half bags is good for a 120 x 4 5 x45. but remember it's scapers prerogative as to how deep you'd want it at the back....i like 6- 8 inches, so i'd use 3 bags. good god, i cant believe i'm using my spare substrate as a gauging tool.... :lol: i best put it in a scape eh?

Re: 100 x 45 - how much substrate ? Answer here... in a 120 x 45 x 45 with good depth at the back (slope front to back) 3 x 10L bags of Oliver knot Nature Soil. i'll confirm later 8)

Re: 100 x 45 - how much substrate ? Answer here... good idea tonser, this could be for other substrates too such as oli knott nature soil :D

i can confirm that the oliver knott stuff is great.i'm getting mega growth coupled up with correct co2 and ferts on a high light system you wont go far wrong at all :D it does everything the ADA soils do, and works our roughly the same regards price.

simple question..... these products lower the kh of our water right? at what point and for how long do these products continue to keep lowering kh?.... endlessly? or if they become "stable" how do they stabilise kh?

buy oli knott nature soil and have done with all the ADA problems regards ammonia :wink:

ahh, i see. nice gift man.

sorry i do apologies. i just thought i remember reading you used ada tweezers?....i must of read it wrong.

dont this go back to you paying over £100 for tweezers?....i don't see tweezers really being worthy of a £100+ price tag.

i didnt find much difference between malaya and amazonia TBH i cant comment on the amazonia II as ive not used it. i've also found in my MA scape HC loves dust or broken down substrate. i think this is why amano use the powder form. i wouldn't of believed it if i hadn't seen it myself.

i've used as much as 7 at the back. in a 35L use the bag and give your self some depth. it wont harm.

i wasn't actually querying AE'S prices.it was just a comparison. a lot of places are similar prices to AE so you cant really fire your bullets just yet. viewtopic.php?f=48&t=4672

i've PM'D you hang fire! i've just checked out the price ratio. 2.5l cost just over £10. so for the equivalent of 9 L of AS you need 4 bags of JBL= £40 :? it's a no win. BUT, if you were thinking of using power sand,possibly substitute that with JBL aquabasis.

does that mean he likes it? :oops:

yep under, big debates over the stuff too. from what im experiencing without it i still get good growth. Tom barr proved that i think

now some may not like me for saying this, but you could do what i do. use something like JBL aquabasis plus from AE bulk out with that or something similar. it contains goodies and stuff. and then use ADA AS as a topping. it works a treat, trust me . dont bulk out on AS as it could get pricey.

i'm hearing its a bit like AS

not strictly true. i'm running a 60cm with jbl substrate and AS on top. i've deliberately not used the powders (which i have) just to see the effects. now i can say with this combination i still have amazing growth of e acicularis and glosso and my stems. it was only 4 days until i saw grass...

nothing on top?

aquabasis plus from jbl. how thick is your sand topping ed?

i'm to use jbl plus substrate in my MA scape.now i was going to use AS to cap it off but it wouldnt be right because MA dont sell AS. as the title suggests what's best to cap off jbl substrate? i'm growing HC and grasses so this should be taken into consideration. thanks. mark

your leaving the old stuff in?...sorry. i thought if you were taking it out and then putting it bag in. that was all.

exactly what Ed says, you may want to filter the old powersand out though. it's rendered useless anyway and if you leave a bit (by accident)sitting on the top it goes white (because of it being pumice)

of course sorry nick, TBH im not sure. maybe using iron liquid to enhance the the amount in the water column?

ADA do iron bottom! i use it all the time. again pricey, but works IMO it also contains NPK. now on asking the official ADA rep he said it's just to be used to re generate old AS but ive used it with new stuff....kinda like a super boost!

it was buy mistake really, i bought about 8/9 bags of the stuff for my old 300L way to much. but i used it anyway. then when i stripped it down i just bagged it all up. ive got a 60L, 240L and some gone to myMA scape and still got a load left. i hear where your coming from gauf, but ultimately...

you have to remember also that ADA as last for 2 years at least. so longevity is quite big. good thoughts. i've got some spare, but it's claimed allready

i'd choose Aquasoil. although ADA say there's a difference between malaya and amazonia, ive used both and there appears to be no difference at all. maybe just the added amonia.

i think so mate. i never had any problems though from the leaching. even with a filter from scratch.

so it will dry then? cool. ive just saved (dave spencer saved me :wink: ) a fortune then. there 6 bags of the stuff in the tank at the mo. with another 2 to go in. thanks zig

ok after speaking with dave spencer yesterday at the green machine ive decided to re use the as that i have. its only a few months old as is perfectly good. my question is after emptying the tank of water fish and plants im going to have a "dry tank" so to speak. while i rescape. will the damp...

i'll second that, ive had no probs doing the above.

:lol:

cool, look forward to a journal on your opti white. have you seen an opti whit tank in the flesh? if no, prepare yourself :wink: mark

i dont think ive seen your 4 ft'er james you got an image i can see? mark

yes a little like gravel.lighter in weight. great to use. planting etc. arghh go on...get some :roll: you know you want to :lol:

ahh, ok. not good then :?

whats that mean? :oops:

hows your results been with it? any good? mark

thanks chaps :D guess you found out the hard way? :lol:

ok, ive bought some of this stuff for my small arcadia tank. the question is do i use like ADA AS? as in not covering with small grain gravel like the packaging suggests? can i leave it as it is and plant straight in to it? thanks mark

thats enough info for me. i'll save a fortune now. :D

and dont forget your powersand. you'll need 18L of that give or take :D maybe a bit less but not much.allways comes in handy anyway.

i would say you have enough power sand. if i remember the instructions say you need i cm thickness. my 18l bag covered my 120cm, 60, and 45 and i still have a bit left. you dont over do the powersand as it will release to much fert into the water column. on my 120 i used 6 bags, this gave me a...

no worries

i waited a while before adding fish. although i used a little mature filter media. i just waited until the filter was up to speed. i dont think you should have problems if your using a mature filter. the kh and ph problems dont seem to concern fish to much. add a few fish at a time, as to not...

bang on, things do settle in time i'd just leave it. it's been sayed by others that a low kh is not a bad thing. from my tap i have a kh of 5 and in my tank its now a steady 3. on initial setup it was constantly going to 0 with no ill effects on my fish. just leave it let the aqua soil do its...