Does Substrate Amount Matter?

[DiscoS2]

Hi,
 
I am new to the world of Tropical Fish and want to do it right from the start.
 
I have had a look around and couldn't find anything on this except for the general guidance of a pound of substrate for every gallon of water.
 
Is the general guidance more for aesthetic reasons or is the amount of substrate vital to the success of the fish tank?
 
Thanks in advance 

 

[george4593]

depends on what fish and whether you want to add live plants
if you want plants you need a thick substrate for plants to root

 

[DiscoS2]

depends on what fish and whether you want to add live plants
if you want plants you need a thick substrate for plants to root

 
Sorry forgot to mention that the substrate I currently have is sand.

 

[fluttermoth]

Substrate is not vital to the tank; you can run bare bottomed tanks, with no substrate at all very successfully.
 
However, most fish feel more comfortable and show better colours with something on the bottom of the tank. If you're having live plants, you need a couple of inches; if not, then a thinner layer; 1/2 to one inch is plenty.
 
If you're intending to have any bottom dwellers (catfish or loaches) you should chose sand rather than gravel as they do like to dig and sand is softer on their barbels.

 

[Madness13]

I used sand, there are loads of benefits to having sand:

• It looks more natural
• Muck and waste doesn't go beneath the sand so you can just hover over it with a vacuum
• You can buy play sand which is very cheap £2.99 for a 15 KG bag in the UK
• You will be able to house loaches that love to siv through the sand without it damaging their barbels

I'm sure there are more advantages.
 
The dissadvantages:

• You have to be careful with anaerobic bacteria. Organic material gets buried below the top 2cm of sand and can turn nasty (a very darkish colour with a bad smell). Easy fix... just stir up the sand every couple of weeks.
• It can be difficult to keep some plants down and you may need to use rocks or other decor to hold them down.

I would say 1.5 - 2 inches of sand is okay. I would say I placed about 2 inches in mine due to plants and it's completely fine.

 

[DerpPH]

There are some benefits of a substrate
 
!.As fluttermoth said it can improve the colors of the fish
 
2. It can be a natural biofilter
 
3. It gives the fish a place to relax a bit

 

[Tongue_Flicker]

Yes, it does especially if you plan to have live plants, bottom-feeders and a well-cycled tank as it also acts as a filter.

Just make sure your tank bottom is thick and strong enough to hold a lot of weight if you plan to have a high substrate level