Bare Bottom Equals Better/Worse?

[thecoolguy]

hey guys -

i am running a bare bottom and want to know water parameter wise, is it better or worse for the fish?

my filtration keeps all poop off the floor --- so everything is ending up in the filters...is that good or bad?

obviously the good part is that their is no poop directly in the water -

secondly - most, if not all of the poop gets caught in the pre-filter filter floss material - so the bio-filtration media gets "cleaner" water to deal with....

good/bad - what is the deal?

main bad i have dealt with so far - having to clean/change filter floss quite frequently!

 

[demjor19]

this doesnt answer your question, but the thing i dont like about bare bottom tanks is that my fish are a much more pale in coloration than when i had my gravel substrate. i am going back to gravel or a dark sand.

 

[ethnics]

bare is better for keeping water clean. easier to maintain the tank. w/c are a snap. but that doesn't mean the fish are as happy. i like sand bottom, easy to clean and fish love it. especially my new african aro and stingray

 

[AquataHolic420]

I like bare bottom tanks, I have a 90G that has about a 1/4 lb of sand in it.. most of the bottom is covered by a thin layer of sand, but the tank is practically barebottom. Very easy to clean.

 

[pacu mom]

hey guys -

i am running a bare bottom and want to know water parameter wise, is it better or worse for the fish?

my filtration keeps all poop off the floor --- so everything is ending up in the filters...is that good or bad?

obviously the good part is that their is no poop directly in the water -

secondly - most, if not all of the poop gets caught in the pre-filter filter floss material - so the bio-filtration media gets "cleaner" water to deal with....

good/bad - what is the deal?

main bad i have dealt with so far - having to clean/change filter floss quite frequently!

We went bare bottom for the easy maintenance. With innovative plumbing and two spa filters for mechanical filtration, there has been nothing to vacuum out in the 13+ months our 300 gallon tank has been running...We have six monster poop makers in the tank--two 20" pacu, two large oscars and two 12"+ pleco. The mechanical filtration is so extreme, the filter floss on top of the wet dry filter doesn't get dirty. Removing the debris and feces from the tank has made it easy to maintain excellent water parameters.

The floor is clean, and the water clarity is great. The fish are pale--I woke them up to take the picture

 

[WeeNe858]

Bare Bottom

Pros- Cons-
easier to clean look
better water quality negative color affects on fish
no cost in it some fish need substrate to feel secure


Substrate

Pros- Cons-
natural look collects detritus
fish give off better color negatively buffers water




cant think of much right now... watching king of the hill :]

 

[Nic]

bare bottom never affected my fish or rays color.... I would check water quality if your fish are pale.... but too answer your question it doesn't matter if you have substraight or not if there is no poop in the tank that's a good thing

 

[pacu mom]

.... I would check water quality if your fish are pale....

The water parameters are excellent. My pacu are pale when they sleep.

 

[snake513]

bare botto,m definatly changes fish color

 

[Nic]

The water parameters are excellent. My pacu are pale when they sleep.

was meant in general....I read your post