Hello we are building an indoor pond for our rtc. Pond is 8'x6'x3'. It will be the only fish in there. It is currently framed up and ready for the liner which my husband should be finishing tonight. I would like to know of a good, safe substrate/surface for the bottom. I know that "bare" is best, but since the liner is black and the rtc will look black from above, we won't even see him! Right now I am considering a little sand (which he currently moves a lot in his tank) or maybe ceramic tile (husband is afraid of it puncturing the liner. The liner will have a layer of of foam insulation under it also. We are building a filter out of a tote. Thanks!
Best substrate for indoor pond for RTC?
- Thread starter Hoosiercatfish
- Start date
I know it's a little late now but they make blue liner 
You can always double up on the liner and put the blue over the black for an extra thick liner. That would solve two of your problems at once.
You can always double up on the liner and put the blue over the black for an extra thick liner. That would solve two of your problems at once.
I have double layer of liner but that was for pacu chewing at creases.
if you have butyl liner you should have no concerns about a red tail testing or spliting it. If you have pvc then I may consider a second liner as they get more brittle in time and are more plastic than rubber after a little time under water or lights.
as for the bottom, I have gravel. Again, more for the giraffes than the red tail but find that sand would move way too easily, don't get me wrong, even a 2ft small red tail moves gravel real easy but sand also wears the impeller shafts on pumps real easy when blown around by such a big fish. I also use the gravel as a bedding to put quite substantial rocks into the pond for some of my other fish as I like you have polystyrene base below the liner.
Sounds like you are where I was with one of my first red tails which I also viewed from above but now built a perspex viewing pane into one end and bolted it into the wood frame, trapping and soliconing the liner. Makes all the difference being able to see the fish from the side too.
Good luck, keep posting your story, with some pics.
if you have butyl liner you should have no concerns about a red tail testing or spliting it. If you have pvc then I may consider a second liner as they get more brittle in time and are more plastic than rubber after a little time under water or lights.
as for the bottom, I have gravel. Again, more for the giraffes than the red tail but find that sand would move way too easily, don't get me wrong, even a 2ft small red tail moves gravel real easy but sand also wears the impeller shafts on pumps real easy when blown around by such a big fish. I also use the gravel as a bedding to put quite substantial rocks into the pond for some of my other fish as I like you have polystyrene base below the liner.
Sounds like you are where I was with one of my first red tails which I also viewed from above but now built a perspex viewing pane into one end and bolted it into the wood frame, trapping and soliconing the liner. Makes all the difference being able to see the fish from the side too.
Good luck, keep posting your story, with some pics.
I think (from experience) you will see your RTC adequately, it's not a jet black fish, rather grey, white, and red. Your bigger obstacle to viewing will be the glare of the overhead lights.
If the view is objectionable, the substrate can be added later. I think it'd be wise to try without the substrate first because that way, if you add substrate later, you can compare. Substrate will be a trap for all kinds of detritus and vacuuming it will get old quick.
Which material do you mean, Vincent? Vinyl? It comes in many colors. EPDM rubber? I've never seen it any other color but black. It'd be cool if it could be blue.
If the view is objectionable, the substrate can be added later. I think it'd be wise to try without the substrate first because that way, if you add substrate later, you can compare. Substrate will be a trap for all kinds of detritus and vacuuming it will get old quick.
I know it's a little late now but they make blue liner
Which material do you mean, Vincent? Vinyl? It comes in many colors. EPDM rubber? I've never seen it any other color but black. It'd be cool if it could be blue.
Darker Blue via PVC and lighter blue via HDPE... if you search under Blue pond liner on Amazon.com you will find results
We couldn’t find the size we needed in blue!I know it's a little late now but they make blue liner
I’ve read on many sites that gravel and rock are a bad idea because they can be ingested and cause impaction
I remember ordering a blue liner about 5 years ago with similar dimensions and the one they sent me was patched and i was put on backorder but decided i couldn't wait another 45 days so i went with black. It was a 10ft x 5ft x 3ft FRT pond. Black/Dark turtles on black liner is a terrible combo.
Also the liner is HDPE because we read that PVC may crack and is sensitive to UV. Our pond is indoors so it won’t be in direct sunlight but we plan to put plants and grow lights on the sides of the pond.