Flat Rock Substrate?

[KrisTENN]

Hi, I'm a newbie here (have been lurking for a few weeks) and am contemplating setting up my first Discus tank. I have raised various types of African Cichlids in the past so I'm not completely new to the "sport", but I am setting up my aquarium again for the first time in quite awhile and have a few questions. I'm sorry if this has been asked before, but I tried the search feature, and I'm not sure if it wasn't working properly, or if it just wasn't cooperating from my phone.

Anyways, I understand the seemingly great benefits of having a bare-bottom tank, but I just don't care much for the appearance of them. So here is my proposed solution: What if I used large (5-6") flat rocks to line the bottom of the tank? The reason that I was contemplating this is for the ease of cleaning the bigger rocks vs. sand or gravel alone.

Is this a ludicrous idea? It just seems like an alternative to a BB tank, but I've never seen or heard of one, so I was curious if there's a reason. Any info or suggestions would be very helpful :)

Kristen

[Vieira]

BB is best but if you don't want to go that route I would do 1 inch sand. The slate of rock I think is not a good idea there going to be lots of left over food and poo under those rocks. I used a texture paint for my tank so I can keep it bare bottom but still have the sand look.

[KrisTENN]

BB is best but if you don't want to go that route I would do 1 inch sand. The slate of rock I think is not a good idea there going to be lots of left over food and poo under those rocks. I used a texture paint for my tank so I can keep it bare bottom but still have the sand look.

Good point about stuff getting caught under there. I was thinking about maybe a thin layer of sand underneath, with minimal amounts revealed between the rocks. Thoughts?

[Vieira]

Just do the sand you can add some small river rocks it would look nice. Its your tank you got to be happy with it. The discus does not need nothing in it just clean water they will be the focus point.

[JERRYKEVIN]

Sand, Driftwood

[KrisTENN]

I really like the look of sand, so that will be what I go for I think. Thanks for the input :)

[Atomicmiss]

I went with sand and I love how my aquarium looks :) I bought super fine stuff and its so easy to clean. Not quite as easy as a bb but I think it's worth it. After I added my pigeon blood I mixed in a little bit of black sand, it helped hide his peppering and their waste, it looks like a saltwater tank and people mistakenly yell at me all the time for it lol.

[Atomicmiss]

79020 I figured out how to upload a pic :)

[Squidward]

Aslo, the slate will possible increase the hardness and ph of the water.

Veira - I like the idea of textured paint. Never thought of it.

[8ftbed]

Leaching limestone will affect your ph.
Regardless of the substrate, if you have left over food to foul the tank... you're simply feeding too much at one time.
As you know, having a cichlid background, cleaning under/around rockage can be a pita.

Bottom line is do what you want with your setup. If it doesn't work or causes more work than you're up to... change it. If you're happy with it and it's working for you then it's the right thing.

[jmjackson]

The tank is beautiful!