Has Anyone Made Their Own Aquarium Soil?

Has anyone done this?
Aquarium plant soil is like super expensive
I would like to take the gravel out of my 36 gallon and put in soil and switch to live plants
Any tips?

 

In most my planted tanks there’s a layer of plain old top soil capped with sand. Works just fine.

 

In most my planted tanks there’s a layer of plain old top soil capped with sand. Works just fine.

my bank account likes the way that sounds as there's top soil in my car trunk right now lol

 

In most my planted tanks there’s a layer of plain old top soil capped with sand. Works just fine.

Same here just cheap top soil with sand on top.

 

whats a good and cheap sand to buy? any links would be helpful
all I have around me is a petsmart :/

 

If you have a tractor supply store near you they sell black diamond blasting sand for a lot cheaper than pet store sand. Works perfect for aquariums too. If you do and go that way look for the 20/40 grit.
I think its around $8 or so for a 50 lb bag.
You could also use pool filter sand.

 

I used play sand, soft and natural. Didn’t take a lot of rinsing either. As for the dirt I dug it up behind my house in the woods.

 

If you have a tractor supply store near you they sell black diamond blasting sand for a lot cheaper than pet store sand. Works perfect for aquariums too. If you do and go that way look for the 20/40 grit.
I think its around $8 or so for a 50 lb bag.
You could also use pool filter sand.

SWEET!
what's a good top soil to sand ratio

I still have fish in the tank so I don't want to have it be super cloudy and has them removed for too long

I used play sand, soft and natural. Didn’t take a lot of rinsing either. As for the dirt I dug it up behind my house in the woods.

I'm really happy I asked this question because it seems like y'all know a million ways to make the hobby cheaper

 

I'm really happy I asked this question because it seems like y'all know a million ways to make the hobby cheaper

I am a cheap person lol.
Now this is how I do the substrate...about an inch of dirt then about another inch of sand/gravel. I do vary it (the sand or gravel part) in different areas of the tank so its not even by any means. I've had both deeper. Just depends on how I want it. It isn't an exact thing but I always have the one inch of dirt.

 

You’ll have to drain the whole tank and remove the fish either way.

Get your dirt and pick out all the twigs, bugs, stones etc. Mix enough water with the dirt to make a nice thick mud. Scoop it into the tank gently about an inch think. Get your sand, rinse it well and drain. Gently scoop and spread the sand at least an inch thick. When filling use a plate or bowl to pour water on/in. You don’t want to disturb the dirt or the water will be cloudy. Refill, plant and hopefully you’ll be good to go.

Word of warning, as left over organics and tiny critters die and rot in the dirt you can get an ammonia spike. Combat this with lots of live plants like duckweed, water sprite and wisteria. If levels start going up do a water change.

 

You’ll have to drain the whole tank and remove the fish either way.

Get your dirt and pick out all the twigs, bugs, stones etc. Mix enough water with the dirt to make a nice thick mud. Scoop it into the tank gently about an inch think. Get your sand, rinse it well and drain. Gently scoop and spread the sand at least an inch thick. When filling use a plate or bowl to pour water on/in. You don’t want to disturb the dirt or the water will be cloudy. Refill, plant and hopefully you’ll be good to go.

Word of warning, as left over organics and tiny critters die and rot in the dirt you can get an ammonia spike. Combat this with lots of live plants like duckweed, water sprite and wisteria. If levels start going up do a water change.

I live in Canada and there has been a bag of top soil frozen in the trunk for the last 2 months hopefully I'll be okay for that

 

Just make sure its the soil with no other additives added to it. You want just plain old dirt lol.

I actually just put the dirt in the tank as is from the bag then I cap it off with what ever I'm using. Then I do the plate thing to keep from stiring it up.
Then add my water slow enough not to disturb the bottom. But yes you will have to remove the fish before adding dirt.

 

uhh so does this usually create a LOT of dust for you guys??
I did it as a tester on my 5 gallon tank and maybe the system could sense fear but it looks really bad

top soil on bottom then sand then gravel on top

 

The filter should clear that in a few hours. Its normal.

 

I used rounded river rock and baked them in the oven and let them cool one time . Was in my tank for a half year and didn’t do anything

 

The filter should clear that in a few hours. Its normal.

really? You think it's okay to turn the filter on in that??

 

I used rounded river rock and baked them in the oven and let them cool one time . Was in my tank for a half year and didn’t do anything

What was it supposed to do?

 

Yep its just fine particles in the water. Your filter will need cleaned sooner then normal but other then that your good.

 

I mean it didn’t do anything to my water parameters . Sorry for not clarifying . It worked well

 

Idk I thought you were just supposed to let it settle more I'm new to this

I guess I deserve to be roasted though . I thought it would mess up the filter ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

 

The problem with letting it settle is every time anything touches the bottom it just stirs it back up for the filter to remove at a later time.

 

The problem with letting it settle is every time anything touches the bottom it just stirs it back up for the filter to remove at a later time.

what would I do without fishlore

SO in my 36 gallons I have
3 guppies
9 platys
2 angels
1 3 spot gourami

I have a 2 gallon I use on emergency
2 5 gallons
so who should I put where for the big tank renovation???
Or should I just put them all in a giant tub with an air stone
I don't want any body to get beat up from residual stress

 

Clean the bath tub good if needed. Lol. Yea any large tub or even 2 if you have them will be fine. An air stone or your filter if it fits on will keep the fish safe.

 

omg

Clean the bath tub good if needed. Lol. Yea any large tub or even 2 if you have them will be fine. An air stone or your filter if it fits on will keep the fish safe.

 

Hey it holds water. A kitchen sink is another underutilized holding container. I had an Oscar in our tub for a few days till I got another tank for him.

 

had a minI heart attack bc my filter stopped working but it was just a bunch of tiny wood pieces stuck in weird places in it

please let me have an amazing planted tank from this hassle
I wish I did this before getting so many fish

 

Yea chunkies can stop the impeller. It happens. Lol