What is the best and most inexpensive substrate?

Substrate can be kinda expensive if you want the stuff that everyone says is the best or is reviewed the best on places like Amazon. If anyone knows the best and most inexpensive substrate for a bag of like 20 pounds than please let me know. Also, i've seen people on youtube use bags of soil from places like Home Depot. Those bags of dirt from Home Depot are very very inexpensive so is this form of substrate legit? If gardening soil works well in aquariums than I will be using those from now on but I have some questions about it like how do you gravel vacuum soil and also does it make the water black?

Also, are pea pebbles a good option? I hear you can get a 50 pound bag for like $5 from Home Depot.

 

Pool filter sand is cheap a 50# bag for about $8-10 the pea pebbles sound like a good option. If you do go with a dirted tank be sure to get organic soil and its definitely recommended to cap it with something like sand or gravel.

 

Unless you have special requirements, natural gravel or sand are best and least expensive.

 

Pool filter sand is cheap a 50# bag for about $8-10 the pea pebbles sound like a good option. If you do go with a dirted tank be sure to get organic soil and its definitely recommended to cap it with something like sand or gravel.

Idk if I'll ever use sand for any of my tanks because when you gravel vacuum it will most likely suck up the sand and also I just like the way gravel or fine pebbles looks anyway but pea pebbles sounds like the best option. I wonder if they would be fine for planted tanks though?

 

Before choosing a substrate you should know if you’re going planted or not. Any inert substrate will likely require root tabs in addition to liquid ferts to keep plants healthy.

If you’re in the US and have a tractor supply nearby, many people have used Black Diamond Blasting Sand with good results. Medium grit seems to be the most popular. It’s usually less than $10 for 50 lbs.

 

Idk if I'll ever use sand for any of my tanks because when you gravel vacuum it will most likely suck up the sand and also I just like the way gravel or fine pebbles looks anyway but pea pebbles sounds like the best option. I wonder if they would be fine for planted tanks though?

All my tanks have PFS and its never an issue gravel vaccing them it doesn't suck the sand up. It makes it much easier than gravel actually. All you really have to do is swirl the gravel vac above the sand and everything that's settled on it gets sucked up very easily.

 

All my tanks have PFS and its never an issue gravel vaccing them it doesn't suck the sand up. It makes it much easier than gravel actually. All you really have to do is swirl the gravel vac above the sand and everything that's settled on it gets sucked up very easily.

Do you use a certain brand of PFS? Root tabs for plants?

 

Do you use a certain brand of PFS? Root tabs for plants?

I got mine from a pool supply place called Leslies and the brand was "Lighthouse". I do add some pieces of root tabs here n there but mainly just dose my tanks once a week with Nilog Thrive. I dose the day after I do my WC on said tanks.

 

I got mine from a pool supply place called Leslies and the brand was "Lighthouse". I do add some pieces of root tabs here n there but mainly just dose my tanks once a week with Nilog Thrive. I dose the day after I do my WC on said tanks.

I have one of those near me. I will go there and check it out and see how cheap it is and maybe I will give sand a go if it is that easy to maintain. The thing is i'm kinda ocd with my tanks being clean and with sand you can see every piece of poop and leftover food and its an eyesore and it's like now I gotta gravel vacuum AGAIN even though I literally just did it.