Ultum Nature Systems Controsoil Freshwater Planted Aquarium Substrate - Extra Fine Brown (3 Liter)

I bought the Xfine Brown and very happy with the color. It appears darker brown, but under water and my ONF Light, the color takes on a lighter tone. This works extremely well with Dragon Stone. It is indeed very fine and so easy to work with. I did NOT rinse it. I placed my hardscape in, then planted into the substrate dry, misting the plants. When I filled the tank, there were floaters, but the moment you placed your fingers on them, they sunk. None of my microsword plants floated to the top, or other plants. The next day, the tank was completely clear, I was astonished actually. In fact, I'm ready to release my Betta as all my numbers are spot on and the temperature is perfect. I highly recommend for its fine texture, ease of planting, no rinsing and finally, it really looks amazing !

I unfortunately have very hard, high pH water, so I got this to help correct the pH in my tanks. I found out through online research that most soil based substrates leach ammonia in the beginning. This one is not too bad, but I would still recommend soaking it in a bucket of treated water for at least a week or two before adding it to an established and occupied tank, especially if you have sensitive organisms like shrimp. When I measured the pH in the bucket after weeks (I had gotten busy with other things), this substrate brought down the pH from 7.6 out of the tap to under 6. It also brought down the GH and Kh. If you set this aside in treated water that has not had the pH adjusted otherwise, you will be able to tell the effect it has on your water (much harder to correct once in your tank). For a pH close to neutral, mix this substrate with substrate that drives the pH the other direction (I noticed that pH-raising substrates take MUCH LESS amount than acidifying substrates by volume to affect the pH, PLUS substrates change the water pH VERY SLOWLY, which is why you want to check at least a week or two after soaking, if not longer, to allow the pH to settle. If you look at the photos, in one tank, it looks like I only have this substrate, but in fact, I have fine gravel deeper down that’s keeping the pH from plummeting. One more tip: if changing out old gravel (I leaned that the substrate’s pH buffering capacities wear out at about 1.5 to 2 years), change it about 1/5 to 1/4 at a time (like starting on one corner of the tank and working your way around the tank with each water change) over weeks, to allow the new substrate time to colonize with nitrifying bacteria (cycle); otherwise, you risk crashing the cycle in your tank and having all your fish die. Finally, this substrate is VERY light. If you’re not careful, it will easily get sucked out when gravel cleaning. On the other hand, it is good for plants with delicate roots, but I’d recommend having at least 1.5 to 2 inches of substrate to make planting a little less challenging. This substrate would be excellent for fish with sensitive barbels (like coridoras) as it is super soft but not prone to getting sucked into gills like sand. It is also of very uniform color, allowing more contrast with the rest of the decor.