# Ugh... Substrate question... Nat Geo didn't work out



## Splak (May 1, 2013)

So, I saw this Nat Geo sand at petsmart 20$ for a 25lb bag of nice heavy black sand.

Anyways, I figured it would be great for my shrimp tanks.... 

I put 10lb in each of my 2 10gallon tanks. 

After it was cycled, I threw in 20 carbon rili in one tank and 6 orange rili in the other.

Both tanks had 1 large crypt plant, tons of christmas moss and heated to 76F.

Running 1 Hob on each tank and a sponge filter too.

Needless to say, my shrimp started dying off, all my orange rili gone in a month and i'm down to 5 carbon rili...

There was so much moss in the tanks I couldnt really tell till I looked hard that they were dying off.



I tested the water, everything is in good range, the only thing I can think of it is the Nat Geo substrate, after looking online I noticed it contained "minerals".... So my thought is it might contain copper or something else harmful.

Anyone have any experience with this stuff? 

My main question is, anyone recommend a good subssrate that is black and good for Neo's?

I switched my one tank tonight to black eco complete that I used for a year in a 20gal and cleaned all the dirt out of it. I had shrimp in it and they seemed to do well in it.


Thanks for any help, advice, comments, concerns


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## woopderson (Feb 12, 2014)

I have the nat geo sand in my betta tank, and I intend to change it out. The has been shedding its black coloration! =/

I keep two tanks of neos, and I use Fluval Plant and Shrimp stratum. I am very pleased with the results. It is brown rather than black, but still looks quite nice. Below is my yellow neo tank and my cherry tank so you can get an idea.


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## LTPGuy (Aug 8, 2012)

*YEP. Stay away from that stuff..*

I got the same stuff, and similar things happen to me shrimps. Despite washing several time, there is still an oily film when you move the gravel with your hand. Found out about the oily film much later when moving gravel around.

I am guessing the gravel was painted.

Bottom line, stay away from this stuff. You figure National Geographic sponsored it that it would be quality stuffs. Not so. Trust nobody. It's all about money and big donation or whatever.

Lesson learned.


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## bettaforu (Sep 6, 2009)

I have never used sand in my shrimp tanks so cannot comment on this, but maybe it might be better to stick to soil that is recommended for shrimp usage.


I use both the Bee Soil and Fluval (which looks black) and have not had any problems with either of them. I keep my Fancy Red Tigers in the Fluval 
and they seem to like this soil. Breeding is happening now after a few months, so things must be to their liking.

I know some hobbyists use play sand and it can be dyed, so you have to 
watch out for these things.


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## ArtihC (Feb 9, 2012)

I use Carib Sea sand for my yellow neo nano tank with no problems, the shimp actually like foraging through the sand. But in my other tank I use Fluval stratum, which I prefer as its easier to plant in. Otherwise there is no difference I can see in the behaviour or health of the shrimps.


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## Splak (May 1, 2013)

Thanks for the input everyone. I guess I can pass the blame to the substrate 

I'm going to set my shrimp rack up with moon sand from big als site. 60$ for a 50lb bag isn't too bad. And I see good reviews for it. (Post to soon come of my as I set up my 12 tank shrimp rack  )


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