http://forum.aqua-fish.net/ A forum devoted to aquarium fish, plants, techniques and fish keeping as a whole. en http://forum.aqua-fish.net/?topic=sand-or-gravel#1 One of the decisions we have to make when setting up our aquariums is which substrate should we add.This of course will depend a lot on what we are going to keep When I kept discus all my tank would contain was some bogwood to soften the water and a spawning cone, no substrate at all.This was to help in maintaining high water quality. Fish do not care what substrate we use so the finak decision is ours If you are planning a planted tank the the best substrate to use would be a fine gravel.This will help the plant roots develop without them becoming bogged down. For decorative purposes only then sand is fine but this will need raking on a regular basis or it can compact which in turn will cause dead spots to occur.This will cause hydrogen sulphide to build up which is toxic to the fish. mickey 2008-05-08