Potted plants, bare bottom tank, and inert substrate. ADVICE please!

So we are going to add to the looks of my mom's 30 gallon bare bottom tropical community tank. She needs low maintenance due to her back so thus, bare bottom. She has a green thumb though and likes how my tanks are turning out so far with the planting. We started considering our options and she has provided me with some Terra cotta pots, some with colored glaze to plant in. I'm just unsure of which type of substrate to use for the plants. I do want to use inert. I'm just wondering if ADA Amazonia or Organic Miracle grow with a cap would be the best? My understanding is there is bad chemicals(for lack of a better word) that leaches from the ADA during 'cycle'. In this case would it be better to use the organic miracle grow with a rock/sand cap instead? Or will a few pots at a time not cause an issue in a 30 gallon cycled tank to use the ADA? I do have both available for use. As well as sand/rock for a cap for the miracle grow.

All you planted tank guru's please weigh in!!

If you go dirt the whole tank. Walstad method with mineralization. In my dirt tank I DONT siphon shtuff at all except when I move plants, siphon dirt that roots pull up. That's all. Just regular water changes. All biomatter (poop) goes back into the soil. Thus no need for ferts. Except excel if no co2 system.  Easy peasy.

id be cautious of the glaze, some compounds within could be harmful and leech into the tank. i could be wrong here but i swear ive read something to this effect before. GL in your choices, potted plants work great

Anthraxx, do you have any suggestions on whether to use ADA or to use the Organic Miracle Grow with a cap?

It is not just put miracle grow soil and cap it. To minimize more on balancing (tannins, nitrates, nitrites, and ammonia down) the tank. The dirt should be mineralization. Then after everything is balanced just weekly 20% water changes needed.

Alrighty, I was leaning more towards the organic miracle grow for the pots with a sand cap as well. I did some reading on the glazed pots. I found many people suggesting not to use them but no ill effects when used either. Some people stated they used glazed plates, pots and bowls in their tanks for years with no problems. But couldn't find anything of fish dying when put in the tank with glazed pots either.

You know with bare bottom it's more work with siphoning bio matter when it's visible. I get annoyed seeing poop all over the tank. But full tank dirted all the hard work is done by you and maintenance is easy for your mommy.

I've tried talking her into that. Your dirted tanks have rock cap?

the ada is a bit more pricey, but there is loads of variety and ive seen it used alone as a substrate. just pair it w/ a nice hardscape and your in business. i will warn you tho ive never managed to grow squat but the basics.

I just purchased a bag of ADA for my 5 gallon nano and have some left over. Enough to do a few pots with, so I figured I'd share with her if it was a better route.

ShortyKiloGyrl wrote:I've tried talking her into that. Your dirted tanks have rock cap?

The cap is fluorite and gravel mix. Just like gravel, poop goes down in easy but holds dirt down. Sand caps holds poop on the surface for you to siphon.

You dont have to use gravel. You can use fluorite (blk or red) with higher grit sand (half size of gravel) still big enough to hold dirt down and let poop go down.

Awesome, I'll see if I can get her converted over. Or if she will still want bare bottom with pots.

Here is how to mineralize dirt. Do the hard part for mommy and maintenance (weekly or biweekly water changes) is easy peas for mommy. Before putting fishes plant tank heavy with plants (mommy can handle without too much trimming unless she likes trimming plants), to get the tank established, plants balancing the water parameters, of course you doing WCs to insure that water parameters are at optimal for sustainable for wet pets. Then after that is all done. No need to siphoning the substrate. You can get her those python siphoning system tubes that she attach to faucet to suck out water and put water back in. All she does is take 20% out and put 20% back in with same hose. Easy peasy.
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The before fish is the problem. She has 1 tank and only 1 spot for it. :/

That's part of why we were going the potted plant method

Well. I guess. But don't ya have many tanks to lend to your mom? While the mineralize dirt is balancing in her tank.

I have a 5 and a 10, definitely not enough to house the fish she has in her 30 lol

I've seen some aquascapes that just had potted plants in them. I thought it was a neat idea. You would think with the addition of a bunch of plants mom's maintenance would become easier due to the fact plants consume toxins.

I just wanted to jump in to say I think this is a neat idea. Don't have much experience with differences between using ADA and miracle grow soil but for my first 'dirt' experience I used a tupperware container, filled it 2/3rds with miracle grow organic, capped it with fluorite substrate right out of my tank. Then planted a verigated form of A. Rieneckii. Being my 1st time using a dirted method I think it's going well.

I would say the things I would look out for is PH lowering from decaying organic waste. At some point you may have to add a buffer to the filtration system . Decaying matter also produces ammonia. Even if the tank is already established the current filtration system may become overwhelmed. With that said you may want to consider a slow transaction. Like one planted container at a time. Give it a week or two while checking parameters. Perhaps a month later add a second pot. I am just saying this because there is already fish in the system and would hate to see anything happen to them.