[Michael Hoaster]

Greetings Saltwater Plant Experts!

I've been reading all the threads here on RC regarding marine planted tanks, and I must say, you guys are taking the hobby to another level! A lot of the biochemistry stuff goes right over my head, but I'm starting to get a feel for it. Some of these concepts are brilliant! For instance, dosing nitrate to balance its ratio to phosphate in a tank, thus favoring the plants over micro algae, that's way cool! So I know I'm in the right place to discuss my ideas for a Caribbean Biotope Seagrass Tank.

First, let me tell you a little about myself, before we get down to the dirty details. I started on the marine side in about 1993, with a 60 gallon cube with bleached coral skeletons and some pretty cool fish. In 2002, I began planning my dream reef tank. I ended up with a 240 gallon Eco-Wheel tank and a custom-built cabinet that I designed. When the economy tanked (sorry) in the late 2000's, my income dropped a lot, so it became increasingly difficult to justify the costs. Plus, I came to the realization that I might not be obsessive-compulsive enough to reach my goals as a reef keeper.

So, after some soul-searching, I decided to trade in my reef fish, corals, inverts, etc. for a Fresh Water Planted Tank. Much more affordable! For example: cost of fist-sized coral - $100, cost of a fist-sized plant - $5! And the aquascaping was much more interesting. So that's where I am now, with a pretty sweet freshwater planted tank setup.

But, like most of us in this hobby, I find it hard to leave well enough alone!

So here's what I'm thinking…

A Caribbean Biotope Seagrass Tank, with a deep sand bed, almost no live rock, lot's of manatee grass, a few sponges, gorgonians and anemones-and all endemic to the Caribbean! I want to combine everything I've learned from reef-keeping and plant-keeping.

I've also got lots of ideas regarding fish, plumbing, lighting, aquascaping, etc. but the first thing I'd like to discuss is the SUBSTRATE for the manatee grass.

I've got about 4 inches of very mature Eco Complete (a fresh water plant substrate) in the tank now. I'd like to use this as the foundation, so to speak, of my seagrass substrate. I've read that seagrasses like a rich, muddy, sandy substrate. So I'll mix in some fine aragonite and top it with progressively coarser sand, shells and rubble.

So, has anyone tried Eco Complete in a seagrass tank? Does anyone know of any reason why I shouldn't use it?

I look forward to your thoughts!

Thanks,
Michael