Re: RM...........here are some links to some good sites that have the proper bulbs

On Fri, 11 Jan 2008 02:36:37 -0500, Randy Webb wrote:

> Right now, I am trying to find a good, cheap substrate to use in the 
> tank. I want something that the plants can actually root and grow in 
> that won't cost me a fortune to use. As it is now, about half of them 
> are simply floating in the tank because I can't make up my mind what 
> kind of substrate to use. Don't want to just keep trying things, them 
> failing, and having to start all over again.

A suggestion I've made before in this group is "tube sand" or "traction
sand".  Comes in 60 pound bags for around $5.00.  It's mostly small gravel
and/or coarse sand.  I sift out the really small stuff (yes it's a lot of
work), wash the rest, and voila! substrate.  

My plants grow great in it, but I do stick a fertilizer tablet under each
plant when planting.  By the time that's gone, the fish will have created
enough fertilizer to carry on, although I do use Flourish once a week for
trace elements.

I've been using Flourish Excel in some tanks and not in others.  After a
year or more, I can't tell any difference.