Best Substrate for Asian Black Pool Biotope?

Sand would be your best bet. Have you thought about/are you adding oak or indian almond leaves?

Another good fauna choice would be wild siamese fighting fish.

If the second tank you have is much smaller than a 20 I'd recommend a species only tank of trichopsis pumia (sparkling, or pygmy gourami). Awesome fish. They aren't exactly a true blackwater fish but are from southeast asia and do benefit from indian almond leaves and lots of dense vegetation. I believe they're from Cambodia and Vietnam.

Sand is best for your substrate i myself have a blackwater biotope and i use oak leaves to get the water a nice tea color.

Hmmm, I bought the black eco complete already, so would it hurt to do that as a 1 and a half inch bottom layer and do 1 and a half inches of sand as the top layer?

PS: How dark do the leaves make the water exactly? I don't mind a yellowish tint, but I would preferr to be able to see all the way to the back...

I'm not a big fan of sand. I did mine in ADA Aqua soil. I want something that looks like the bottom of a pool, and that means dirt to me.

WallaceGrover said:

Hmmm, I bought the black eco complete already, so would it hurt to do that as a 1 and a half inch bottom layer and do 1 and a half inches of sand as the top layer?

PS: How dark do the leaves make the water exactly? I don't mind a yellowish tint, but I would preferr to be able to see all the way to the back...

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Eventually the bigger EC pieces will rise to the top. I've attempted what you're describing, although with Fluorite.

Don't think Eco-complete is a great idea for a style of tank that is meant to run close to 0 hardness. Some or all batches are known to raise hardness. I like sand for this type of tank. Regardless of which substrate you pick, adding some peat and leaves (e.g. oak, IALs) will make it look more natural. How much tint there is depends on how much you add and how frequently you change water - impossible to say, just play it by ear.

Incidentally, AFAIK Trichopsis pumila distribution is fairly widely spread over SE Asia & reaches into India. It can also be found in blackwater environments though is not restricted to them, so IMO it is a true blackwater fish.

The leaves make the water yellowish but not too cloudy that you can see the back. My Asian biotope useuses Catappa leaves from aquaticmagic on eBay.

Ok then, I'll use pool filter sand. I found a desk lamp I have that can fit a 13w cfl 6500k bulb, although I kind of am curious if I can use a 23w...

I have a mixture of Oak leaf litter and some random leaves (shouldn't be any chemicals on them) from the yard that have been aged in a moist vivarium for around 6ish months. It was housing a praying mantis, but she has since died and it is out of use. Would this be safe to use?

Thanks for your help guys, I may have it set up in a week or two!! (at least the equipment part)

Just use enough leaves to make it dark enough to your liking. In my tank i like it very dark so i have quite a bit of leaves.

Should any Oak leaves be fine?

WallaceGrover said:

Should any Oak leaves be fine?

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Yes.

I can post before and after IAL pics tomorrow if you want to see the change (added them today and took pics first, so the change should be pretty obvious).

Hmmm, should I rinse the PFS sand first?