[FlintMint]

Is there any downside covering my substrate with pea gravel? Or is it better to mix it ? Will it still suck up the goodies (crap) from the fishies?

 

[StevieD]

All depends on what you prefer to see, if you are growing plants I would imagine it will not help by sucking up the goodies, but then again there are those with a lot more knowledge than I.

 

[Doppelgaenger]

I have my Eco-Complete substrate covered with regular gravel, it's a bit of a waste of the Eco-Complete but I wanted the CEC properties of it while retaining the ability to have the look I was going for.

I would hardly call fish poop "goodies", more of a pain, and with pea gravel it will fall between the gravel stones and become harder to vacuum out, which will probably lead to higher TDS and more algae problems. If you're willing to allow the gravel to mix with the substrate over time then I don't see any issues.

 

[FlintMint]

I have my Eco-Complete substrate covered with regular gravel, it's a bit of a waste of the Eco-Complete but I wanted the CEC properties of it while retaining the ability to have the look I was going for.

I would hardly call fish poop "goodies", more of a pain, and with pea gravel it will fall between the gravel stones and become harder to vacuum out, which will probably lead to higher TDS and more algae problems. If you're willing to allow the gravel to mix with the substrate over time then I don't see any issues.

"to mix the substrate over time"? I'm not sure what you mean, I was thinking about actually mixing the substrate myself with the gravel instead of just covering it on top like a carpet.