#barebottom

Gravel-easy coverage, easy to form taller areas, comes in many colors. That's all I like about it though. It is difficult to remove plants without damaging the roots unless you are very careful, the color flakes off over time, not great for corydoras, loaches or other bottom feeders with barbels, and difficult to clean. In all, I give it a solid 5/10.

Sand-easy to clean, great for plants, great for barbeled fish, comes in a variety of colors and textures. Overall my favorite substrate. To clean, you just need to swirl it around with something to bring the debris up into the water column. I give sand a 10/10

Barebottom-great for knowing when to clean the tank, but boring, and looks dirty sooo quickly. It's great for really dirty fish like gourami, mystery snails, goldfish, but overall isn't for me. I give it a 6/10

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