ADA AS vs Controsoil

[shrimpfreak]

I couldn't find a thread comparing these two very well so here it is. I plan on setting up another TB tank. I have one with ADA AS and had never heard of Controsoil then. So which do you all prefer more and why?

[Duff0712]

I can't really vouch for controlsoil (although if true I believe it is similar to brightwell so I'll compare to that. If I'm wrong someone, please yell at me).

So I personally look at both being great, but for two different tanks:

ADA AS:

- Better for planted tanks

- More acidic, great for bee/TB shrimp. I had OEBTs that did great with the soil as well

- since it gets so acidic, it's hard to successfully keep neos for long periods of time

Brightwell (Controsoils cousin?)

- ok for planted tanks

- not as acidic as ADA, however still enough for TBs/Bees

- not too acidic for neos

I can't say how long they last with acidifying tanks. Although personally it depends on what kinda system you want. I have a ADA AS tank with Mainly TBs/OEBTs/Bees and a ton of plants that I rarely dose. And another tank with brightwell that has cherries, mischlings and mostly mosses/some stem plants (which haven't bred yet, but I'm working with TDS in that tank).

If I'm wrong about them being cousins then there's my own personal experience with another kind of soil! Haha

-Duffy

[JamesHe]

Benefits from ControSoil.

 

1, non ammonia  leach out, so very low nitrate level, no need to cycle tank for long time. with pre-seeded filter, new tank can be done in 0 day

2. tested with all bee shrimp except Pinto with great success.

3, shrimplet survival rate is great.

4. buffer pH to 5.5 in my case. very stable.

5. water is crystal clear.

 

I never use any soil for noes. just pool sand or play sand.

simply it's wrong way to keep noes with soils.

[shrimpfreak]

Benefits from ControSoil.

1, non ammonia leach out, so very low nitrate level, no need to cycle tank for long time. with pre-seeded filter, new tank can be done in 0 day

2. tested with all bee shrimp except Pinto with great success.

3, shrimplet survival rate is great.

4. buffer pH to 5.5 in my case. very stable.

5. water is crystal clear.

I never use any soil for noes. just pool sand or play sand.

simply it's wrong way to keep noes with soils.

So it does everything that Ada As does without the cloudy water and long ammonia leaches?

[JamesHe]

So it does everything that Ada As does without the cloudy water and long ammonia leaches?

 

it's way better than ADA AS.

 

I keep BKK, WR, YKK, CWS, PRL with Contrsoil, I never fell how easier it is after I switched over to Controsoil.

 

now my bee shrimps perform much better than my noes.

 

for example,

 

I only need to cycle the tank for 7 days (with pre-seeded fitler). than introduce the new shrimp.

after a month I get berried ones, and around two months I have tons of babies.

 

Never have headache of high nitrate level.

 

Only thing I do is 25% weekly water change.

[fish_guy]

Has anyone tried shrimp sand?

 They claim it sets your PH around 6.5.

 I am going to try it in my new tank

[JamesHe]

Has anyone tried shrimp sand?

 They claim it sets your PH around 6.5.

 I am going to try it in my new tank

 

6.5 is on the high side.

 

mine doing great at 5.5 with controsoil.

[shrimpfreak]

it's way better than ADA AS.

I keep BKK, WR, YKK, CWS, PRL with Contrsoil, I never fell how easier it is after I switched over to Controsoil.

now my bee shrimps perform much better than my noes.

for example,

I only need to cycle the tank for 7 days (with pre-seeded fitler). than introduce the new shrimp.

after a month I get berried ones, and around two months I have tons of babies.

Never have headache of high nitrate level.

Only thing I do is 25% weekly water change.

Ok thank you all for the quick responses I will go with Controsoil! I will post with an update and my experiences with Controsoil and compare it to Ada! Thanks.

[shrimpfreak]

If anyone would like to share their thoughts and experiences please feel free!

[fish_guy]

6.5 is on the high side.

 

mine doing great at 5.5 with controsoil.

 That would depend on the species of shrimp you keep.

 I wanted light acidifying and not something down around 6 

[JamesHe]

 That would depend on the species of shrimp you keep.

 I wanted light acidifying and not something down around 6 

 

for bee shrimp, around 6 is good. for noes I keep mine at 7+

[DETAquarium]

Everyone really hit the nail on the head regarding Controsoil.

 

I made the switch a number of months ago to Controsoil, I tested every grain size and color. These are a few reasons why I like Controsoil better:

• Buffers similar to ADA AS
• Does not leech ammonia
• Water is clear even after initial setup
• Grains seem more durable, doesn't crumble as easy

 

I would recommend the "Fine" grain size for shrimp. "Extra-Fine" was a little to light for me, simply because I use canister filters and the current creates a divot whether using normal output or spray bar.