# When to False Bottom/When to Hydroball?



## BethInAK (Jul 12, 2011)

ok, that sounded filthy.
But, I'd like to know when you'd use a false bottom and when you'd use hydroballs? whats the advantage of each?


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## fieldnstream (Sep 11, 2009)

I believe that it boils down to personal preference. Many prefer hydroton because of its wicking abilities, its surface area (for beneficial bacteria), the fact that roots grow well in it, and some people feel that it looks better than blank space. The only time I use eggcrate false bottoms now is when I am doing a waterfall, but thats just because I feel that it is easier to deal with a pump without hydroton around it. Some people used a fusion of the two, building an eggcrate cage around the pump and hydroton for the rest. I used a combination of both for treefrog tanks with water features and everything worked out very well. Are you going to do a water feature?


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## BethInAK (Jul 12, 2011)

no water feature! Geckos dont' need it and I'm not brave enough to try it on my first go-round!! Thank you!! I think I'll order some hydroballs.


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## fieldnstream (Sep 11, 2009)

You may want to skip the hydroballs.....I know they look better, but they break down quickly (at least mine did, maybe water chemistry?) and they are a lot more expensive. I bought 9 bags of hydroballs to do my 75g and it cost $90, while a relatively large bag of hydroton is $15, covers about the same area, and I haven't seen any of the hydroton balls breaking down. This is just my experience, others may have different views. What kind of geckos are you building a viv for?


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## PeanutbuttER (Jan 1, 2011)

I had hydroballs in my tank and they worked fine, but now I have a false bottom. As far as what they do, I don't think you'll notice a significant difference in function between the two and once they're covered in substrate you really have no reason to even ever see them.

The difference that I notice however is the weight. Hydroballs/Leca are of course lighter than gravel, but that's kinda misleading in a way since they still add weight. There is however nothing as light as a false bottom. Since I know I'll be moving soon I recently redid my viv to make it more lightweight and replacing the drainage layer with a false bottom was one of the things I did to significantly reduce the overall weight of the tank. If you don't plan on ever really moving it around then I do think hydroton/LECA probably has more benefits than a false bottom. However, if you ever need to move it then using a false bottom should make it easier to move around (suck the water out and nothing is left down there...) So in my mind weight is one of the big deciding factors

I also am pretty sure that a hydroton/LECA drainage layer will fill in faster than a falsebottom since there's some space taken up for the individual clay balls.


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## Eric Walker (Aug 22, 2009)

I like the LECA because it looks better but it does cost a bit more. big 40 lbs bags Will go a long way when doing vivs smaller than say a 75gal. Big vivs i would go with a false bottom of eggcrate in for cost reasons but Maby use leca around the outside of to hide the eggcrate


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

Just contact paper to hide the false bottom.. you can even match the contact paper to some other feature in the room.... 

Ed


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## fieldnstream (Sep 11, 2009)

Definitely contact paper for exposed false-bottoms, makes everything look way cleaner. I use it on 3 sides also. I leave the hydroton visible because I like the way it looks. Weight can be an issue with the hydroton, especially on big tanks, I have always broken tanks down to move them (not fun). I like the hydroton because it has a sort of capillary action that draws the water up to the substrate without soaking it. It will fill up more quickly than an empty false-bottom though. One observation I have made is that plants seem to do better on hydroton than a false-bottom.


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

fieldnstream said:


> . It will fill up more quickly than an empty false-bottom though. One observation I have made is that plants seem to do better on hydroton than a false-bottom.


I have a very different observation... for example this is a bromeliad that has rooted through the clay substrate, the air gap and into the water.. I have to consistently remove pups from this plant. It currently has 5 pups on it.. If you look closely behind the bromeliad there is also one of the jewel orchids and it is also doing well... 


http://www.dendroboard.com/forum/parts-construction/55550-clay-background-vert-8.html#post484793


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## Bokfan1 (Oct 17, 2010)

I've used lava rock as a base layer in my vivs....its reletively light and cultures bacteria as well....


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

Bokfan1 said:


> I've used lava rock as a base layer in my vivs....its reletively light and cultures bacteria as well....


 
The bacterial cultures isn't important in a properly set up enclosure, since as long as the soil isn't saturated with water, it will be much much more efficient in dealing with nitrogenous waste products than saturated substrates or evne circulating water.


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## Azurel (Aug 5, 2010)

No reason to have a false bottom showing just build it so that there is an inch gap between the front glass and the false bottom and fill with river rocks/pebbles or any other aesthetically pleasing stone or pebbles. Looks much nicer then a showing false bottom and much nicer then those clay balls. 

In my main viv 60g cube I used a false bottom and the plants have rooted through the substrate and into the 1/2" of water that stays in the bottom that don't drain out of the bulkhead.


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## Vinnner (Oct 1, 2010)

Not sure if its just me but In my 40 vert and my new river tank i notice a lot of springs in the false bottom area. These two tanks have an eggcrate false bottom. My recent builds i switched back to hydroton/lava rock to allow for a "better" microfauna environment. 

Anyone else have the issue with the springs under false bottoms?

Vinny


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

Vinnner said:


> Not sure if its just me but In my 40 vert and my new river tank i notice a lot of springs in the false bottom area. These two tanks have an eggcrate false bottom. My recent builds i switched back to hydroton/lava rock to allow for a "better" microfauna environment.
> 
> Anyone else have the issue with the springs under false bottoms?
> 
> Vinny


Why would you eliminate a refugia? The springtails were feeding and reproducing on the biofilm on the water and can easily traverse the surface of the water as well as the glass sides...


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

Azurel said:


> No reason to have a false bottom showing just build it so that there is an inch gap between the front glass and the false bottom and fill with river rocks/pebbles or any other aesthetically pleasing stone or pebbles. Looks much nicer then a showing false bottom and much nicer then those clay balls.
> 
> In my main viv 60g cube I used a false bottom and the plants have rooted through the substrate and into the 1/2" of water that stays in the bottom that don't drain out of the bulkhead.


Often if the tanks stay up for a long-time, organic particulates and/or algae get deposited into this area and it doesn't look as attractive over time.


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## Azurel (Aug 5, 2010)

Ed said:


> Often if the tanks stay up for a long-time, organic particulates and/or algae get deposited into this area and it doesn't look as attractive over time.


True...Still looks better then the clay balls.....At that point is when the contact paper comes out or you replace the pebbles.....Either way it's an option.


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## Erikb3113 (Oct 1, 2008)

I've used hydroton on all my builds to date. I am noticing though that i have complaints. One for example is that once the balls are soaked, you really have very little space in the drainage layer. It takes very little water to fill it back up after being syphoned. I think with drains it might work great to hold the humidity in the tank, but i'm getting sick of draining on a weekly to bi weekly basis.


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## wesleybrouwer (Apr 17, 2010)

I think this works great as well,
especially because it's easy to shape or make a seperated room for a circulation pump, the cut out piece can be placed on top again for you to be lift whenever maintainence is needed.

I don't know the proper name for it in English, but literarily translated we call it filtering sponge.
It's available in green, white, blue and black around here with different densities.










Personally i cover the sides with veneer sheets since i like the natural look of it.
Often used are the contact paper or applying a layer of black silicone on the inside first.


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## fieldnstream (Sep 11, 2009)

Ed said:


> I have a very different observation... for example this is a bromeliad that has rooted through the clay substrate, the air gap and into the water.. I have to consistently remove pups from this plant. It currently has 5 pups on it.. If you look closely behind the bromeliad there is also one of the jewel orchids and it is also doing well...


I too have seen a lot of roots in the eggcrate false bottoms, having grown through a layer of screen then a layer of cross-stitch backing. The roots are usually long runners, while the roots that I had in the hydroton were much more dense. Conditions in the tanks were not identical, so it could have been a different factor(s), I just assumed it was because the plants (spaths) liked the hydroton. I had similar growth with a brom planted in soil over an eggcrate false-bottom, but never got the same root growth in leca. So from what I have seen, some plants seem to do better on hydroton (Aglanoema, Spathiphyllum) while others seem to prefer eggcrate (broms and Saintpaulia). Just my observations.


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## Vinnner (Oct 1, 2010)

To Ed, not that I was trying to eliminate it but just noticed that my first tanks i had ever built had great spring populations with hydrton. My 40 vert has been up for a few months now and while it has a good population I dont think just by looking, compares to my tanks that have hydroton. Again im just going purely on my obeservation and experience.


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## BethInAK (Jul 12, 2011)

wesleybrouwer said:


> I think this works great as well,
> especially because it's easy to shape or make a seperated room for a circulation pump, the cut out piece can be placed on top again for you to be lift whenever maintainence is needed.
> 
> I don't know the proper name for it in English, but literarily translated we call it filtering sponge.
> ...



I like this because its very lightweight.


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## Ed (Sep 19, 2004)

Vinnner said:


> To Ed, not that I was trying to eliminate it but just noticed that my first tanks i had ever built had great spring populations with hydrton. My 40 vert has been up for a few months now and while it has a good population I dont think just by looking, compares to my tanks that have hydroton. Again im just going purely on my obeservation and experience.


Okay, it wasn't clear to me. The difference between what you see between the two setups could also be due to the wetness of one pushing the springtails more towards the top, while a false bottom could allow for greater stratification. When I pulled substrate out of my tanks, I get then through the substrate as well as on top of the water in the false bottom. 

Ed


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