# Turface/SAPS



## Magdelaine (Apr 9, 2005)

Hey all, I just saw this stuff mentioned in a prior thread and I was wondering what it is and how you use it? Does it absorb ferts from the water for use by rooted plants like Flourite? Would it be less messy to use this instead of garden soil (and gravel)?


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## MyraVan (Jan 19, 2005)

As far as I can tell Turface/SAPS is baked earth, an earth that has alot of clay in it. As a planted tank substrate, it acts like Flourite. Yes, it does absorb ferts from the water to pass onto plants. Would it be less messy than soil/gravel? Well, as a user of soil & gravel, I really don't find it all that messy. Yes, when you plant plants or pull them up you get some soil in the water, but this settles down in only a couple of hours. Since you mess with your plants only a tiny fraction of the time you have your tank, mostly it simply stays under the gravel and doesn't cause any trouble.

As for whether Tarface/SAPS is messy, I don't know as I've never used it. I do know that Flourite can sometimes be very very messy. Unless you wash it extremely well, the red dust that clings to it will get into your water column and will take days to settle out, as the particles in Flourite dust are much finer than the particles in your average soil. I have heard of some people who did wash their Flourite well and still ended up with cloudy water due to Flourite dust.

I think Simpte is using Turface in his new tank and can give you his initial experiences with it.


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## Damon (Jan 18, 2005)

All clay based substrates (flourite, turface, SAPS etc...) will cloud the water a bit. Yes they are good media for plants to grow in. They are not quite as messy as soil but any substrate properly handled will not be messy. I didn't rinse my Soilmaster Select (Turface same thing) and slowly siphoned water into the tank. Took about 7 hrs (75 gallon tank) but all I had to remove was surface scum.


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