What’s Inside an AquaBed and Why It Doesn’t Affect Water Quality

When it comes to aquascaping, and especially where fish are included in your planted aquariums, water quality is king. It can mean either the health or downfall of your aquatic life and plants alike. But even more important to plants themselves, are the nutrients available to their roots. Rooted plants absolutely require adequate nourishment to maintain their health and sustain long term growth. 

That said, trying to deliver those nutrients in the water alone can cause multiple problems and leave every aspect of your planted aquarium in a subpar state. At AquaBed, LLC we struggled with this issue for years and we found a solution that we’re ready to share. Here we’ll discuss what our flagship product–the AquaBed–entails, and how it manages to effectively deliver nutrients to your plants while simultaneously having little to no effect on water quality. Let’s get into it.

How AquaBed Is Made

Born out of necessity and with an eye on solving a common problem for aquascaping folks, the first prototypes of AquaBed that worked well included a thin paper napkin. It sounds counterintuitive, since paper easily breaks down in water, but that’s only part of the story.

AquaBed is a self-contained aquatic plant earth bed, filled with professional grade potting mix and slow release fertilizer pellets. This mix is then surrounded by a paper liner and a fiberglass screened bag. Together, these barriers keep the contents completely contained in the pouch, while still allowing plant roots to penetrate and obtain the nutrients and added stability they require. 

AquaBed and Soil Quality

Adding any amount of soil to an aquarium will have a measurable effect on the pH level, and so aquascapers need to regularly monitor how inputs impact key levels. That said, the inner napkin layer in every AquaBed soil pouch seals in any potential negative effects on water quality. It also prevents drastic water changes that could shock fish and lead to illness. Instead, our product allows you to grow lush aquatic plants while also protecting fish and other creatures. 

How AquaBed Works

AquaBed soil pouches are made to be used with aquarium gravel, sand or stones. They must sit under a substrate to provide proper stability to plants and to work correctly–AquaBed cannot be used without a substrate to weigh it down and keep it sealed. As explained above, the layers of the pouch keep high-quality potting soil and slow-release synthetic fertilizer pellets held inside, but still accessible to curious plant roots. 

Plant roots are able to establish in the soil pouch, and over the course of several months and years, the soil eventually hardens. All the while, plants are absorbing the slow-release nutrients and are able to remain healthy and vigorous. Their growth, in turn, helps to regulate water quality, provide fish with an aquatic ecosystem, and provide aquascapers with the ultimate source of indoor beauty. 

AquaBed Was Made For Aquascaping

You can house several plants in one AquaBed soil pouch, as plants can develop symbiotic relationships and often do better together rather than alone. While the official verbiage for our product says that multiple plants can be housed for 2 or 3 years in one pouch, we personally aren’t changing AquaBeds if we don’t need to. If water quality is fine and plants are thriving, we will leave pouches in place for up to 5 or 6 and even 8 years. Some of our plants are 13 years old and still going strong–a true testament to the product’s viability. 

Water will never become murky due to using AquaBed–the contents won't ooze out and create a mess in your tank during cleaning, soil replacement, or when you add more plants above it. And fish love living in planted aquariums! In fact, adding AquaBed to your aquarium will guarantee a healthier ecosystem and happier fish, positively impacting water quality and giving small fish a natural environment with a place to hide and feel relaxed.

Start Aquascaping With AquaBed

Whether you’re just getting started with top-rate easy aquarium plants for beginners or you’re a more experienced aquascaper and you’re starting to deal with pH, water hardness, and nutrient issues, or are wondering why leaves are turning yellow, AquaBed can help.

Check our before and after images to see what to expect, and please feel free to share your good experiences with us–we’d love to see how AquaBed has helped your planted aquariums to thrive! Contact us with questions and pick up your own AquaBed today!