best substrate???

[joker-fish]

i have found MANY opinions on this,what do you think the best substrate??
i have been told to use

quartz sand (sounds good to me)
clay cat litter-?????was told it breaks down to form a clay layer in the bottom of the tank which is excellent for growing plants
"black beauty" (sandblasting sand made from coal,also known as coal slag)being its coal,it should filter the water better than anything else
gravel-(duh!)

any more opinions would be appreciated!

[nicholas76]

there is no "best substrate" it depends on what look your going for.

what did you have in mind? some of the plant gurus will help you!

[revkev]

There are lots of products you can buy for your aquarium depending on what you want to do ie plants or no plants.
Pool filter sand won,t compact but has nothing in it for plants, Seachem has a range of substrates Flourite is one of them but needs washing befor placing in your tank ok for plants, Red sea flora base ok for plants,ADA aqua soil ok for plants but very expensive, Caribsea eco-complete has all the elements in it for plants and no washing needed befor placing in tank. All of these substrates are different colours some dark brown, white, sandy,black.If you need to know how much substrate you need try this site http://www.plantedtank.net/substratecalculator.html
:)