There are three types of Power Sand having different grain sizes (S, M and L), and the right size should be selected according to the depth of the tank. This is because the substrate is subjected to greater hydraulic pressure and the gap between the grains becomes smaller as the tank water becomes deeper. Since Power Sand has rough, uneven surface that prevents the grains from getting stuck with each other, making a layer of Power Sand at the very bottom of the substrate, where the applied hydraulic pressure is the greatest, helps minimize the hardening of substrate even under the prolonged high hydraulic pressure conditions.

On the other hand, Power Sand is not necessarily used when making a layout in a very small and shallow tank or if the layout created in a large tank is not going to be maintained for a long time. If you wish to take it easy and create a planted aquarium in a small tank, you can grow aquatic plants with· out any problem on the substrate built just with Aqua Soil-Amazonia, but just for a limited period of time only. When upgrading to a larger tank or wishing to maintain the layout over longer period of time, the combined use Power Sand and Aqua Soil-Amazonia is advisable.

In Nature Aquarium, the basic substrate building method is to pile up the above materials in layers in the order of substrate additives, Power Sand and Aqua Soil (single use or combination with cosmetic sand in separate sections) from the bottom. The order of substrate additives and Power Sand may be switched.