Changing Gravel To Sand...!

[andyjc01]

Info please ...!
At the mo I have gravel substrate...
How difficult is it to change to sand...?
The tank is stocked and levels are good.
Would like to know if this is possible and how to best go about the change whilst keeping the fish alive and well.
Have Corys in tank, amoung others listed in sig.
Heard Corys like sand better than gravel. Also would look better.
Opinions please.
Great site by the way...!

 

[wrighty8529]

can aways put a divider do half sand then move fish to sanded side and repeat.

 

[benzenering]

I recently changed over my 55 gallon tank from gravel to sand with a partially stocked cichlid tank.

Make sure you wash the sand first, then you need to bring the sand to the temperature of your tank. I didn't have any issues because my water was warm enough so I didn't have any issues with cold sand. Be careful adding the sand, scoop it out of your bucket into the tank, don't try to pour it as it will come out in huge bombs and make a mess.

I have a Penguin 350 hang on the back filter, I just unplugged it while I transferred the sand and until the sand settled some, just a few hours for the big stuff, to keep the sand out of the impeller. I then covered the intake of the filter with a piece of nylon panty hose held on with a rubber band for the first night running the filter, then took it off. It took probably 3 days for the tank to clear up completely.

I really love the sand, and so do the fish. It is fun to see them "work the sand".

 

[bmonki]

I did this a few weeks ago, and the thread I put up at the time had instructions which I followed, will find the link when I get on laptop... Took me around 2 hours start to finish to change to play sand, and the cories are loving it!

 

[LucyB]

Use playsand, it's dirt cheap! I got 15 kilos for £2.99 from argos, washed it and in it went! Just the job!

 

[MrsM]

Ohhhhh id so love sand for my cories!! Ill be watching this thread.....

 

[bmonki]

link here ---> http/www.fishforums.net/index.php?/topic/407931-sand/#entry3432708

i followed to emptying majority of water, scooping out gravel then lowering in washed sand method. depending how good your filter is, ours cleared the haze within 6 hours

 

[MrsM]

Just googled argos play sand....it looks orange colour, i thought it was a lot lighter....

 

[bmonki]

toys r us sand is what i have in mine (same price just was easier to park there ) and the colour of it is almost identical to the pic in my sig.. just marginally darker

 

[LucyB]

No! Argos sand is very light actually!! I use it in 5 tanks, not orange at all, it looks very natural actually

 

[adpgt]

How did you wash the sand?

 

[bmonki]

scoop some in a bucket, put bucket in bathtub, run shower head into it and stir.. let water drain off and see how long til the sand sinks with clear water above it, keep going til sand sinks almost instantly... then do the same with more buckets full of sand until you've washed enough to cover your required depth

 

[MrsM]

ohhhhh this could be fun, ill check out the toys r us sand....

 

[Jam Jam]

I have just added a decent sized patch in my tank for my corys and they love it.
I went for the larger grained sand from Lfs as I didn't want cloudy tank and it worked a treat.

Defo needs washing twice in treated tap water though the dirt that comes off is shocking,add to you tank by submerging sand in a bowl and our out slowly or it will go everywhere.unplug filter for a bit too.

I love to watch the fish graze over it,they seem a lot happier.

 

[Jam Jam]