Changing to sand from gravel

[Carolinesugar]

Hi all, i have just decided that i want to change my 24" tank from gravel to sand, for my lil corys to enjoy themselves more.

The worries i have are,

a) how will i clean the sand ? can i still use a syphon ?

B) will i have to replace my undergravel filter with a normal internal filter?

c) is there any particular type of sand i have to use ?

i have found out that if i want red blue or green aquatic sand, thats £3.80 per 2.5 kilo gram, and another place is selling natural colour sand (sandy beach colour) for £3.50 for 5 kilo grams. is this the normal price ?
also, what types are there ? ive only managed to find the coloured sand, and then one place was seeling the natural colour sand, but ive heard other people say theyve used childrens play sand, and another sort, which i cant remember the name of. what are the advantages of using the other sorts of sand ? and is childrens play sand safe for a fish tank ?

Any help would be much appricated!

 

[CFC]

A) To clean sand you just need to run the end of a hose with a syphon action going about 1" off the surface of the sand so that it picks up the dirt but leaves the heavier sand behind, you will pick up some sand but it is minimal and will take at least 6 months before it becomes noticable and the sand needs topping up with new.

B ) Yes, undergravel filters do not work with sand as th fine particals drop through the filter plate and clog it up. UGF are outdated and almost obsolete so it is time to upgrade now anyway IMO.

C) Playsand, silica sand or any of the normal aquatic sands sold in the LFS are fine, just avoid coral sand which will raise pH and sands used in the building trade which may contain chemicals.

 

[caterpillar5]

a) You clean your sand with a syphon, but you do not get as close to the substrate as if you were cleaning your gravel. Just hover the syphon above the wastes and it should be fine, just practice it and you'll get used to it. You may syphon up some sand every now and then but its no problem.

B) UGF wont work with sand, you will have to consider another filter. I use Aquaclear filters and they do the job fine.

c) There is no particular sand to use. Just make sure it is clean. People's recommendations have been play sand, pool filter sand, silica sand... or if you have the money you can get it at the aquarium, can be a bit pricey. IME pool filter sand has worked great, it was practically clean when i got it. Just rinse it a few times and yeh.. and the sand doesnt compact as much as play sand. I have heard mixed reviews on play sand, so i have never used it. Silica sand is also good. The color you choose is just up to your personal preference.

HTH

 

[Ivan Sloshed]

Hi Im thinking of going over to sand, at the moment i have Black gravel but not enougth only about 3/4 of an inch, would it be posible to add black sand over the top? Plus would i be able to do this with plants in it maybe move the plants over to one side, and keep the fish in it.
Thanks Ivor

PS i did post this question on another thread but body answered

 

[Squid]

Hi Im thinking of going over to sand, at the moment i have Black gravel but not enougth only about 3/4 of an inch, would it be posible to add black sand over the top? Plus would i be able to do this with plants in it maybe move the plants over to one side, and keep the fish in it.
Thanks Ivor

PS i did post this question on another thread but body answered

You could do.. but i probably wouldnt.. the sand being finer than the gravel would work its way down to the bottom, and so might not look right..

Just my 2p though..

Squid

 

[Ivan Sloshed]

Thanks Squid
If i Change it completly I’m worried that i might be loosing good bacteria that lives in the gravel
Ivor

 

[Squid]

Thanks Squid
If i Change it completly I’m worried that i might be loosing good bacteria that lives in the gravel
Ivor

its my understanding that there is very little bacteria thats in the gravel anyway, most of its in the filter. If you change it completely, its a good opportunity to add some laterite or something to aid the plant growth too

Squid

 

[dambuster]

Sand and undergravel filtration works have a look at this link
http/www.ohiexchange.com/armke/forget_the_fish.html

I was thinking of getting a fluid sand bed filter for my cichlid tank when i came across this post.

All the same bacteria that live in your filter are also in your gravel, sand substrate it seems a waste to not get it to work for the good of the tank.

I will be adding under sand filtration to my tank and will post the outcome.

 

[Torrean]

first choose your sand. Play sand is good and so is all purpose sand. They make aquarium sand too that comes in lots of colors but it's a bit more expensive. Check the bag to make sure there are no warnings about using it in ana aquarium...I have seen this on some bags. You can also blend sands together to get a certain effect. I blended play sand and allpurpose sand with some pea gravel and it gave a very natural look. Once you have chosen your sand then you can begin the worst part of changeing from gravel to sand...rinsing the sand.

Buy or find a clean 5-10 gallon container...fishtanks work GREAT but buckets work well too. Now put a 1 inch layer of sand on the bottom of this container. Fill the container with a water hose stirring the sand as much as possible with the current from the hose. Now once the bucket gets full it should be so cloudy you can't see 1 inch into it. Dump out all the water leaving the heavy sand particles in the bucket...you'll lose a little sand in this process but it's fast and effective and most sand is very cheap. repeat this rinsing process until the water clears completely in 10 seconds...if it clears fast good if it clears slower then it won't hhurt your fish but it will make your tank cloudy for a fewdays. I've also heard of washing sand in a pillow case. The idea sounds good but I haven't tried it myself.

Now once you have rinsed all your sand you can begin removing gravel. Before removing gravel I recommend thouroughly gravel vaccing your entire tank... Take a large container for storing the gravel into your fish room along with your container of sand and a very very very clean(soap is bad too) cup. YOu may want to remove all decorations before you begin removing gravel. Now use the cup or a fish net to remove the gravel being very careful not to catch snails or bottome dwellers that you want to keep in the process. Now that you have removed all the gravel you can suck up any extra sludge that is left on the glass. Now we can begin adding sand

WARNING
If you have a magnetc driven impeller in your filter then you may want to turn it off will adding sand...I did not and had no problems but sand can harm your impeller.

Now that we have removed all the gravel from your tank we can begin adding your new sand. (If you want live plants you can choose to add a layer of soil or laterite at this point) scoop up a cupfull of sand and lower it right side up into your tank. Lower it to the bottom and dump it into a corner of the tank. Once you have a nice big pile smooth it out over the entire bottom. Repeat this process until you have a 1/2" to 1" layer if you do not want live plants and a bit more if you do. Next go to your pet store and ask them for some MTS snails... they are the cone shaped pointy ones. They will stir your sand and prevent the formation of nasty smelling and possibly deadly anaearobic bacteria pockets. You now have sand in your tank.

If you have mixed in gravel it is very easy to change the amount of gravel that is visible. If you want more gravel visible then run your fish net through the sand and shake it back and forth until all the sand sifts out,,,now dump out the gravel on top. If you want less gravel showing then simply push the exposed gravel under the surface with a finger.

ignore the plants please...These were taken minutes after the switch notice the small amount of cloudiness...I rinsed very very very very well to achieve this.

IF I MISSED ANYTHING PLEASE POINT IT OUT

 

[Dragonscales]

B ) Yes, undergravel filters do not work with sand as th fine particals drop through the filter plate and clog it up. UGF are outdated and almost obsolete so it is time to upgrade now anyway IMO.

I wouldn't say they are "outdated". If you want to make a plenum, they fit the bill perfectly

 

[raptorrex]

Thanks Squid
If i Change it completly I�m worried that i might be loosing good bacteria that lives in the gravel
Ivor

its my understanding that there is very little bacteria thats in the gravel anyway, most of its in the filter. If you change it completely, its a good opportunity to add some laterite or something to aid the plant growth too

Squid

you can send the tank into a mini cycle changing the gravel. though the same would be true if it were sand. one option, take the top 1/4" off and digard it. wash off as much of the gavel as you can in the remaining tank water. if you have it fill a stocking with some of the gravel too. the water will look like hell, with the residue of the washing. ideally you would let it settle, but that's not always possible. so put in 90% of the sand,. then put the stocking full of gravel into the tank. you can add the rest of the sand with next weeks water change. lol i almost forgot that the stocking was in there as i got so used to seeing it. i gave it 2 weeks.

B ) Yes, undergravel filters do not work with sand as th fine particals drop through the filter plate and clog it up. UGF are outdated and almost obsolete so it is time to upgrade now anyway IMO.

I wouldn't say they are "outdated". If you want to make a plenum, they fit the bill perfectly

Outdated equipment often has a very long life, if there is a particular, use or uses for it. the fact remains it is outdated.