Gravel To Sand + Lowering Ph

[SLuRpIe!]

Hi, i wanna switch my gravel bottom to sand for my pleco and crayfish. Actually for all my tanks because my gravel looks funny. Anyway, what would be a safe way of doing this so the bacteria in the gravel doesn't die out? Also, should i put the sand onto the bottom of the tank bare? What kind of sand should I use [i have FW fishes: guppies, platies, a pleco, 3 bettas, also crayfish and goldfish]

Also, I just read that shells arent supposed to be in my tank ;x
So its a bit late to say oopsy and take it out without worry because its been in there for about 3/4 of a year
What can i do to lower the pH I just tested it and it's definitely over 7.6 so I have to get a high pH test thing this weekend to monitor it.
I'm going to buy some driftwood at the store too so should I just boil it and let the driftwood leak tannins into the water?
I also turned off the airpump because I read somewhere here that that helps.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

Hi, i wanna switch my gravel bottom to sand for my pleco and crayfish. Actually for all my tanks because my gravel looks funny. Anyway, what would be a safe way of doing this so the bacteria in the gravel doesn't die out? Also, should i put the sand onto the bottom of the tank bare? What kind of sand should I use [i have FW fishes: guppies, platies, a pleco, 3 bettas, also crayfish and goldfish]

Also, I just read that shells arent supposed to be in my tank ;x
So its a bit late to say oopsy and take it out without worry because its been in there for about 3/4 of a year
What can i do to lower the pH I just tested it and it's definitely over 7.6 so I have to get a high pH test thing this weekend to monitor it.
I'm going to buy some driftwood at the store too so should I just boil it and let the driftwood leak tannins into the water?
I also turned off the airpump because I read somewhere here that that helps.

changing gravel to sand is pretty easy, so long as your filter is mature you don't need to worry about loosing bacteria, here's how to do it

- over the course of a couple of weeks vac your gravel several times to make sure it is spotless before the change over, if it's not and you stir up too much mess this could bugger up your water quality

- go buy some play sand, the stuff for kids sandpits, this is small enough grains so your fish won't hurt themselves and has nothing else added in

- wash the sand repeatedly, put some in a bucket, run water through it, stirring it and then pouring the water away, keep doing this until the water runs clear.

- turn off all the equipment, filter, heater etc.

- siphon out a large bucket of tank water

- net the fish and put them in the bucket, cover this with a towel and put it out of the way somewhere

- scoop out all the gravel from the tank, if there's loads of mess left behind then siphon it out until the bottom of the tank is bare and clean

- then add your sand, the water will cloud up but if you've washed it well enough it'll settle in no time

- when the water's cleared up add the fish back to the tank

 

[SLuRpIe!]

Thanks!!!
Also
Question.
is feldspathic sand ok? thats what 'Safe Sand' is selling, it's play sand
but theres that other one with silica or something

the feldspathic one says its ok for aquariums but i dont know

 

[Miss Wiggle]

nto familiar with that brand tbh, if it say's safe for aquariums your probably alright!

 

[SuperColey1]

Some people have suggested that you put some of the old gravel into 3 old socks.

leave them on top of the sand and the bacteria will transfer into the sand (or multiply don't know how this part works)

Remove them on 5th, 7th, and 9th day, and then use the gravel to fill the top of plantpots. lol

Don't know if this works, but I did it just in case, 9 days of unsightly socks is better than fish struggling

 

[Miss Wiggle]

Some people have suggested that you put some of the old gravel into 3 old socks.

leave them on top of the sand and the bacteria will transfer into the sand (or multiply don't know how this part works)

Remove them on 5th, 7th, and 9th day, and then use the gravel to fill the top of plantpots. lol

Don't know if this works, but I did it just in case, 9 days of unsightly socks is better than fish struggling

if you have good enough filtration and the tanks mature there should be no reason too. if you switch the substrate aroudn and teh filter can't cope it's a pretty good sign your overstocked

 

[Underwurlde]

Do a 50% water change, whilst vac'ing the gravel - get all that crap out.
Get your filters out and squeeze / swich them about in old tank water just removed.

Wait.

All that crap thats in the bottom of the bucket - that's Mulm that is!

Separate as much of this Mulm out from the water, chuck water away.

Remove gravel. Spread said Mulm on bottom of tank. Add new sand.

et viola!

Andy

 

[SLuRpIe!]

Underwurlde
you mean to put the poop and stuff that was vacced out on the very bottom of the tank [after gravel is taken out]
then put the sand over it?

 

[Underwurlde]

Yep!

Mulm consists of Nitrifying bacteria along with its carbon based food source, decayed plant material, fish waste detritus, invertebrates, diatoms, other algae, BGA etc. It is loaded with organic matter, bacteria and fungi, as well as a source of food for them. It can therefore be considered as active living thing (and adds precisely what's missing from an established tank to a new one).

Deep vacuum the substrate, let the water settle in the bucket, the dirt on the bottom? That's Mulm. The dirt in the filter sponge? That's Mulm.

Time to get your delicate little pinkies all smelly & dirty!

Andy

 

[Miss Wiggle]

hmmmm personally i would not advise adding a load of poop and detritus under the sand, surley this could lead to anerobic pockets building up which can be really dangerous??

i'm not quite sure why your advising people to do this?

 

[Underwurlde]

You could look at it this way, but by adding mulm, you are giving any new substrate the kick start it needs.

Think about it another way, a mature substrate will have this in it anyway - regardless: anerobic pockets will build up which is why careful substrate maintenance is a must.

I am still learning about this stuff....
http/www.igb-berlin.de/abt3/mitarbeiter/...rt/pdf/pdf5.pdf

Andy

 

[Miss Wiggle]

You could look at it this way, but by adding mulm, you are giving any new substrate the kick start it needs.

Think about it another way, a mature substrate will have this in it anyway - regardless: anerobic pockets will build up which is why careful substrate maintenance is a must.

I am still learning about this stuff....
http/www.igb-berlin.de/abt3/mitarbeiter/...rt/pdf/pdf5.pdf

Andy

i can sort of understand it, but to my mind so long as your tank is well filtered and appropriatley stocked you don't need a mature substrate, so encouraging anerobic pockets which are potentially very very bad is a bit of a silly idea. if you need extra 'maturity' in your tank increase your filtration

not saying your wrong or having a go by the way, just trying to understand this

 

[Underwurlde]

No, indeed!

When I first heard of this stuff I thought the same: urgh! Why on earth (pardon the pun) would I want to add that stuff - surely you are polluting your substrate!
Further yakking over on BarrReport conviced me of its worth & all I am doing is passing this on, but poorly because I still don't get it enough to explain its benefit...

I am not saying THOU SHALT DO IT, moreover I am saying consider it, look into it, just don't take my word for it, just as I (and obviously you) do for any advice or suggestions you come across.

Andy

 

[Miss Wiggle]

No, indeed!

When I first heard of this stuff I thought the same: urgh! Why on earth (pardon the pun) would I want to add that stuff - surely you are polluting your substrate!
Further yakking over on BarrReport conviced me of its worth & all I am doing is passing this on, but poorly because I still don't get it enough to explain its benefit...

I am not saying THOU SHALT DO IT, moreover I am saying consider it, look into it, just don't take my word for it, just as I (and obviously you) do for any advice or suggestions you come across.

Andy

no worries

i can see the benefits in a planted tank which is tom barr's speciality, it's gonna provide extra fertilisation that the plants will need and will soak up.... but in a normal community tank with a few plants here and there hmmm i'm not so sure.

i'll have a read of that report when i get the time though and see what i make of it!

 

[SLuRpIe!]

Lol well just to be on the safe side i'll add a pantyhose/sock of old gravel
i should be ok against an ammonia spike i think, as i do have a mature filter
and just 5 guppies in the 25gallon

ummmmm have any of you used the product Aqua soil - Amazonia by ADA
it's a black sand that lowers pH

I was wondering if it'd be ok to mix that with play sand/silica sand/TMsand
to darken the sand color as well as lower my waters pH/hardness
or if sticking to peat tabs would be a safer bet