Want To Change The Gravel

[dipple]

Hi there i havn't been to the forum for a while but in need of some advice.I've had my tank for about a year.I'ts a 60 ltre and i've 10 community fish all doing well.Although i do a weekly half water change and use the suction gravel wash my gravel is starting to look dull and dirty.I was thinking about changing the gravel but i'm not sure where to begin.Is there someone who can give me some advice please

 

[Miss Wiggle]

take it out and put new gravel in then...... it's not that tricky really, just set aside a few hrs to do it.

catch all the fish and put them in a bucket
drain all the water from the tank
scoop out the existing gravel
wash new gravel and put it in
fill tank up, bring it up to temp
put fish back

 

[waterdrop]

take it out and put new gravel in then...... it's not that tricky really, just set aside a few hrs to do it.

catch all the fish and put them in a bucket
drain all the water from the tank
scoop out the existing gravel
wash new gravel and put it in
fill tank up, bring it up to temp
put fish back

Its amazing we don't get tired of how practically perfect you are...
That's dead on, the right advice I'd say, that we all often over-imagine the difficulty of something like this. It is really not a big deal and new gravel can really be pretty cheap!
Good call MW, once again.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

lol, years of cynicism my dear


i've changed the substrate with fish in the tank before with no ill effects tbh, just dropped water level to one third full, cleaned the substrate as well as i could, scooped it all out and carefully put sand in...... didn't loose any fish or have any problems but it was a bit nerve wracking so i wouldn't recommend it!!

 

[waterdrop]

My siamese cat loves a project and I always used to think my fish more or less did too, although a waterfall of new gravel could hardly help but have its scary moments (could be like a tsunami would be to us I guess, lol)

 

[dipple]

Well thanks for all your suggestions don't seem so bad when you talk to others about it.Will give it at go as Miss Wiggle says and thanks again

 

[Miss Wiggle]

My siamese cat loves a project and I always used to think my fish more or less did too, although a waterfall of new gravel could hardly help but have its scary moments (could be like a tsunami would be to us I guess, lol)

well i was putting sand in, so long as you only put a small amount in at a time, hold it in your hand and only let go when your hand is at the bottom of the tank so there was a v limited chance of fish getting squished. it wasn't the smartest move though and i wouldn't recommend it to anyone!