what's the easiest way....

[tankhead]

to go about changing your substrate???

[Spanky]

Changing it how?

[tankhead]

well...i currently have a mixture of crushed coral/aragonite. The crushed coral was actually used and i have heard bad things about used substrate.

[Spanky]

Are you trying to say you want to take it out and replace it with something else? what else?

[tankhead]

I have also had a cyano outbreak for the last month 1/2. I've cut back on my light and it has helped trendously....but I would still like something other than the used crushed coral.

[tankhead]

like sand or something more fine.

[tankhead]

I have a FWLR only tank... My substrate was borrowed from a friend, and i didn't anticipate going as far into the hobby as i have. Now I would just like to change the bottom form appearance reasons more so than anything

[tankhead]

any suggestions at all??????????/

[Spanky]

got it!

That's a easy tank to change. Mix up 1/2 of the total water, new, ahead of time.

Get some coolers, old fish boxes, etc to hold the live rock and a trash can, or something like that to hold the water and fish.

Take 1/2 the water out, into the trash can, put fish in can.

Take the rock and dunk, swish, shake and drain it good in the tank - clean it - then put in cooler.

Throw the 1/2 of the water left in the tank out.

Throw gravel out.

Replace with washed, cleaned, whatever.

Take 1/2 of the water out of the trash can (old water saved) add to tank.

Fill trash can up slowly with new water - acclimate fish.

remove and replace water in trash can - continue acclimating fish - as you add water back to tank and arrange rocks back.

[Spanky]

Originally Posted by tankhead

any suggestions at all??????????/

typing as fast as I can. LOL

[Ronjunior]

I'm in the middle of this messy pain in the arse project as I type putting in aragonite. I would blow off the rock, take it out and put in a garbage can with a heater and a ph or airline. (which I regret not doing) It took me 8 hours last night siphoning out 100 lbs. of white sugar fine silica sand out of my 125 with leaving my rock in the tank;my body aches all over in trying to get every last spec out. Either I'm getting too old or something about working sideways with arms stuck over a tall tank did me in. Either rinse your sand really well, or if you put it in the tank dirty, keep the rock out until the water has cleared. My water sort of cleared this morning until I moved a few pieces of LR and can't see anything again. I've been fighting it all day and have succomed to putting stuffing from an old sleeping bag in my filter sock to try getting more out so I can finish. (a LFS guy said it was simple and quick....should have made him do it for me). My corals in tupperware are not liking this either and my fish are in hiding.

[tankhead]

so far it sounds like there's no way around taking everything out of the tank huh......?

[slant77]

You can alway leave the old stuff under the rocks and just remove all the visible substrate and slowly place in the new substrate.

[Ronjunior]

Originally Posted by slant77

You can alway leave the old stuff under the rocks and just remove all the visible substrate and slowly place in the new substrate.

You could do that, but watch out for an avalanche depending on how much rock you have stacked up. I hadn't planned on redoing my rock since I thought it was on the glass enough.... first rock I cleaned under, down they went.
It's just faster to get it all out. It took me less time to buy this tank fully assembled, take to my trailer, drive 2 hours home and reassemble than it did to clean out the substrate last night.
Oh yeah, and I'm still not done yet.

[reefermike1]

i switched over from crushed coral to silica sand about 2 weeks ago. really wish i hadnt, the sand is nasty with a diatom explosion and i cant have my powerheads pointing even remotely downwards or its a sandstorm. thinking about switching back to cc, or possibly going bb