Starting Over

[BaylorPerez]

I have had my tank for about 6 months now, and i want to start a new tank(using the tank im using now with current fish) but i want to change from gravel to a heavy sand bed, how would i or should i start over on my tank, but keeping my fish and acclimating them to a new sand bed instead of a gravel bed.
 
Also how would i keep the sand bed clean of fish/snail waste and add potted plants/Unpotted plants to the tank itself

 

[RyanTheFishGuy64]

I have done the same thing you are doing just about 2 months ago. Its very simple. Take all of the fish out using a fish net, get a ziplock bag and fill it with tank water. Put the fish in their own individual bags and put all the bags in a bowl so they all stand up straight, to prevent the bags from leaking. Take out all of the decor, plants, etc. At this point you should only have water, sand, and equipment in the tank. Now start doing an 100% water change. turn off the heater and start draining the water. Once the water is drained to just ABOVE the filter intake, turn off the filter and continue draining the tank. Once you have as much water as you can out, its time to remove the substrate. get a small unused hand shovel, unused dust pan, or just your hands, and put all the gravel into large ziplock bags if you want to keep it. if you dont, put it all in the trash. Now you should have an empty tank. Its time to put the sand in there. If the sand is THOROUGHLY cleaned, dump it all in the tank, fill it up with CONDITIONED water. Its important all the water is conditioned before you put it in the tank, or the bacteria in your filter will die. After the tank is full of water, turn on the filter, put in decor, plants, ect, then the fish. Youre Done! If the sand isnt clean, fill a bucket half way up with sand, shove a hose in it and turn the water on half pressure. Now its a waiting game. Keep the water running and over flowing until you can clearly see the sand in the bottom of the bucket. The sand is now clean and do the steps afterwards.
 
Good Luck!

 

[eaglesaquarium]

you can just put the fish into a bucket (make sure it's a clean bucket - a brand new painters bucket from the hardware store works well, and is great to have in any event for fish keeping in general also). And you could use this to rinse the sand before you put it into your tank... Though you'd need a container to hold it before adding it to your tank.

 

[BaylorPerez]

does it matter the type of sand and how much i add to the tank, also, when i use my gravel cleaner does that do the same as with the sand? but it brings the sand into the bucket i use for when i do my gravel cleaning?

 

[eaglesaquarium]

You want a sand that won't add anything to the water.  
 
Cheap end: play sand requires a great deal of rinsing, but it works fine. 
Medium: pool filter sand, ceramaquartz sand
High end: 'Aquarium' sand
 
All these are fine.  The 'rounder' it is, the better for many bottom dwelling species.  Cories love to snuffle their 'snouts' into the sand searching for food, and the rounder it is the better for them... also the finer it is.  They actually will sift it through their gills as well.

 

[BaylorPerez]

what about danios, tetras, and mystery snails? do they prefer a different type of sand compared to other species

 

[eaglesaquarium]

As far as I'm aware, they are completely indifferent.

 

[BaylorPerez]

Alright cool, when adding the snails to the tank do i want them in first to see if the water is ok to go or put the fish in first then the snails?

 

[OldMan47]

I am thinking you are asking the wrong question. Just my opinion.
If I wanted a sand substrate surface I would start with an empty tank. Next add flats designed for starting plants from your local nursery and fill them with potting soil, the cheapest they have. Cover that with your chosen sand and plant all of your aquarium plants right through the sand and into that potting soil. Now you are all set to grow those plants for about 5 to 7 years with no real attention to fertility. The potting soil along with decaying fish food will take care of that. Finally add water and a cycled filter and you are ready to add the fish back in.
The reason for the planting flats is simple. At the end of the 5 to 7 years you will want to renew the potting soil because it will be exhausted. When you go to do that the planting flats will make it easier to just scoop off the sand and then dump the stinky old potting soil. It will have been anaerobic for a long time and will have a very unpleasant odor, so you want to be able to quickly dispose of it.

 

[eaglesaquarium]

And by dispose, I would 'dispose' of it right into my garden... A quick rake in to the soil and voila... Done and no more stink (obviously it's best to do this in either the spring before planting or in autumn after the plants are removed for the winter.