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  L# Changing Gravel
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SubscribeChanging Gravel
kj fishy-finn
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female usa
i would like to change out my colored gravel for natural looking gravel. how would i do this??? will the fish be fine???

kj fishy-finn <*)))><
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Post InfoPosted 26-Jan-2006 11:58Profile PM Edit Report 
keithgh
 
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male australia au-victoria
How big is the tank and what is in the tank, fish, plants, etc?

The safest way is to remove all the fish reason you will be stiring up a lot of muck and this will not be good for them.

Also save all the water and make sure you completly clean all the new gravel.

Keep the filter going in the old water to keep the bacteria alive.

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www.fishprofiles.com/interactive/forums/profile.asp?userid=6741" style="COLOR: #00FF00[/link] for my tank info


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Post InfoPosted 26-Jan-2006 11:58Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
jasonpisani
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You must clean &amp; rinse well the new gravel &amp; put it in a bucket.
Take out the Fish &amp; put them in a bucket aswell. Take out the old gravel &amp; replace it with the new one. Lower the water level &amp; remember to leave the filter going, but switch off the heater for safety reasons. Add the water to your tank &amp; check the temperature, if it's Ok put the fish back in the tank. Always leave the filter going, so you will keep all the bacteria in there.


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Post InfoPosted 26-Jan-2006 11:58Profile MSN PM Edit Delete Report 
kj fishy-finn
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female usa
what do i do with the gravel in the very beginning??? that part does not make any sense. please explain it better.

kj fishy-finn <*)))><
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Post InfoPosted 26-Jan-2006 11:58Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
acei
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male usa
get a couple of buckets ready. take the fish out of the tank, put them in a quaranteen tank or bucket. make sure you have some airation and heat. take as much old water out of the tank as possible and keep it. scoop out the old rocks carefully to avoid scratching the glass. the water in the tank will be very nasty and you probably wont be able to see through it. if it is a small tank (&lt;30g) dump it out. put new rocks and decor in tank. place a plate in the tank on top of the gravel. pour the old water back in the tank. top off with new, fresh water. get the temp close to what the fish are in right now. run the filters if you need to clear up some gunk if you are not able to dump out super nasty water from before. after the water has cleared up pretty good, throw your fish back in and enjoy your new look. i have done this with my african cichlid 55g tank before. i was unable to get the last few gallons of super nasty water out of it and still had fish in it during the whole procedure. the fish did great through the whole ordeal, but i wouldnt recommend it. i did the way i told you with my 180g and everything went fine. good luck. just make sure the temperatures are close when you add your fish. i think that would be the biggest thing to watch out for in this situation.
Post InfoPosted 26-Jan-2006 11:58Profile PM Edit Delete Report 
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