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Any suggestions for changing out the play sand substrate in my tank to eco-complete? I have found tons of suggestions for changing from gravel to sand but not the other way around.<br><br>

well, a few things.

1) syphon it out, dont waste time with too much shovelling. get the bulk of it out and then suck the rest up

2) get something like a new kitty ltter tray and put it in the bottom of the tank after you have replaced the gravel, and fill it full of sand.

3) do it backwards, fill a net bag with eco-complete and stick it in the tank for a month, actually, stick them anywhere in the tank that there is room. that way they will be fully seeded and ready to go

For animals, the entire universe has been neatly divided into things to (a) mate with, (b) eat, (c) run away from, and (d) rocks. - Terry Pratchett

Depending on the size of your tank, you may want to break the tank down, clean it and start fresh. The good news is that Eco is clean and biologically active. If you can maintain the bio-load in your existing filters as well as hold your fish for a couple of hours, the tank can be easily be planted, re-filled and stocked.

Scooping up the sand substrate will stir minute sand particles into the water, clouding the tank. Siphoning the sand substrate would best be done with the largest diameter siphon that you can find to prevent clogging.

Eco is wet coming from the bag. Do NOT rinse the product, there is no need. Place the substrate in the aquarium and sculpt it to your taste. Place your hardscape and complete with plantings. You can then gently fill without worry of clouding the water. Treat the water with Prime or a similar product and connect your heater(s) and filters when the water is deep enough to generate flow.

If you intend to have the tank support the existing fish. I would suspend feedings for several days before the move and do large water changes (50%) in the days prior to the move. By not feeding the fish, you will minimize waste products while the fish are in holding units. The water change regime will ensure that water parameters will be near the newly re-filled tank.

Good luck!

__________
"To steal ideas from one person is plagiarism; to steal from many is research."
researched from Steven Wright

hey actually i just changed my old gravel to eco-complete today, took about 3 hours, it was fun, i have these previous posts maybe you'll find them helpful...

http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/General%20Freshwater/59482.html

http://www.fishprofiles.com/files/forums/Planted%20Aquaria/59638.html?200505190230

Last edited by greenfootball at 19-May-2005 03:17