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i bought my first motoro ray for 18 usd about 6 months ago and it didnt last to long, due to bad choice in tankmates.

anyway, i have a 125 that is cycled with no fishes in it currenty(heater mal) Now it has large stones as substrate. My question is can i had sand to the bottom with the gravel in it now, so a new motoro ray can burry itself in it.

also would HOBs be better now, as i do have to spare canister filters, but 1) fuval 404(old style) has a problem with leaking, and 2) ehiem pro 2, has a leaking problem as well.

i was thinking of adding an emperor 400 or 2.

Since rays are so sensitive to water quality, I would solve your filtration issues before adding any rays. You really want as much filtration as possible on a ray tank. I would get new rubber gaskets for the cannisters and see if you can't fix the leaking problem.
Also, I would switch out the substrate first. if the stones are smooth, they shouldn't pose a problem for the ray in terms of rubbing on their undersides, but if you want them to feel secure and be able to bury themselves, I would remove all of the gravel, and replace with sand afterward. The sand would probably just sink to the bottom and fall between the stones, which would not allow a ray to bury itself, and would be a mess to fish out the gravel afterwards.

Hoping that there must be a word for everything I mean...

alright sounds good, i did change the rubber washers but that still doesnt solve the fuval problem, the ehiem leaks from an unknown area, and it isnt 100% of the time, it is a once and awhile. The fuval will just leak, i think it may have to be replaced.

yea i think removing the gravel will be best,but that is alot of work to move. but it should be worth it.

If you think moving the gravel now would be a pain, it's nothing compared to what a mess it would be to get it out when mixed with sand.

I realize that cannister filters are expensive and not trivial to replace, but you might whant to think about getting a brand new one rated for 180 gallons at least. Or, a wet/dry setup would be fantastic filtration for that size tank for fish that are sensitive to water quality.

Two Emperor 400 filters would be pretty minimal for filtration. It would probably be adaquate if you prefer HOBs, but just barely.

Hoping that there must be a word for everything I mean...