# tank redesign



## awesome kid (Jun 10, 2005)

currently i have regular gravel in my 10g planted tank. i plan to remove the fish with their 10g's of water to a bucket, and change the gravel to flourite. any suggestions/comments?


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## DavidDoyle (Jan 18, 2005)

The one caveat is that a fair amount of beneficial bacteria live in the gravel. The highest concentrations are closet to the surface. Removing all your old gravel can cause an ammonia spike. One thing you can do is skim off the surface gravel and put it into a bag which you can then leave hanging in the tank near a filter for a week ot two. Otherwise monitor for ammonia for a week to 10 days after making the switch.


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## Pac-Man (Mar 18, 2005)

Your should definetely keep an eye on the tank if you change it all the gravel out in one fell swoop, because as David said, you'll lose alot of bacteria. Keep up with those water changes. About your new substrate choice though, flourite is a much better than plain old gravel. Its got lots of nutrients and stuff, much better than gravel for a planted tank. Make sure you wash it though, it has tons of silt in it that'll really cloud up your tank if you don't wash it thouroughly.


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## azn_fishy55 (Aug 7, 2005)

I read in aquarium fish magazine NOT to wash flourite.The dust is produced by the granules rubbing together and when you wash it,it rubs together and produces more dust.So,to prevent the gravel from producing more dust,disturb the gravel less and pour the water in s-l-o-w-l-y on a plate or rock.


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## MyraVan (Jan 19, 2005)

Well, in my experience of washing Flourite, the first wash is red with dust, and the second and third less so. By the fourth or so wash it's looking pretty good, although not completely clear. Perhaps the washing it is generating more dust, and that's why the washing water is never completely clear, but it's certainly not generating as much as I've removed with the first few washes. If you don't wash it you'll end up with far more dust than is good, and remember that this is very fine dust, clay particles, that will take forver to settle out of your tank.


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## Damon (Jan 18, 2005)

The "dust" is nothing but powder clay (thats all flourite is). You can never rinse it clean but it is best to remove what you can to keep the tank cleaner. It will never be dust free and what you miss will settle anyways.


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## awesome kid (Jun 10, 2005)

thanks for the suggestions


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