Changing Substrate/Adding Plants

[jddeal]

So on Thursday or Friday I'll be receiving Eco Complete and some real plants to replace my currently 100% fake decorations and standard gravel aquarium. When I go to change out the substrate, remove the fake decos, and add the plants/rocks, should I completely drain the aquarium, clean it (except the filter), and refill it or try to retain maybe 20-30% of my current water?

The aquarium has been up for about 6 weeks and in the past two weeks experienced a huge diatom bloom and now has this dense green pea soup appearance to the water. My test strips suggests the water is fine but clearly something isn't right. I'm stuck as to whether I should just start over or try to recycle some of the water I have.

I have a betta and clown pleco living in the tank and seem to be happy, but I did lose an otocinclus and african dwarf frog in the past week (I think due to being underfed >.>) so I'm concerned that my water sucks. Thoughts?

 

[librarygirl]

The green water sounds like green algae. HOw much do you feed and what is your water change frequency/schedule? How often are the lights on? Is it in direct sunlight? Do you vacuum the substrate regularly?

Sorry for all the questions, jsut trying to determine the source of the algae.

Regarding the water when changing the substrate, plants, I'm not sure (given the current state of the water and fish in the tank, whether too much of a pwc could potentially shock the fish). Maybe someone else can answer. Good luck.

 

[jddeal]

Typically I change out about 2 liters every 3-4 days. I feed my betta either a single pellet or 2-3 bloodworms each night and occasionally drop in a slice of cucumber for the pleco and betta.

I have 20 watts cfl over the 10 gallon tank on around 10 hours a day. The last three days I've left it off to see if that would impact the algae growth. The tank can only get an hour of direct sunlight in the morning if I open the shades. And to be honest...I haven't vaccumed once, but it isn't unsightly.

 

[BHead707]

10 hours a day seems a bit high, but im no expert, a lot of people do 8 hrs so that could be whats causing it, also if there are no plants to compete against the algae for nutrients and light then i don't see why they wouldnt be growing.

also the test strips are quite inaccurate and many people suggest getting the api master test kit.its a liquid test kit

 

[jddeal]

I never thought of it that way, not having plants to counter act the algae. In that case, I have plenty on the way and I plan to buy some Java Fern from my lfs around the same time. I have heard plenty against the test strips, I didn't know about it at the time so once they run out I'll probably order the API master kit.

In regards to my original question, does anyone have any insight? According to FedEx I should get my Eco Complete tomorrow so I might change everything out tomorrow evening and insert the substrate and rocks before the plants arrive later this week. If not, I think I'll just save around 2-3 gallons that I'll have my betta and clown waiting in while I redo the tank and refill the rest with new water.

 

[BHead707]

its been set up for 6 weeks but is it fully cycled? if it is then you will lose some of the bacteria in the substrate and youll have to keep up with pwc's for a little bit until the bacteria fills out again.
ive also heard of people taking out half the gravel(for example) and replacing with sand then a week or so later remove the second half of the old substrate and put in the rest of the new stuff

 

[gabysapha]

I just changed all my gravel for some eco-complete I bought used on craigslist. I much prefer it to gravel, but it is expensive!

My tank has been established for months so I just removed all the gravel, saved a couple gallons of water and put eco-complete and my plants back in. With the established water and established filter I was fine; no mini-cycles. I put the gravel in a newly set-up tank to start the cycle. Don't let that biological filter go to waste!

A tank cycled in 6 weeks makes me a little nervous; I wouldn't expect it to be mature and stable in 6 weeks. Removing the gravel, where a lot of your biological filter is, can cause you more problems. PLEASE get an API master test kit, you will never know how your water is doing without getting one of those. I had test strips for a couple years and they are NOT accurate, plus they expire! No point in buying them if they are not trustworthy right?

If you're not in a rush to change your substrate I would wait until you got a test kit and you made sure your tank was stable. Taking care of the root of the green water problem is also a good idea.
If you're worried about your plants, put them in a plastic tupperware or bowl big enough to accommodate them and put some of your tank water in. they'll be fine until you decide to use them.

But if you are set on changing all your substrate and risking a mini-cycle, I advise putting your original gravel in a nylon or mesh bag (like, nylon tights even), and put them in an area of the tank where they will get lots of water flow. That way the biological filter can hang around until your eco-complete becomes established. I learned that trick from another forum member

Good luck, and keep up with water changes!

 

[jddeal]

Alright, I read the replies earlier today and also was surprised to find my new bag of EC already at my door (two day shipping, who woulda thought). I decided to go with the understanding that I had something out of balance with a complete lack of any real plant and went for more or less a complete re cleaning of the tank.

The gravel wasn't as bad as I expected, but that clown pleco sure does know how to dirty it up. I took two handfuls of my old gravel and inserted it into the bottom of my HOB filter. I figured that between the filter and some gravel, I should be able to have a head start on rebuilding bacteria (along with anything EC provided). Unfortunately I don't have any plants yet, and I learned today that my lfs is in the process of changing locations for the next month, so that shot any chance of plants today. I MIGHT drop by Walmart and see what they pretend to care about carrying for plants for the time being.

Once it drained, I created the hardscape and I also decided to clean and replant my fake plants to get an idea of what I would want until I get the real plants. It is now full and I dropped in dechlorinator and I'm letting the filter and heater run for a few hours before I send in my betta and pleco.

Tonight I'll try to seal the deal on a few larger background plants to help break up the water flow for my betta and also to help keep my tank in check. I'm guessing if I get lucky a seller will ship them tomorrow to arrive Friday, but if not I guess I'll have to wait for them to ship them next week. I'll also order the API kit. How long does one kit last approximately?

 

[BHead707]

The kit lasts for a long time