MINIMAL
Aquarium Advice Freak
Ok so I need some help deciding what to do. I have a 55g heavily planted that I plan to remove a lot of stemmed plants from and try to get some carpet plants going. The issue is that I did not plan for carpet in the beginning and used pea gravel mixed with a little crushed lava rock. While it has worked amazing for the stemmed plants, however the carpet plants are only attaching to the exposed areas where lava rock is, the rest is not spreading or growing at all due to lack of surface porosity. With that being said I need to change out the substrate. I have a 50lb bag of Turface MVP ready to go, but I am undecided on how to handle the swap. So here are the ideas I have so far.
1. Drain 75% of the water, remove plants and driftwood and clean the top 1" layer of substrate while draining. Remove 1" of the pea gravel, and place the plants back in and fill to desired level with turface. Replace water and let UV sterilizer run for 36 hours to combat chances of algae bloom. Possible issues: Turface will settle and the pea gravel will eventually work its way to the top layer as there will still be 1-2" of pea gravel under the turface.
2. Drain 75% of water, remove plants, clean all areas around driftwood and rocks and remove all substate that does not have driftwood/rocks on top. Replace these entire areas with turface. Replace water and let UV sterilizer run for 36 hours to combat chances of algae bloom. Possible issues: Will this upset the biological filter too much? (roughly 1/2 of surface is covered by rock or driftwood that will not be removed)
3. Remove fish into buckets of tank water, completely drain, remove all substrate, and replace with turface, replace plants and decor. Issues: This will be extemely time consuming, will not leave any biological filter inside the tank, and I will need to schedule several appointments with a chiropractor for 2-3 weeks afterwards.
Which of these sounds like the best idea, or does anybody else have a better suggestion? I was thinking about just covering the top layer with turface at first, but as much as I move plants, and the aquatic life shifts substrate, it would disappear in no time, as the crushed lava rock did. My tank is understocked greatly as far as fish go. For those that dont know, turface is basically flourite without mineralization, but with the high CEC value, it wont take long to begin storing minerals for plant consumption....oh and it was only $9.95 for a 50# bag vs. Flourite that is $25+ for a 14# bag.... Thanks in advance for any advice you can give! I am sure there will be 1 or 2 people who perform a public roasting, there always is so I'll just enjoy my popcorn lol
1. Drain 75% of the water, remove plants and driftwood and clean the top 1" layer of substrate while draining. Remove 1" of the pea gravel, and place the plants back in and fill to desired level with turface. Replace water and let UV sterilizer run for 36 hours to combat chances of algae bloom. Possible issues: Turface will settle and the pea gravel will eventually work its way to the top layer as there will still be 1-2" of pea gravel under the turface.
2. Drain 75% of water, remove plants, clean all areas around driftwood and rocks and remove all substate that does not have driftwood/rocks on top. Replace these entire areas with turface. Replace water and let UV sterilizer run for 36 hours to combat chances of algae bloom. Possible issues: Will this upset the biological filter too much? (roughly 1/2 of surface is covered by rock or driftwood that will not be removed)
3. Remove fish into buckets of tank water, completely drain, remove all substrate, and replace with turface, replace plants and decor. Issues: This will be extemely time consuming, will not leave any biological filter inside the tank, and I will need to schedule several appointments with a chiropractor for 2-3 weeks afterwards.
Which of these sounds like the best idea, or does anybody else have a better suggestion? I was thinking about just covering the top layer with turface at first, but as much as I move plants, and the aquatic life shifts substrate, it would disappear in no time, as the crushed lava rock did. My tank is understocked greatly as far as fish go. For those that dont know, turface is basically flourite without mineralization, but with the high CEC value, it wont take long to begin storing minerals for plant consumption....oh and it was only $9.95 for a 50# bag vs. Flourite that is $25+ for a 14# bag.... Thanks in advance for any advice you can give! I am sure there will be 1 or 2 people who perform a public roasting, there always is so I'll just enjoy my popcorn lol
