I finally made the change - *New pics 5/4/07

[Jchillin]

I changed the substrate today. Nothing major. I'm just hoping the cloudiness clears up soon. I also purged the tank of all plants except for the Amazon swords.

Before

After

The new substrate is a combo of reg gravel, flourite and Shultz Aquasoil.

 

[LandGhoti]

Ooooo, I like the new substrate much better!

 

[JDogg]

looks good, i hope those plants get to you this time, they will look nice

 

[Purrbox]

So what did you do with the plants that were removed?

Looks really good by the way!

 

[Jchillin]

Ooooo, I like the new substrate much better!

Thanks LandFish. I'm kinda liking it too.

i hope those plants get to you this time, they will look nice

Same here...they were supposed to be in there now. Thanks for making another attempt.

So what did you do with the plants that were removed?

Sadly, they all went to the planted tank in the trash. Long story there. Time to start over.

 

[rich311k]

Looking good, Bill. I really like it a lot.

 

[plecoperson]

That substrate looks great-worth the work and clouding, I think!

 

[Wizzard~Of~Ozz]

why did you do it? the blue stuff is great for plants.. Resin is a requirement (at least for plastic plants. OK, I'm just joking)

Looks much better and should allow for some much better growth. Hopefully the clouding dissipates.

 

[kaaikop]

Nice job, buddy! That is gonna look awesome when it grows back!
Just run a quickfilter for a day, the cloudiness is all gonna clear up.

 

[maxwell1295]

Looks great!

Was all that stuff from the bucket or did you add to it?

 

[Zagz]

It looks fantastic Bill.

 

[An t-iasg]

I love that gravel combination! It's looking really nice. It's worth the work you did! That's a nice pic of the bala sharks too.

 

[Jchillin]

why did you do it? the blue stuff is great for plants.. Resin is a requirement

Didn't I just see your sailfin belly-flopping on your plants?

Was all that stuff from the bucket or did you add to it?

The new substrate is a combo of the bucket you gave me and Shultz Aquasoil (see pic below).

Thanks again everyone. I forgot to mention that I also upped my lighting from 1.4 to an insane, eye-popping 1.7wpg!

 

[Wizzard~Of~Ozz]

Probably, he's been known to do that nightly.. And I'm sure Cliff will bring you just as much joy in the future.

I'm surprised to see Balas in your tank. They love breaking off pieces of plants. I had 2 that would rip apart any new growth on my Anubias (which nothing is really supposed to eat)..

How long did it take you to switch it out?

 

[An t-iasg]

Re: I finally made the change

I changed the substrate today. Nothing major.

8O 8O 8O 8O

Major work for major payoff!

 

[Jchillin]

I'm surprised to see Balas in your tank.

Not as surprised as I am. I got them as a surprise gift last year.

Major work for major payoff!

Well, I didn't want to scare folks away from doing something similar to their tanks. It is a lot of work and should only be done when you are fully prepared.

 

[Glenc]

Tank looks great, that's a big job. Your plants will love you for it. You'll have a blast re planting and watching it all grow in again. We'll be watching as well

 

[Jchillin]

How long did it take you to switch it out?

Sorry Wiz, missed that question. Entire job took four hours. Most of the time was spent catching 33 fish (not easy...especially the tetras) and removing the gravel. I had rinsed most of the new substrate the night before.

Here is an updated pic, the tank is clearing nicely.

 

[LandGhoti]

Oh, how pretty it is looking!

 

[Wizzard~Of~Ozz]

Definately looks like it was worth the time. I was glad to get rid of that resin rock stuff too.. couldn't get anything but big rooters to get a good hold (seems to compact).. Look forward to seeing what your pleco does to it, erm I mean, look forward to seeing what you can fight with him about.