sistermoon
Aquarium Advice Newbie
- Joined
- Apr 11, 2011
- Messages
- 5
I LOVE the sand in my tank, as do my emerald cats. However, my HOB filters do not. I am now on my SEVENTH filter in about three months and frankly, I can't keep going like this.
I have a 20 gallon FW with emerald cats and a molly with a sand substrate. I also have a 35 gallon with a canister filter currently cycling, and it also has a sand substrate. It was going to be a BW tank for my molly but since I think (HOPE) the canister can handle the sand better, it will be the future home for the emeralds. My HOB for the 20 gallon just died and since I have to replace it with another one, I have decided to remove the sand immediately and leave the tank bare bottomed until I move the emeralds out.
So my questions is...how do I remove the sand? I've heard that I can just siphon it out, but what is the best thing to do with the fish in the meantime? I do not have a hospital tank ready, nor big enough to house all of the fish while I'm doing this. Will they be ok if I just put them in a temporary bowl with their current tank water and then acclimate them in a few hours once the sand is removed? I'm just worried about stressing them as little as possible. I have silk plants in the tank and, of course, all the old media so I'm hoping I'm not losing too much bacteria with the sand and even if I do that we'll be able to bounce back quickly.
I'm really disappointed. I loved having the sand but I can't keep going through HOBs like they grow from trees.
Thanks!
Desiree
I have a 20 gallon FW with emerald cats and a molly with a sand substrate. I also have a 35 gallon with a canister filter currently cycling, and it also has a sand substrate. It was going to be a BW tank for my molly but since I think (HOPE) the canister can handle the sand better, it will be the future home for the emeralds. My HOB for the 20 gallon just died and since I have to replace it with another one, I have decided to remove the sand immediately and leave the tank bare bottomed until I move the emeralds out.
So my questions is...how do I remove the sand? I've heard that I can just siphon it out, but what is the best thing to do with the fish in the meantime? I do not have a hospital tank ready, nor big enough to house all of the fish while I'm doing this. Will they be ok if I just put them in a temporary bowl with their current tank water and then acclimate them in a few hours once the sand is removed? I'm just worried about stressing them as little as possible. I have silk plants in the tank and, of course, all the old media so I'm hoping I'm not losing too much bacteria with the sand and even if I do that we'll be able to bounce back quickly.
I'm really disappointed. I loved having the sand but I can't keep going through HOBs like they grow from trees.
Thanks!
Desiree