New owner, new complete setup. Making changes. Need advice and opinions please

[Martinus J.v.R]

Hi Kyla

I only have the 4 discus in the tank, so if I work on the one side they can relax on the other side of the tank. Lots of space....

I did start to remove some substrate, and I will remove bit by bit tomorrow I will continue and Tuesday I will post n photo. I am not to concerned of releasing toxins in to the water column because I keep the substrate as clean as possible but is is so thick and is a lot of work. So I am very excited to remove most of it

At the back of my tank I will do a total BB and in the front I will remain with some substrate.

Send a photo of your tank if possible, thank you for advice.

[Martinus J.v.R]

And Filip, yes I will definitely pot some plants. it is gonna look a lot different very soon. If I pot the plant, I will need to provide the plants with some sort of tissue or material? And is it better to use a porous pot or closed with enriched plant gravel?

[Kyla]

Hi Kyla

I only have the 4 discus in the tank, so if I work on the one side they can relax on the other side of the tank. Lots of space....

I did start to remove some substrate, and I will remove bit by bit tomorrow I will continue and Tuesday I will post n photo. I am not to concerned of releasing toxins in to the water column because I keep the substrate as clean as possible but is is so thick and is a lot of work. So I am very excited to remove most of it

At the back of my tank I will do a total BB and in the front I will remain with some substrate.

Send a photo of your tank if possible, thank you for advice.

this is a before & after contrast showing how much my tank has changed. i made a stubborn but steady progression from a tank with deep, filthy substrate and plants to a thin layer of pool filter sand and spider wood. the fish are much happier now.

[Martinus J.v.R]

Hi

The gravel has not been undisturbed for 6 months, I keep it as clean as possible so I am not to worried about the toxins and will do a small section at a time.. But is takes a lot of time and effort. That is why I am excited to remove most of it as you guys said. When I pot the plants is it necessary to have a porous pot, like the one the come in when you buy them?

Because I will need to go buy some pots today?

The back of the tank I will change to BB and only potted plants, and in the front I will have some plants in thin layers of substrate and small potted ones.

[Martinus J.v.R]

Hi

Yes, and the tank looks very nice... I typed another reply... thought the previous one disappeared.

New to this forum, still learning. Never been any any forum. I find it really helpful

[Quintin]

Hi martinus. I'm also from Sa. We doing another tony tan shipment end of month if u interested.

[Kyla]

i removed my gravel using a net and yes it was definitely a bit of work for sure! but u r on the right track it is good u have been keepig ur gravel bed clean. what u r doing now will improve their water quality even more. hopefully u see an improvement in ur fish as i did (and as many others do when they remove gravel). i am concerned about the skinny discus pic u posted above, the one with a slim forehead. hopefully he bounces back. even the cleanest gravel beds harbour organic waste. ultimately, reducing the depth of ur gravel should also make it easier to maintain

some ppl use regular clay pots for their plants. i have seen others use a mesh bag material which allows the roots to spread more naturally. i ended up going with glass pots from my local dollar store, they were some kind of decorative candle holder but i liked the look of them and they came in various sizes and shapes with flat bottoms so they would sit nicely against the glass. even though the plants were root-bound in the pots they still grew like crazy. when i removed the jungle val it was taller than me! here is a pic from right after i removed all my gravel and potted most of the plants in the glass holders.

[Filip]

Hi

The gravel has not been undisturbed for 6 months, I keep it as clean as possible so I am not to worried about the toxins and will do a small section at a time.. But is takes a lot of time and effort. That is why I am excited to remove most of it as you guys said. When I pot the plants is it necessary to have a porous pot, like the one the come in when you buy them?

Because I will need to go buy some pots today?

The back of the tank I will change to BB and only potted plants, and in the front I will have some plants in thin layers of substrate and small potted ones.

I use rich nutrient plant soil capped with sand for my pots . I use common PVC plastic glass cut in half and drill a couple of holes on the bottom for roots to procede growing outside a bit . As long as the rest of the tank is clean and clear you can accommodate plants with a plant nutrient soil.

Here are my tiny pots just for example.

IMG_20160807_232715.jpg

IMG_20160807_232744.jpg

[Martinus J.v.R]

Hi Quintin

I am in Pretoria, can you provide me with more details regarding the shipment?

[Martinus J.v.R]

Hi

That look great. I will visit the local pottery close buy to buy some small clay pots and the replant all the plants before I continue to clean out the gravel. When the plants are still planted in the gravel it is nearly impossible to get rid of most of the gravel.

[Martinus J.v.R]

I use rich nutrient plant soil capped with sand for my pots . I use common PVC plastic glass cut in half and drill a couple of holes on the bottom for roots to procede growing outside a bit . As long as the rest of the tank is clean and clear you can accommodate plants with a plant nutrient soil.

Here are my tiny pots just for example.

IMG_20160807_232715.jpg

IMG_20160807_232744.jpg

Yes, I know exactly what I need to do know. Let me get to work!

[Filip]

Just be carefull with disturbing that thick undisturbed layer of substrate. Taking discus out in a bucket or a tank with just an airstone and a heater while performing the task would be your safest bet IMO.
Good luck and please post some updates afterwards :-) .

[Martinus J.v.R]

Updates will follow as soon as I am done!!

Thank ppl

[jmf3460]

I use shot glasses and jelly jars for potted plants OP.

[Kyla]

and a heads-up that removing the gravel may result in a loss of some beneficial bacteria that may have been living on the surface of the gravel - so keep an eye on the ammonia and nitrite levels and keep up with regular water changes after the grael removal, to ensure there are no spikes in ur parameters and that BB have time to grow back if needed