Removing Gravel?

[jdellman]

I am beginning to see the light and now realize that a bare bottom tank may be the better way to go. I have a thin layer of gravel, about 1 1/2" and am thinking about removing it. If I remove it, is it better to remove it all at once, or a little at a time?

Also, since my tank is on a stand, once the gravel is removed, wouldn't and you see through the tank and into the stand? That can't be a pretty sight.
Any suggstions on what to put on the bottom to prevent this?

Thanks in advance for the input.

[Cosmo]

JDELL,

I have a little experience here as I'm in the final process of remving gravel from a 180gal tank... lots of work. A few months ago I removed all the gravel from a 90 gal too, soo...

Yes, if left unpainted you will see thru the bottome of the tank. My 90 was on a clear acrylic stand (the top of the stand was clear) so looking into the guts of the cabinet was out of the question. I cut a nice looking 1/4 in piece of composite plywood and put the tank on top of that. Problem is, you can only see the wood if you'll looking from the fish eye view... straight down (or, you have an overflow and the wood gets wet.. beautiful then :D

My 180 sits on an oak cabinet with a solit oak top so I'm hoping that will be sufficient... filling it back up today

The other route that works well is to paint the bottom. My breeders and hospital tanks all have painted bottoms... I chose a light sky blue... check GulfCoastDisucs under sell/trade and you'll see a nice terra cotta bottom.

Whether or not you remove all the gravel at once depends on whether or not your fish will be in the tank while you do it... I removed the gravel from the 180 over a period of a few weeks using a 1 inch syphon hose. Not only do they gradually adjust to the chnage in the tank, but you're not pulling out all the bacteria (the good ones that is) all at once so you don't create an imbalance in that tanks bio.

Either way, remove the fish when it's time to comletely remove all the gravel and do a heavy cleaning (using non toxic / non causitc cleaners) before putting the fish back in.

I took a tip from Annonopersona and use a solution of hot water and Melefix to wipe down the insides :)

hth

Jim

[jdellman]

Cosmo- Thanks for the input. I am dreading the 75, I can only imagine the hassle with a 180. I am curious, how did you get the siphon to pick up the gravel? You must have had a huge flow going.

I was hoping to not completely drain the tank to paint the bottom, as that seems like alot of work. I would think that there is something I can put on the bottom to hide the guts of the stand. What do you think about leaving a very thin layer of gravel, just to cover the bottom? Would that even be any better than a regular layer?

Maybe I should wait until I get another tank (reading all the posts of this site it almost sems like a requirement to have more than 1 tank) and then do it.

Good luck on your change.

[funkyfish]

:D more tanks more fish i love it

[Carol_Roberts]

You can remove gravel with any siphon hose. Start the siphon and remove the gravel tube under water. The reason for a gravel tube is so the gravel is NOT sucked out of the tank ;) You can remove a little with each water change or ( if you can hve enough pH stable aged, warm water) - remove the fish, remove the gravel, clean the tank, add fresh warm, chlorine free water and add back the discus. I put a piece of 1/2 inch styrofoam warpped in a co-ordinating piece of tan or gray fabric under my tanks.

[tpl*co]

I must be lazy not removing the fish ;) . I've been slowly removing it by scooping up cupfuls with water changes. I tried the tube but it got clogged up when I tried it so I just stick my hands in with a plastic cup and scoop it up. My darn fish are right there wondering what I am doing and hoping that I'll uncover something good. (It's just when they pick at a freckle on my arm that I jump! LOL!)

[jdellman]

Thanks Carol. Let me know if you see any problems with the following-
I have a 44 gallon holding tank, and a 29 gallon QT that is not fully set up yet. If I fill the 29 gallon with water from the tank, transfer the fish into the 29 gallon, empty and clean out the tank, and then fill the tank with 44 gallons of aged fresh water, then pump the 29 gallons back into tank?

One of these days I will figure out how to insert the smilies into my posts!

[Carol_Roberts]

That will work just fine.
By the way, if you type a colon : and a right parentheses ) it will make a smilie :)

[dpt8]

Cosmo and carol, Great input here as usual. I like the justification of slowly removing the gravel. As for color undernear the tank I tape colored file folders, construction paper and/or wrapping paper underneath the tank. Works great and does not get wet. That way I didn't tear my whole tank down. I also change the color sometimes for different effects. Last year I had two pairs of melons in a 55gl ( when I first got them). The background was light blue aluminum foil and i used light blue kind of shinny wrapping paper underneath the tank. Man did that look cool. Like an icy blue effect.

[jdellman]

DPT8- I love the folder idea, especially since you do not have to break the tank down and move the tank. :) :) I also like the fact that you can slide the folders in between the tank and the stand, and like you said, change the color. :) :)

This is just another illustration of the fact that there is always a better way to do things; the trick is in finding it.

Carol- Thanks again, now I can even show my appreciation with smilies- :) :) :)