Ten gallon planted

Pearl2011

I currently have a ten gallon with 4 bettas in it and during x mas break i woul like to change it to sand. i have fake gravel and fake plants so should i leave these in so there is good bacteria and then add the plants? Or is there a better method? I have a whisper 10i by tetra in the tank. would this be okay with the sand or should i put something over the intake?
I would be putting the plants from my 3.5 gallon QT in the ten before they go in the 25 gallon amazonian bio-type. I currently have a really strong light so ill be getting some duck weed. (or a desk lamp over the tank, only thing i have that not a fire hazard). I'll be getting more Dwarf Sword and Anacharis today and whatever other plants they have.
My only complaint is that they dont label the plants so should probably go look them up now . . . Java Fern, x mas moss, Pygmy chain sword, all the same :p

Byron

I have changed the substrate in my tanks many times over the years, and more recently changes five of them. First, use a temporary tank (suitable container works for this if not another tank) and fill it with water from the tank and net the fish into it. It is always best to get the fish out, makes things much easier and quicker.

Save the decor (wood, rock, etc) and place it in with the fish in the temporary tank if yo can, or in another container of tank water.

Drain the tank, remove the gravel, wash the sand well, put it in. I then add maybe 3-4 inches of water and immediately siphon it out; this removes a lot of "dust." The arrange the hardscape, add maybe half a tankful of water (be sure to add conditioner to save the bacteria on the hardscape). Plant. If this stirs up too much silt, siphon out and refill, using conditioner. When everything is shipshape, do a partial water change on the temporary tank using the water from the newly-completed tank (you will have to top it up again), or another method is to put some of the water from the temp tank in a bucket, say half full, net in the fish, and then fill with the new tank water. After maybe 20 minutes, net the fish into the new tank.

Byron.

Pearl2011

That was pretty much the plan i was thinking of doing. Ill see if my friend can come over when i do it, shell love doing that. Ill leave the other plants in my 3.5 for now, got 2 banana plants and wondering if you know there origin? I believe it is South America?

blackwaterguy

Southeastern US.

Pearl2011

Shoot. Guess those cant go in the 25. Oh well, they look cool :)

Byron

This plant (Nymphoides aquatica) also tends not to last long for most aquarists. A year is about it, with some exceptions. Don't bury the rhizomes (the "banada" bits) or they will rot. No warmer than 26C/78F, to be expected given it natural range as blackwaterguy stated.

Byron.

Pearl2011

The won good thing about not having enough outlets for a heater in that tank :) Ill figure something out for the 25, whatever thaty may be. Hey neighbor!! can i put about 20 extensions cord through your window??

beaslbob

I have similiar experiences with the banada plant.

FWIW you might try the method I use to start new tanks.

I use 1" peat moss, 1" play sand, 1" pro choice select in layers from bottom to top in my tanks.

I put in the peat, add just enough water to wet it but no floaties, then level the peat and clean the tank. then do the same for the sand and finally the pc select. I then plant the plants and finally fill the tank with water poured over a saucer. I find that traps the peat and the tank is almost totally clear right from the start.

The canadian spahgum peat moss is the 1'x1'x3' plastic cubes from building supply stores and costs about $12 or so. Sand is just the play sand which is $3 for a 50 pound bag.

The pro choice select is a red baked clay gravel used in baseball infields. I did have to contact the manufacturer who then gave me a local supplier. It is a nice red gravel and costs like $8 for a 50 pound bag.

Web site: Pro's Choice Products


I have found that the peat moss keeps kh and gh constant for years but both tend to rise with just plain sand. Which is fine for live bearers but the peat allows neon tetras and other fish to do much better.


my .02

Pearl2011

What is peat?? I thought it was a kind of wood, but have been told that it is the mushy stuff on the bottom of a lake, or something you out in a filter.
I personally believe the lake one, based on who told me. Could someone clarify this?

Byron

Peat is like moss, in fact spagnum moss is a major component. You collect it in bogs and marshes, hence peat bogs. You would buy it dried. It releases tannins (staining the water brown/yellow to some extent) which acidifies the water, softening and lowering pH. The extent to which it does this depends upon the initial GH, KH and pH of the water, plus the amount of peat. It will become exhausted in time (again depending upon the initial water params). Some use it in filters to soften/acidify water but this can be a slow process and the peat has to be replaced regularly.

Some sources (Walstad for one) warn against using peat in the substrate; others (Neale Monks for one) suggest it for wild caught fish like Cardinal Tetra and similar, but as the top layer of the substrate. Dried leaves (oak, beech) will perform a similar role. Forest fish like cardinals that occur in very dim waters that are often "blackwater" from tannins will really sparkle with such stained water, but clearly it is not the staining but the released organics that the fish are responding to.

Byron.