<CTRL> <ALT> <DEL>... Reboot advice wanted

[Hazara]

Okay - help / advice / criticisms wanted please and thanks...

First a small story...

Replacing carpet in the house - so time to move the Bowfront after a few years. Instead of a big predator, I now have had a happy little comunity of amazons for a couple of years.

For the last 7-8 months had a nasty cyno outbreak that I couldnt get on top of it so doing a complete REBOOT on the tank was on the cards anyway. Currently, my fish are in a 20 litre nappy bucket, with no filtration (apart from about 5 litre change of water a day) so I dont know how long they'll last.

Now I just want some advice on my new setup, here what I was thinking....

Substrate:

Sand instead of gravel.... the tank sits almost an inch below the front of the cabinet so it would have to be nearly an inch deep, as I like the fish at glass level to photograph them.

Plants (I know sounds silly but I have boosted my lighting now and plants will grow) I'd prefer amazon style - but thinking of plants, is sand okay? Also, should I put down a layer of shadecloth or similar to protect their roots? I was thinking of getting a "pack" of plants off waterplantz on trademe.

Backdrop (I like black, and I read here blackboard paint is the best?) I take the odd photo of the inhabitants of the tank as some of you have seen and black is definately better in that aspect.

Waterflow - I have a Via Aqua (1k lph?) that would be about 5 years old now... I replaced the impeller not too long ago, but I'd like to see more flow - are tetras okay with some flow, as at the moment when I connect the spraybar - it's more like a fast dribble bar so I dont use it - perhaps a powerhead or another cannister filter would be better.

This was the tank over a year ago before the cyno outbreak.... I'm not much of an artistic person and think it looks very boring. I'm also cheap however

[dimebag]

i find sand is great for plants ,best if you have an inch of aquatic mix (daltons or a proper aquarium stuff if youre rich).

if you dont want to paint your tank you can get a backing thats black on one side and blue on the other.

waterflow- anything you mentioned will work.

[Hazara]

Thanks dimebag - I'm thinking of grabbing a bootload of sand from the beach & giving it a good rinse. The other plan would have been trying to find some fine gravel at the Waimak river, but IIRC actually finding it in quantities is a difficult task.

About the filtration - I was mainly concerned about the flow rate on the tetras, do they mind a good amount of water movement.

Hmmm also can external cannisters be safely "ganged up" in series?

[cichlid7]

i went to bunnings and got the Daltons aquatic mix it is only about $9 a bag

Then i went to Crusaders on parkhouse rd (that garden care place) and got 3 bags of sand $5each

I think it was bedding sand i used.

so for a total of $24=

Daltons aquatic mix about 20-30mm thick

Sand about 80-100mm thick

That is in a Aqua one AR150 Tank (5FT)

So it doesn't cost much

For the Daltons aquatic mix Don't go to the Water Garden on Blenheim Rd its $19 a bag

[Hazara]

Thanks for that - I hadnt really looked into the aquatic mix before - and am a little hesitant after searching about it here, I understand it can mess up the water quite a bit (I have a full grown bristlenose and cories)... I was planning on maybee 3/4 inch - 1 inch of sea sand (minus the shells & dead crabs).

I will be using a fair amount of bogwood/hard driftwood and am curious if anyone knows how canterbury seasand would affect the chemistry?

Sorry for all the Q's but I havent had this chance for years, and want to have a good crack at it this weekend.

[Milet]

What i thought (anyone feel free to correct me) was that if you collect san from above the high tide line then its less likely to have bits of shell in it and a lower salt content too. you will still want to rinse it though

[cichlid7]

Ive got fully Grown bristlenoses and cories + 6 Clown loaches 2 of them are over 12 cm long they dig but dont mess up my tank. :lol:

[Hazara]

...above the high tide line then its less likely to have bits of shell in it and a lower salt content too. ...

Makes sense - rainwater probably washes some of the salt out - who knows how much is replaced by spray anyway.

[Hazara]

cichlid7: Do I read correct - you substrate is 10 - 13cm deep???

WOW, maybee I should look at going at least 2 inches deep then 1/3 clay/sand?

[Caryl]

It is important to collect the sand from above the waterline so you have less shell content. Salt doesn't matter as it is not absorbed by the stones so, if rinsed well, the salt will be negligible.

[Hazara]

Alright - after several visits to several places I foud the Aquatic Mix at Bunnings - about $19 for two bags (30 litres).

Also took the 2½ year old to Brighton beach - there's now a wheelbarrow size load of sand mysteriousley missing from above the high tide mark.

I currently have several pillowcases full of sand sitting under the outside taps with water running through them. I have a suspicion it's going to take a lot of water changes before the tank clears up when I add it all.

So I'm guessing I just firm down the Aquatic Mix, add the sand on top and then my wood / stones etc.

I'll post pics later as I go.

[Hazara]

Okay, 24hr update then...

Fish have been in the tank for 24 hrs... as it panned out I ended up with about a 1" layer of Aquatic Mix and 2" of sand.

Looks like a few days living in a bucket has caused a bit too much stress to the neons, and a small bronze cory has vanished. Other than that, everyone else seems to be coping.

The water is quite cloudy, but I have restarted the whole tank and filter so I expect it will take a while for the biosystem to find a new balance.

The big BN hollowed out all the sand under a log, and smacks anyone who comes past (lighting was a little too bright compared to the dark gravel I had previously). I think next time I will follow my gut instinct and put a layer of "shade cloth" or something similar down between the layers.