How to Change Substrate
- Jan 13, 2024
- Anshika Mishra
- 83 0 0
To change your substrate, you only need a 5-gallon bucket and whatever substrate you want. It's best to get the bucket in white because it's easier to see if you leave something in the bucket.
How to Change Susbtrate
Here's what you have to do:
Fill that bucket about three-quarters with fish tank water and remove all the inhabitants. It can be decorations, plants, fishes, inverts, etc. Then, you will take your filter media, whether a sponge filter, a hang-on-back filter, or an internal filter, whatever the media is and put it in the bucket.
However, if you have a canister, leave it on the counter.
Once you have everything out, take the substrate, put it in another bucket for another tank, or donate it to the fish store in your locality.
Now comes your new substrate. Clean it well, put the substrate in, fill the tank with fresh water, put everything back in -- and you are done.
Mini Cycle
The only thing you have to concern yourself with is a mini-cycle.
There is beneficial bacteria in the substrate. Most of it is the media from the filters, so you want to keep it wet and save the filter media. But there is also the substrate. Depending on how old the substrate is and how thick of a bed there is, there might be a decent amount there.
Just do a simple safe-fishing cycle. In a few days, your tank will recycle, and you'll be done. You may not even go through a mini-cycle.
Take your time with it; it's very," simple.
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