# Please look at my tank and tell me if I should change...



## srook23 (Feb 21, 2009)

Ok, I made a post about changing from the gravel to sand. I really do like the way the tank looks now, but wonder if it would look better with sand, but then comes the problem of incorporating my driftwood in and all this and that.

Look at the pics of my tank and tell me what ya'll think if I should even bother messing with it.

Thanks


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## Curator (Feb 18, 2009)

Although I prefer sand, i think your tank looks pretty nice as it is...


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## gtphale (Oct 12, 2008)

I would add another rock on the other side. Tank looks really nice, its just a matter of what you like now what everyone else likes. Your the one that has to take care of it and look at it.


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## khaki (Jan 12, 2008)

I think your tank would look a lot nice with sand IMO. and add some more rocks. Your tank looks nice now as well but can look 10 times better with sand.


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## srook23 (Feb 21, 2009)

gtphale said:


> I would add another rock on the other side. Tank looks really nice, its just a matter of what you like now what everyone else likes. Your the one that has to take care of it and look at it.


The "rock" is actually plastic. I found it at some pet store and it looks real so I decided to try it. It only weighs about 5lbs.

I had a So. Am. tank before and had all driftwood. I liked the driftwood and the pleco loves eating on it so I wanted to incorporate it in.

Do ya'll not think it would look kinda odd with driftwood sticking out of the sand??

I would put a rock on the other side, but it worked out well with the driftwood because they love hiding in the driftwood and grass.


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## Curator (Feb 18, 2009)

well, driftwood frequently pokes out of sand in nature... at least in my neck of the woods it does, or at least sits on top of it... and wow those plastic rocks looks really realistic in that pic, but that explains why I could see light through them a little bit...LOL... If you like sand, and you want sand, then do sand... ^_^


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## srook23 (Feb 21, 2009)

Nah, it's just an optical illusion I think. You definately can't see light through them. They are pretty thick plastic. I picked that thing up one day when I was shopping for some stuff for the tank and saw it...I thought it was real and went and picked it up...I was like dang this is plastic. It's about 5lbs. and looks pretty real...several buddies told me "man I bet that rock is heavy as all get out" I just laugh.

I think I'm gonna try going ahead and taking the gravel out and putting sand in it just to see how it looks. I think the fish would appreciate it since they like digging so much.


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## football mom (Feb 19, 2006)

I think I have that same piece of fake rock, it does look realistic and my fish love it.


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## srook23 (Feb 21, 2009)

Yea, what got me was the amount of holes it had in it. I think there are like 10+ holes in the thing where they can hide.


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## madmax666 (Sep 11, 2008)

fill her right up to the rim!! (not top of tank tho...) you have ugf (under ground filters) so you would be able to use sand unless you switch out your filtration or get rid of the ugf some how. i think it looks fine. too much of a hasle to change with an ugf because you have to really take Everything!!!! out.


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## srook23 (Feb 21, 2009)

I want to take the UGF out because when I run the UGF the tank is a little murky. I turn it off for a little while and just let the canister run and it gets clear.

I'm planning on taking everything out anyhow to remove the UGF plates so I was thiking if I was gonna do it this would be the time to do it.


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## alicem (Jul 26, 2007)

> Look at the pics of my tank and tell me what ya'll think if I should even bother messing with it.


The tank looks pretty good. 
If you like it, that's great, it's in your home so your opinion is what counts.

If you want some suggestions, here are mine, mainly for maintenance and good water conditions:
Remove some of the gravel. More than 1" - 2" is not necessary and deeper gravel will just hold that much more poo.

Be sure to gravel vac every week. That's a big concern with gravel. 
If you have a fish that likes to dig, they ususally like sand better.
Your gravel is a nice color.

The gray rock looks very realistic. I really like it. 
But be aware, there will probably be alot of poo in it if you don't clean it regularly.
That can be a real problem with plastic decorations. 
I have a fake tree stump that is pretty good fake, but it harbors poo, big time.

You have a nice tank, enjoy it and thanks for sharing your picts.


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## Morpheus (Nov 12, 2008)

What alicem said.


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## srook23 (Feb 21, 2009)

I'm suprised because I know I put a lot of gravel in there and I know there is probably a ton of poo in that tank, but I check it all the time and have never seen a reading over 0ppm on the ammonia...I've been doing weekly 25% water changes.

The only time I saw it get higher than 0ppm was when hunting season was on...I didn't clean the tank for almost 2 months and when I checked it was .5ppm.

That's the one reason I'm debating on maybe leaving the UGF in...I've never ever had a remote problem with keeping the water in almost perfect conditions. I know I'm gonna kick myself in the butt if I take out the UGF and my readings start going up.

Given that information maybe that will sway the decision a little more??


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## jbacker7 (Jul 16, 2008)

That rock looks great! I think it'd be kind of interesting to take about 3 of those and go across the whole back of the tank. Was it just a local pet store you found it at?


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## srook23 (Feb 21, 2009)

I think it was at PetSmart. Not sure. I hit a bunch of stores that day, but I want to say that's where I found it at.

The rock is pretty thick though. In my 55g it goes from front to back almost. It's about 11" thick.


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## jfly (Feb 17, 2009)

normally i would say sand, but recently i switched and found that my sypon isnt strong enough to pick poo up off of it, so now i gotta get another (larger) syphon, and after buying all the stuff for a diy python,, btw the rocks look great in your tank. in mho.. i think they look great and id keep them... if they were a cheesey blue or red id say change.. great looking tank, but yea you need another rock pile... :fish: :fish:


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## cindylou (Oct 22, 2008)

That rock looks awesome...Why does everyone say gravel and plastic decor harbor a lot of poo and waste? I would think live plants would be the worst with that problem and also with sand..At least with the fake stuff you can take it out and clean it and under it..I really like the way sand looks ...I posted questions about that not long ago..But I am still in the thinking about it because I just can't see it as easier maintenance then gravel...And the other thing I think looks great is when you pile a lot of rock..( Cleaning that?) :fish: :fish: :fish:


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## jfly (Feb 17, 2009)

i added sand last week.. looks great but really, i wish i would have gone with really good looking gravel'pebbles.. again, gasses, and my syphon wont pick the poo up as well as really getting in there and diggin in the gravel


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## cindylou (Oct 22, 2008)

I agree gravel has got to be easier to clean and keep clean :thumb:


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## alicem (Jul 26, 2007)

srook23 said:


> I'm suprised because I know I put a lot of gravel in there and I know there is probably a ton of poo in that tank, but I check it all the time and have never seen a reading over 0ppm on the ammonia...I've been doing weekly 25% water changes.


The nitrAte is what will be high and should be tested. NitrAtes will reduce each time you do a partial water change. 
That is the only way to remove them, unless you use special nitrAte removing items in your filter.
Your test tells you that ammonia is 0 and that indicates the good bacteria is doing it's job. NitrItes will probably be 0 also.



srook23 said:


> I want to take the UGF out because when I run the UGF the tank is a little murky. I turn it off for a little while and just let the canister run and it gets clear.
> 
> I'm planning on taking everything out anyhow to remove the UGF plates so I was thiking if I was gonna do it this would be the time to do it.





srook23 said:


> That's the one reason I'm debating on maybe leaving the UGF in...I've never ever had a remote problem with keeping the water in almost perfect conditions. I know I'm gonna kick myself in the butt if I take out the UGF and my readings start going up.
> 
> Given that information maybe that will sway the decision a little more??


I'm a little confused by these conflicting statements. But in the end to remove the UGF is your call. 
Many folks use UGF sucessfully when they are correctly maintained.
UGFs need to be cleaned twice a year. 
If you have never cleaned it you _*are in for a mess *_if you remove the plates. 
I would definately take the fish out if you do, because nitrAtes will potentially go off the charts.



> That rock looks awesome...Why does everyone say gravel and plastic decor harbor a lot of poo and waste? I would think live plants would be the worst with that problem and also with sand..At least with the fake stuff you can take it out and clean it and under it..I really like the way sand looks ...I posted questions about that not long ago..But I am still in the thinking about it because I just can't see it as easier maintenance then gravel...And the other thing I think looks great is when you pile a lot of rock..( Cleaning that?)


The way a UGF works is it draws the poo down into the gravel and it sits under the UGF. 
This waste is turned into ammonia then nitrItes then nitrAtes by the good bacteria, just like any other filter does.
The nitrAtes are harbored under the UGF filter plates and in the gravel, like they are harbored in any hob, canister, etc. 
Underneath these plates need to be cleaned periodically, otherwise the nitrAtes will rise.
There is a propper way to clean the UGF and gravel, you should research that so it's done correctly.

Even without an UGF, gravel will harbor nitrAtes because of the size of the gravel and the space between each piece. 
Sand grains tend to sit tighter together and the poo doesn't travel into it as easily.
Sand *and *gravel will have problems with anaerobic bacteria if not properly stirred or vacced to remove these pockets of gas.

If a person regularly cleans the artificial decorations then they aren't a problem. If they aren't moved and cleaned, then yes they will harbor poo.

Live plants use the waste like fertilizer. That is why the nitrAte readings in well planted tanks are often very low.
Water changes still need to be done on planed tanks to replace trace minerals and remove TDS and other things.

Rock piles are indeed a place that will harbor waste and poo. They harbor nitrAtes and so can any type of filter. 
Rock piles need cleaned and a couple of ways to do that are:
Moving/removing the rocks and concentrating water suction, during a water change, in that area;
Flow the replacement water over/through the rock pile to stir up the waste so it will get to the filter;
Place power heads aimed at rock piles so the poo won't settle in them;
Use a turkey baister to blast the poo from the rock piles while doing partial water changes;

I'm sure there are other creative ways to "clean" rock piles...



> i added sand last week.. looks great but really, i wish i would have gone with really good looking gravel'pebbles.. again, gasses, and my syphon wont pick the poo up as well as really getting in there and diggin in the gravel


 I do not use a pyhton, only a unpowered large syphon tube with a hose on the end.
I use this syphon to clean my sand pretty much the same way I used to clean my gravel. 
Stick the larger tube into the sand and move it up and down in the sand like gravel vaccing. 
The sand will rise 2"-3" in the larger tube but drop back down with gravity so the poo and debris flow up the tube and out the hose.
Very little sand will syphon out if it is wrinsed well. 
I do this with both Black Tahitian Moon sand and contractors sand with much success.
On occasion I will take the tube off (under water to keep the syphon going) and use the hose to get into tight places, 
using care to not stick that part into the sand or it will be drawn out and lost.

As I understand it, the OP wanted opinions on the look of his gravel/tank incase he took the UGF out. 
If he did remove the UGF, he might have the opportunity to change to sand and wanted opinions on the look of his tank. 
The call is his, I just wanted to touch on some of the comments/questions posted in this thread.
None of what I have posted here is intended to offend/inflame anyone.
hth,


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## madmax666 (Sep 11, 2008)

time to get some 5 gallon buckets from home depot!!! haha i would next time you do a water change put the water in the buckets and then put a heater in the or each bucket. then change everything of switching out the tank.


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## srook23 (Feb 21, 2009)

I did the change.

I syphoned some water out into a 29g rubbermaid and put the fish in there. I just drained the whole tank, took out the plates, filled the tank, and vacuumed up all the poo. Got it completely clean before adding the clean sand and rock. Got it all set up and the fish are back in it. They seem to like it so far. Looks real good. I'll post pics later.


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## steve_58 (Jan 20, 2009)

I'd leave the ugf in. Iknow most people say they are worthless but i disagree.With the proper setup i think they are great.My wife has one in hers with an aquaclear 20 powerhead on each tube. After watching her water and tank results the first month it was setup i decided to put one in mine. My nitrates and amononia were like a roller coaster. After i put in an ugf with an aquaclear 50 powerhead on both tubes my water tests improved dramatically.No more up and down and i do less water changes.Both are 55 gallon.


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