What size tank? how much live rock? I'd rinse the crap outa the sand before i placed in the tank, and put some tank water in a dif tank along with the fish and let the sand settle before putting the fish back in. I dont think there would be much of a cycle. I set up a 75 with just 30-40 lbs of rock from my 90 and had didnt have a cycle. but others will comment and give you more insight and dif. opinions
You need to remove the current substrate slowy over the course of a couple weeks or your asking for disaster....just by stirring up the sand bed can make a huge mess and major cycle.....there is no problem with replacing it just got to do it very slowly......
I went through this about a year ago. The way i did it was to use a disposable plastic cup (16 oz) and remove several scoops a day until i got the tank to bare bottom. then start to reverse the process by rinsing a cup full of new sand at a time and lower the entire cup of new sand all the way to the bottom of the tank and pour it out slowly....the clouding is very minimal if u only do several cups worth every few hours. it is very time consuming but by doing it this way i encountered no ill effects on my tank inhabitants.
This site uses cookies to help personalise content, tailor your experience and to keep you logged in if you register.
By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our use of cookies.