# UPDATE (help plz!) Time for a change...



## z0ne (Oct 20, 2009)

Hey everyone (first post). I've had my rhombeus for about six months now. He(maybe she?) is about 5" long and lives in a 55gal. I've got gravel in now ("medium" sized stones; I don't know how else to describe it) but want to change to sand. My questions are a) which kind of sand (brand? type? water-in-bag?) will be suitable for my piranha and b) how would I go about actually swapping gravel for sand? The only plan that comes to mind is to siphon ~5gal into a pail and net the piranha in there, make sure it's warm and in a dark place, and then scoop out the gravel and pour in the sand. Will I need to remove all of the tank's water and start fresh with the new substrate?

Thanks in advance, guys.


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## philbert (Mar 8, 2007)

you can take him out if you want. when i changed my rhoms tank from gravel to tahitian moon sand i did NOT take him out. i figured at 10 inches its better to leave him in. i lowered the tank level half way used a square tupperware i cut to remove the lip that seals the lid and scooped the gravel into a past strainer then into a 5 gal bucket. then got rid of all the gravel. then to wash the sand fill about a third of a 5 gal bucket with the sand and then flush the whole thing till it over flows and any dirt runs off. then put it in.

you can use any sand really. like pool filter or play sand. or sand from your LFS. its all about the look you want.


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## z0ne (Oct 20, 2009)

Bump! Anyone else have an idea?


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## SpecialEffect (Aug 7, 2009)

z0ne said:


> Bump! Anyone else have an idea?


Well, 2 weeks ago i changed to sand.... what i did was... kept all the water in.. but i did take him out...

Took a 3 gallon bucket... siphoned water from his aquarium into it.... then used a net to get him *BIG MISTAKE, he made a nice hole in it*

Used my hand and just took out 60lbs of gravel and put it into a 5 gal bucket... took my black silica sand put it in a 1 gallon bucket and gently poured into my tank half way down... waited 2 or 3 hour's till it cleared up and put piranha back in..

and now, damn it looks nice









if yah wanna see my tank thread here it is...

http://www.piranha-fury.com/pfury/index.ph...p;#entry2443305


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## Soul Assassin (Nov 21, 2006)

when your taking out the gravel make sure you dont scratch up your tank/glass on the inside


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## z0ne (Oct 20, 2009)

Good ideas, guys! I will be picking up a few bags of sand in about 10 days. I'll make sure to clean it (dump the bags into water to get some of the dust off of it) before swapping out my gravel.


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## Tensa (Jul 28, 2008)

make sure you clean the sand really good. when you think its clean rinse it some more.


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## 65galhex (Nov 5, 2008)

Put the sand in a pillow case and rise it thoroughly that way. Just make sure its a half decent quality this way the bottom of the pillowcase won't give out when u have 5 or 10 lbs of sand in it


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## z0ne (Oct 20, 2009)

Hey guys, at the time of this post, I'm about 75% finished with the transformation. I netted the rhom and stuck him (maybe a her?) into a spare 10gal with water from the existing 55gal. I covered the 10gal with a towel to try and keep it as dark as possible and put the airstone in to ripple the surface. Then, I removed all of the plants and rocks from the 55gal and set them aside, wrapped in a damp towel (with tank water. My tap water is massively "hard.") I scooped out about 95% of the black gravel using a colander. I added in sand ("Washed and Screened Play Sand" from HomeDepot [$7.77 for 100lbs) that I had cleaned by dumping sand and warm water into a 5gal pail and stirring it, then skimming off whatever came out. I repeated this skimming process three times per 5gal pail (I used 3; about 65lbs of sand).

The sand is currently in the tank with my two filters running. One is an hang-on-the-back Tetra EX70 (good stuff, IMO) and the other is a, try not to laugh, Fluval 303. The Fluval is so old that they don't even make parts for it anymore. I will be replacing the Fluval with an Eheim ECCO 2232 or 2234 within the next two weeks. (back story on the Fluval: the guy I bought my 55gal tank/stand from also sold me a 40gal ("high"), stand, Fluval 303, and 2 heaters for $70 bucks. I gave the 40gal to my younger brother for his birthday. I couldn't resist for those prices.)

So... Anything I should do/know now except let the filters get most of the crap outa the water before I put the rhom back in? PS, I highly recommend all of you getting, any way you can, a younger brother to help with tank maintenance. Despite them being mouthy, an extra pair of hands is quite helpful.

Jake


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## SpecialEffect (Aug 7, 2009)

If yah wanna know about my experience with the maintaining of the sand...

http://www.piranha-fury.com/pfury/index.php?showtopic=187073

Read the update post i made... you'll love sand!


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## Tensa (Jul 28, 2008)

let the sand settle a little before you turn the hang on filter on so it doesnt damage the impeller. if you leave it off for a hour or two while the sand settles that is fine.


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## z0ne (Oct 20, 2009)

Let me preface by saying sorry for the crap pics. Impromptu cell phone photos were the only way. The tank has been like this for almost 4hrs. The sand has yet to settle. The filters have been off for the first 3hrs and I had only recently turned them on. I checked the carbon pad inserts in my filter and they're clean (no sand present) nor in the bottom of the impeller sump. I don't know what to do! My piranha is in a 10gal with only an airstone. I don't want to leave him overnight in that but I'm very weary about putting him into that murky water.

Helphelphelphelp!


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## Tensa (Jul 28, 2008)

like i said when you think its clean clean it some more. but it should be ok to add the fish just is really murky. i would change 50% of the water use prime add the fish again.


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## z0ne (Oct 20, 2009)

AS fan said:


> like i said when you think its clean clean it some more. but it should be ok to add the fish just is really murky. i would change 50% of the water use prime add the fish again.


Thanks for the quick response! I'll add the fish in a few minutes and will do a 50% water change tomorrow when I get home from work... Sound okay to you? (you lot know more than I do) NH+, NH-, and pH levels are good to go.


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## Tensa (Jul 28, 2008)

i was saying do the water change before adding the fish again. with a 55 it should go quick. either way dont forget the prime.


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## z0ne (Oct 20, 2009)

What do you mean "don't forget the prime?" What does that mean??


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## Tensa (Jul 28, 2008)

water conditioner called prime but any water conditioner is good. prime is just the best in my opinion and you definitely get more for your money.


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## z0ne (Oct 20, 2009)

thanks. me and my brother are doing a 10 gallon water swap out now


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## z0ne (Oct 20, 2009)

This is how it sits currently:









I'll be swapping out 20gal of murky water for prepped and treated (I use Tetra AquaSafe, Tetra algae killer, and Tetra pH down in every 5gal bucket) water.

The tank that I had the rhom in (10gal) dropped to 75F and the tank is currently 82F. *crosses fingers*


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## Tensa (Jul 28, 2008)

dont bother with the algae killer i havent heard great things about it. also the ph down is a waste as well. as long as you keep the ph consistent your ok adding chemicals usually makes things worse. lookup acclimating a fish on here or google acclimating a fish and familiarize yourself with the drip method for the future but you could use your bucket with some water from the 10gal and add half a cup at a time to get the fish up to temperature and then pour it all into the tank once you have everything equaled out so the temperature change and possible ph change doesnt shock it.


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## z0ne (Oct 20, 2009)

Thanks for all your help tonight, AS Fan. I'll keep you posted tomorrow evening about the rhom and sand situation.


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## Tensa (Jul 28, 2008)

no problem if you get nervous just keep it in the 10 gal for the night ill be on again tomorrow im going to hit the sack. i went through the same issue first time i used sand but my tank was much larger and took a few days to clear with the big filter running. im sure someone else will post a good idea too.


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## SpecialEffect (Aug 7, 2009)

ehh, its looking fine zone... like As said, just make sure your parameter's are equally the same to your bucket and you should be fine... The last picture you showed looks exactly what mine looked when i swapped (but darker because it was black silica sand lol)

I threw my pirahana back in without the sand totally setteled and he was all fine the next morning when i woke up







and the sand looked amazing....

P.S: i got a 48 gallon... so our story are practicly the same


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## z0ne (Oct 20, 2009)

SpecialEffect said:


> ehh, its looking fine zone... like As said, just make sure your parameter's are equally the same to your bucket and you should be fine... The last picture you showed looks exactly what mine looked when i swapped (but darker because it was black silica sand lol)
> 
> I threw my pirahana back in without the sand totally setteled and he was all fine the next morning when i woke up
> 
> ...


Phew! That's a relief... Check out my new thread: http://www.piranha-fury.com/pfury/index.php?showtopic=187275


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