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New member - advice on starting a fresh tank

virtualsalmon

Seedling
Joined
29 Feb 2020
Messages
3
Location
UK
Hi all,

I created my first scape in January. In the last month or so I’ve become a little bored with it, and wished I’d created it differently.
I want to start a new tank - but am unsure how to do this.
i presume the process should be something like;

buy a spare tank - full with water - dechlorinate said water - move filter to new tank and run
Somehow catch all shrimp and fish and plop into new spare tank with filter running - they should be safe / happy in there for a day or two

empty current main tank - give it a really good clean

create new scape - then once filled move filter and fish back to main tank.

is this about right ?
Can I ask - when you guys want a new scape do you ever keep your soil? Or do you need to ditch the current soil and start everything fresh?

I have a bit of BBA which is annoying - have been treating and it’s better but not gone.

I want to avoid my recent BBA issues - and wonder if it’s even possible to get rid of this stuff whilst using The same filter media and moving the fish etc across - it will it still be lurking ?

thank you
 
buy a spare tank - full with water - dechlorinate said water - move filter to new tank and run
Somehow catch all shrimp and fish and plop into new spare tank with filter running - they should be safe / happy in there for a day or two

Or a barrel works. Find with barrels you at least get multiple uses out of them for water changes etc.


empty current main tank - give it a really good clean

create new scape - then once filled move filter and fish back to main tank.

Depends. If using aquarium soil it will leach out ammonia so there may be a period where it isn’t appropriate to add stock for a while.

My way out of this is to run multiple tanks. Another way is to ask friends/acquaintances to hold stock during this period.


Can I ask - when you guys want a new scape do you ever keep your soil? Or do you need to ditch the current soil and start everything fresh?

There’s a rainbow of answers to this one. But as an out from opening that can of worms I would say it would be foolish to throw away matured soil. Even if it’s a handful add it to fresh soil to get your tank moving faster.


I want to avoid my recent BBA issues - and wonder if it’s even possible to get rid of this stuff whilst using The same filter media and moving the fish etc across - it will it still be lurking ?

You can’t avoid all the species of red algae that exist. Leave a bowl of water outside, it turns up. Manage a healthy system and it will struggle to find a place. If you have more specific questions about managing BBA happy to answer. If BBA is being persistent in your current system, take note of where it likes to exist currently, when it seems to progress and what you did prior to the point it got worse/better.
 
This Filipe Oliveira Video should answer most questions
He’s obviously very quick with the whole process, you may wish to spend a few days adjusting new hardscape, planting etc so as Geoffrey Rea mentions set up a more suitable temporary home for your livestock
When it comes to the filter, unless you have a second filter, you’ll want your original filter back on the newly scaped tank for flow/CO2 distribution etc

If you’re going to rescape frequently, then a second “tank” with a cycled filter may be worth the investment (a cheap HOB filter works fine on the holding tank as long as fish density is suitable)

I often move fish to a bin, using just an Eheim Mini Up filter for water movement and some cycled media, and daily water changes BUT I have few fish

For the rescape, I may use cleaned old soil or new soil (often with a base layer of used soil for useful bacteria etc), once planted etc, I do large water changes (or running water change) so that water is completely clear, then give it a day before moving livestock back
I’ve not noticed any ammonia post rescape BUT I use Tropica Soil, a cycled filter, daily large water changes for the first while

Depending on your shrimp and fish combination, you may wish to keep shrimp separately while rescaping the tank

When planning a rescape, I increase water change frequency on existing tank so that tank ~ tap water

When netting fish etc, try to minimize any “chase”, exhausted, stressed fish moved to new surroundings may not fare as well

Re-used plants should be trimmed to remove algae affected leafs, also consider if you should add some auxiliary plants
https://tropica.com/en/guide/get-the-right-start/supporting-plants/


 
I want to avoid my recent BBA issues - and wonder if it’s even possible to get rid of this stuff whilst using The same filter media and moving the fish etc across - it will it still be lurking ?
Various algaes are always lurking
Thorough cleaning of system should drastically reduce levels (I rinse filter media in treated tap water, scrub hardscape)

Once you’ve rescaped the tank and returned livestock, do those daily water changes for at least the first couple weeks, if you see a surge in algae when you reduce water changes, then return to daily water changes for another week or 2

Some tanks have minimal algae despite minimal water changes, but if you’re seeing significant algae, start with increased water change/maintenance
You can also consider peroxide and Seachem Excel treatments to reduce algae (but research this methodology)
 
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