I have peat in the filter and the pH is on the way down, lost about .5 in 12 hours. By lowering the pH I hope to keep more dissolved CO2 in the water and it should keep the fish a bit happier.
I drained and cleaned the tank last night. I have some 40g plastic barrels, and held the water in one while I worked so not to have a new tank that needed to cycle again. I also put the rock in a bucket with water over it to keep what bacteria I could and kept the existing filter wet so the bacteria are still with it. Hopefully I don't get a mini cycle.
After scrubbing the tank out with vinegar and rinsing it good, I put in the substrate. I used Activ Flora brand as it was the only one I could find between Petco and Petsmart. It settled quickly and didn't cloud the water bad at all.
After the substrate I positioned the driftwood and plants. Once those were placed I started gently placing gravel over the substrate and around the plants. I put piles in the open areas to level and fill in after the water level was higher and things settled so I could see better.
With a small plate on the gravel I started filling. When the tank was about half full I worked the gravel around the two Anacharis, at this point they floated enough that I could get around them without burying the ends.
While all this went on, the new fish were acclimating in a holding tank with the plants. I used a Whisper 30 on a 10g tank to hold the fish and plants during the work. I used some of the aquarium water and the water from the bags the fish and plants were in to let them acclimate.
Now the tank holds:
4 Green Tiger Barbs
5 Tiger Barbs
3 Black Skirt Tetra
2 Opaline Gourami
1 Iridescent Shark
3 Anacharis (2 planted, 1 floating)
1 Anubias nana on driftwood
2 Micro Sword
1 Cryptocoryne wendtii
I may add more later, but this should be a good start.
Photos when I can!!!