I only had saltwater tanks so far., so lots of questions! I inherited a 15 gal freshwater tank that is in questionable condition. I just set up a new 20 gal in order to transfer fish and plants in 2 wks or so. I never had actual sand but that's what the old tank has. Is it normal that the waste sits under the sand? This tank has a 2 inch black/brown layer (looks organic) on the bottom, then 1-1.5 inch sand above, lots of plants - some roots seem to go to the brown stuff. The water is crystal clear (I had this tank since just before X-mas), it came with 30+ fish, all are alive and happy (mostly MM Platys, 2 Zebras). Half of the fish are now at the school tank but I added a few guppies, striped snails and a sucker fish. They all did great (except one snail). With the sensitivity of saltwater tanks in mind, this is mindblowing for me.
Questions about sand:
- Is it OK to let the sand filter down the waste and then to dump out all waste and substrate once a year or so?
- How do you siphon or do you not and instead just take the top water (I keep hearing this from other folks w/ freshwater tanks but find it hard to believe)?
- How often do you siphon? 10% each week like saltwater tanks or half the tank every month (again, something I see other people do but am not sure about this being a good idea)?
Thanks!
Questions about sand:
- Is it OK to let the sand filter down the waste and then to dump out all waste and substrate once a year or so?
- How do you siphon or do you not and instead just take the top water (I keep hearing this from other folks w/ freshwater tanks but find it hard to believe)?
- How often do you siphon? 10% each week like saltwater tanks or half the tank every month (again, something I see other people do but am not sure about this being a good idea)?
Thanks!