changing gravel

[BGK]

i was wondering..
i was planning to change my gravel to black
how should i do this?
do i have to take out all my fish?
and will it affect my water condition?

i was planning to just leave it in a bucket for a week or 2 and wash it then put it in the tank..

[maddyfish]

It seems to me that all the commotion involved in changing gravel would certainly disturb the fish. How clean is the gravel in the aquarium now? If it is not very clean it would sure stir up a mess.

[AdelaideAnt]

Gravel also holds a good percentage of benificial bacteria. If you have another tank id put the fish in there first, change the gravel and wait a week or two before you put the fish back to allow the tank to stablise. Put bristlenose and other scavengers (if infact you have them) back into the tank straight away to help it stablise.

Anthony

[BGK]

thnx all but i don't have another tank
i was wondering if i could change 1/4 at a time without taking the fish out?
maybe change 1/4 a week or something

[Merrilyn]

Hi BGK and welcome. The easiest way to remove gravel without disturbing all the fish is to siphon it out similar to if you are going to just clean the bottom but this time take your gravel washer off the hose and use the hose alone. Place a strong bucket under the end of the hose to catch the gravel. You dont want to do the whole tank at once so breaking it into several smaller removals would be a good idea. Do you use an undergravel filter or are you running some kind of outside power filter? The type of filtration will determine how much gravel you can remove at once.

[flukes]

If your using an undergravel you cant take it out while your changing your gravel. IME better for non discus tanks.

[BGK]

i have a aquaclear 300 and a eheim something..
but not underground
the eheim is and external filter
my tank is a 60 gal and i do have discus
also if i siphon the gravel out using the hose do i still have to take out my fish?
cause i don't have another tank

[Merrilyn]

the idea of using the hose to siphon gravel out is that it can be done without disturbing the fish. Remove about a quarter of the gravel at a time. That will also remove about 25% of your water at the same time. Just top up your tank as if doing a normal water change. After a few days, you can repeat the process till all the gravel is removed. Easy. Do make sure your replacement gravel is thoroughly washed free of any dirt or dust before you put it into your tank.

[BGK]

thnx for the help..
i will be soaking / washing my gravel for 2 weeks before i put it in the tank
so i'm pretty sure it'll be very clean