Tank maintanance

[InDeathsEmbrace]

Got a few ques on tank/plant maintance.
From my experience in the past most plants flourish at first but die off after awhile cos the bottom parts dont receive much light and rot
So how to plant thickly n ensure that the bottom parts receive light
Trimming does not really help as the plant grows even bushier after that.

My 2 yr old tank substrate has alot of debris and sediments.any minor disturbance(changing water) will cloud the water.Is there any way to clean up the gravel?
Does it mean every few yrs i will have to dig up everything to clean up the tank?

[juggler]

You should occasionally discard the bottom part of stem plants and replant the healthy growing tops. This way it won't be bushy. And the healthy tops have better chance of growing.

There's no need to vacuum or disturb the substrate. The accumulated sediments there is good for the plants and the substrate. When changing water, try to use a container of something to prevent the water from the hose/pail from gushing straight down to the substrate and stirring up the sediments.

[Justikanz]

There's no need to vacuum or disturb the substrate. The accumulated sediments there is good for the plants and the substrate. When changing water, try to use a container of something to prevent the water from the hose/pail from gushing straight down to the substrate and stirring up the sediments.

I find this point most interesting... Most literature advise us to vacuum the substrate every now and then to prevent such debris accumulation... I didn't do so cos 1)no place to store the tubing etc for vacuuming, 2)it gets messy cos tank is located far from toilet, 3)think it disturbs some plants cos I have moss growing on some parts of the substrate in between the plants and dun want to remove them, 4)sometimes just get plain lazy to do so! ... Didn't realise it might be good to leave the sediments there... But they do make the tank look untidy... Any suggestions on that??

[StanChung]

i think to remove some sediment[as in decomposing leaves and uneaten food] is good idea because you will notice in mature tanks the water is very browny[blackwater condition]

also you will notice rotten egg smell, hidrogen sulfide[like in longkang] in mature tank if you dig deep in substrate. this means some rotting that is not good for fauna if levels are too high. you shouldn't have this pro if your bioload is low.

i think you should not disturb your substrate esp if you have base fert and your tank is only 2 yrs old? you can lightly fan the top to remove the fine decomposing stuff by using one of those gravel cleaners.

there are many ways to skin a cat like this...
i use nice white big bin pail[~70l] from ikea and siphon with those gravel cleaner siphons. the diff is i use a pump[a 50w resun] in the pail to pump back the water in as soon as it gets full. i use a rubberband and old sock on outlet to filter debris.[with suction cup on hose to ensure no disaster!] the sock breaks up the flow of water.

so repeat till you are satisfied with cleanliness of tank. this way you don't need to change water.

so don't throw your old socks! still got use one!

[|squee|]

Dirt on the substrate should not bother you at all in a planted tank, unless you have white gravel.

Diana Walstad and people here reccommends minimal disturbance of the substrate. For one, you release ammonia when you disturb it, as well as dirt particles. The substrate should be left alone. As long as you have rooted plants, shouldn't be a problem. Also, the dirt is useful for plants.

[StanChung]

yes to that. but on one or two exceptions[maybe more?]...only speaking of xp when moving the plants esp nuphar type lotus which tuber tend to move around aquarium as they grow! [an inch per three months]
[hey, stay where you are, you're ruining my 1.618 da vinci layout!]
boy they do root all around the aquarium and the stink is bad...

also another one is when you have moss on bogwood and made some cave for fishies to dart in and out of. these caves tend to collect dead stem plant leaves.

so have to vacuum le. er ...without disturbing the substrate too much... just that little one cm deep [shaded area that no carpet plant can grow...]

[|squee|]

I agree to that too! Surface vaccuming is fine, but if you're talking about overturning entire areas of gravel... nono

[StanChung]

aiyo, like dat no need to sleep le

[InDeathsEmbrace]

Today started on rescape....uprooted one of the amazon sword plant which grew out of the tank.
after that had to change water thrice cos my whole 3ft tank water become muddy.Couldnt even see anything.
Dread to think abt pulling out the other plants,which inevitabaly will have to be done.
An reccomendations on plants which i can get to rescape tank?
Plants like vallis are out cos they grow too quickly.

[Panther]

Just to share my experience / inexperience...

My 2ft tank was doing fine with cardinals and breeding cherry shrimps amongst windelov, java ferns, various mosses and some rotala. Me hand itchy go ruffle the gravel to suck out the dirt and in no time, my tank was very murky...still ok.

After that, reaslied the dirt actually settled on the leaves of the plants in the tank, so thought maybe try to fan it off, but the more i did, the more the tank clouded and in the end, 90% of my cherries died, half my cardinal population went too!!

I was disgusted by what I did and scrapped the whole !@@#$ tank!! Stayed away for a while and now decide to come back again...hopefully smarter from lesson learnt...DO NOT DISTURB SUBSTRATE!! Do the mods and experts agree? Share to educate me if Im wrong in identifying my mistake?