# Adding substrate to an established tank



## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

So I've got a 30 gal tall freshwater planted w/6 neon tetras, 6 zebra danios, 3 rasboras, 5 Amano shrimp, ~20 RCS, nerite snail, assassin snails (why they haven't eaten the nerite is beyond me), and 2 dwarf frogs. 2 crypts, 2 wisteria, 2 swords, 2 tiger lotus, floating riccia and frogsbit. I've only got about 1" of substrate in the tank and I would like to add more. How shall I go about this?


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## WhiteGloveAquatics (Sep 3, 2009)

two ways, 
remove everything, rinse the gravel and add or rinse the gravel and add it to the tank via a cup. 2nd method is messier then the first.


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## verdifer (Sep 8, 2010)

No doing this is easy.

Get a plastic bottle, 1 about 2 liters like the bottles of Coca Cola(well there that big in the U.K.), cut the bottom off, wash you sand like you would normaly do, keep the lid on the bottle and fill it with the sand.

If you can get a plastic bottle with a bigger top it will go faster.

Put the bottle in tank bottle top facing down, take the lid off and shake the bottle a bit to let the sand fall out, just move about and get it even, you can also even it out with your hand afterwards anyway.

You should really take the fish out the tank but Ive did it a few times with the fish still in just make sure you don't bury any of them under the new sand, if you go nice and slow you wont have to much cloudyness in the water and it won't upset the fish as much.

You don't need to cut the bottom off the bottle but it makes filling it with sand so much easier.


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

If you use Eco-complete you don't need to even remove the fish or rinse it. I cut the tops off the bags, ease the bag in and turn it upside down. Barely causes any commotion at all if you're easy with it. Between my two big tanks, I've added over 280lbs with no issue at all.


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## Gizmo (Dec 6, 2010)

Thanks everybody! I'll use Eco-Complete and the bottle trick both to make double sure I'm not screwing anything up. Trying to net out all of my fish and shrimp would be near impossible without uprooting the plants, so that's not an option. Any more thoughts would be muchly appreciated


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## James0816 (Jun 19, 2009)

Here's another easy way to kind of touch on what WhiteGlove mentioned (which is also how I do it).

- Rinse the new substrate thoroughly 
- Using a big plastic glass (like what you would get at McDonalds, fill it up with the new substrate
- Gently lower it into the tank to where the water will slowly fill in the glass.
- Lower glass to the bottom of the tank and slowly pour it out.

One thing I no longer do is to try and pour it in different spots in the tank. I found that to be more work than it should be. Just make one pile and when you're done adding, you can scape as desired.


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## verdifer (Sep 8, 2010)

Even if you do get a bit of cloudiness I wouldn't worry it will clear up.


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## WhiteGloveAquatics (Sep 3, 2009)

eco is a good choice, James hit it dead on, I figured everyone just made a pile and scaped it as they saw fit once it was all in there.

Also, unless its supported underneeth dont try and make hills and divets ect gravity and weight of water will turn it all to a pancake like flatness in a few days.


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