coral substrate mistake

[315hottuna61]

i made the mistake of using coral instead of sand when i first started my tank. now i am going to switch to live sand ( i guess better late than never). my question is ; can i use some of the coral and use sand on the top 3-4 inches. Thanks.

 

[fastrd400]

You could, but being as the sand is finer of will end up on the bottom of the crushed coral . Your best bet is to take out about a quarter of your substrate with each water change. Once you have it all out you can then add your sand to the tank with the next water change.

 

[315hottuna61]

thanks fast, i like the idea

 

[Smitty]

+1 Fast...taking all of it out at once will remove too much of the beneficial bacteria, causing a mini cycle.

 

[Marines_Wife]

I did the same thing, its what I had already and while I dont really regret the choice, I wish I would have used sand instead. Next tank going up will be sand!!