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Permalink Reply by Doug T. on April 10, 2014 at 7:03pm

What kind of fish? If they are like $100 discus or something then I'd wait about a week to make sure everything is right. If they are $1 neon then I'd throw them in right away. Honestly I've dirted tanks and put fish right back in them and never lost a single one. I hate to give bad advice because it's always a good idea to cycle your tank for a few days or even weeks if possible, but if you use a good water conditioner and a good bacteria additive, I personally use Seachem prime and Seachem Stability, you will probably be fine.

 

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Permalink Reply by elizabeth gregory on April 13, 2014 at 8:05am

Thanks for replying,Doug.  I couldn't locate a second tank, found some accounrts of adding dirt to existing tank by freezing cubes of it and pushing under gravel.  So I have been doing this slowly, so far so good. It is also appealing because all changes are easier to adjust to when done gradually. Lighting is another area I want to upgrade.  A 125 gal  makes it costly, right now I have a DIY wood canopy with 2 VHO flourescent bulbs. I dread changing them  and that time is near.  Having an open tank where plants hopefully could grow out of the water sounds so appealing.  Liz

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Permalink Reply by Cire Loknok on April 13, 2014 at 1:07pm

I would wait at least a month. That's what I do when I freshly dirt a tank. Doug may not have lost any fish, but why risk it?

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Permalink Reply by Johanan Micaiah on May 4, 2014 at 8:41am

In my opinion, it wouldn't tear the whole thing down since you already have a plant substrate in there :)

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Permalink Reply by Dirtin'my29 on May 4, 2014 at 8:44pm

 Liz, Just look at it as an experiment. I have done something similar with my 29 gal. The tank had been set up for 7 years and had gravel only. Gradually added dirt and left the fish in. We have a lot of clay naturally found in our yard so I mixed approx. 1/3  soil with 2/3 clay and made what looks like a dirt patty 1" thick. After clearing an area of the tank to start, I slowly placed the "patty" in the tank. Covered approx. 1/4 of tank bottom at a time w/ mix ,then capped it w/ gravel. Planted that area  and did a 30% water change. Then left it alone for a week for water to clear.Tested the water, Then repeated the process until finished-Just go slow and don't be afraid to try something different. Have also seen others online use a clear plastic tub as a temp fish tank while they dirted their tanks. Also, what about trying a planted "patty" by making a dirt patty with plant included. Just some thoughts for you;)

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Permalink Reply by elizabeth gregory on May 5, 2014 at 2:07am

Hi Johanan,

Yeah that is similar to what I have been doing.  But I am using the dirt ice cubes and pushing them under the gravel.  I will probably not get that 2-3 "  because once it's in there moving it around is messy.  Plants seem to be growing and water continues to test fine.  I have been going really slow.

Thanks for the feedback. Liz

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