Changing a saltwater tank to freshwater

[Brownsnoutuk]

Ok , i finally found someone selling a 55 gallon tank for less than $100!!!
It used to be a saltwater tank and the seals are all good.

What do i have to do to the tank before i can use it for freshwater?
will several rinses of tap water and maybe scrub the insides out with a brush work?

can you plant the tank while its cycling or should you leave it empty the whole time??

thanks in advance

[jbicb3]

Re: Changing a saltwater tank to freshwater

When I changed my salt tank to fresh, all I did was rinse it out good, including the canister filter (which I'm using for fresh now), and add new substrate. I planted it from the very beggining, and haven't lost one fish in it since it's been set up for fresh water (about 10 months).

Jerry

[Brownsnoutuk]

Re: Changing a saltwater tank to freshwater

Thanks for that, im using a spare filter i have so its already in my 29 gallon cycling.

Can i use sand in a freshwater tank? will i have problems with a pleco eating it? will it get sucked into the filter and clog it up?

thanks again
chris

[szidlon]

Re: Changing a saltwater tank to freshwater

Thanks for that, im using a spare filter i have so its already in my 29 gallon cycling.

Can i use sand in a freshwater tank? will i have problems with a pleco eating it? will it get sucked into the filter and clog it up?

thanks again
chris

Yes, you can use sand in a freshwater, I have never had a problem with a pleco eating sand, mine seem to like sand better than gravel, I have never had sand get sucked up into a filter,  if you're concerned you can always use a prefilter on the end of your intake.  Once the sand settles down it is packed quite hard doesn't move around unless purposely disturbed.

Be sure and post pics when you get it converted

[Brownsnoutuk]

Re: Changing a saltwater tank to freshwater

ok, i like the idea of sand better i think it will look better anyway.
my pleco is constantly rearranging my gravel and ornaments, when i move them back he moves it around again. He also digs in the gravel so i was concerned he would eat some by accident.
i dont know if its normal behaviour for a pleco, but hes growing good and i think hes pretty happy and well fed.
I'll take some pics as soon as its planted.

[eklikewhoa]

Re: Changing a saltwater tank to freshwater

make sure you read what sand you are getting, some sands alter water paremeters like ph and hardness which might be a problem depending on what fish you plan to get.

if you get fish that like high ph then you are a go. there are lots of sands that dont do anything to the water like tahititan moon sand, concrete play sand, etc.

i have sand in three tanks and my plecos love digging in the sand!

[Brownsnoutuk]

Re: Changing a saltwater tank to freshwater

OK, i have the tank and i cleaned it out really good.
The sand is Play Sand from the Home Depot. 50lbs for $3.29.
i washed the sand really good(or so i thought) and put that in the tank.
i filled the tank with water, and now the tank is very murky, like the sand was still dirty. I washed the sand for over an hour.
i turned the filter on, probably not a great idea, but it looks like its clearing up slowly.
How long does it normally take for the sand to settle??

thanks in advance
chris

[eklikewhoa]

Re: Changing a saltwater tank to freshwater

all of mine took about a day or two to settle but i didnt use play sand.

[jbicb3]

Re: Changing a saltwater tank to freshwater

If you just let it settle for 24 hrs without the filter going, then turn on the filter, it should give it a chance to settle without the water column moving it all around again.

[Brownsnoutuk]

Re: Changing a saltwater tank to freshwater

ok, ive turned the filter off again. i'll wait and see if it settles, if not should i just keeping doing water changes till it clears?

[Jose]

Re: Changing a saltwater tank to freshwater

Don't worry, sand will settle. Diddo on waiting at least 24hrs til you turn on your filter. I say you probably will have sand in your filter from your pleco kicking up sand. I have a 12" common pleco and it doesnt like sand much because it has a spot where its nothing but bare glass because it moved all the sand. It's always in that spot. It does "poop" out sand. I will be moving it to another tank when I setup my 150g.

[Brownsnoutuk]

Re: Changing a saltwater tank to freshwater

ok, im determined to just leave the tank alone for 24 hours and to stop fiddling with it.

my filter inlet is going to be a good 12 inches above the level of sand, i was hoping that would help.

as for the pleco, i really bought this tank so i didnt have to sell him. hes like a pet, ive had him from 2 inches long. so if theres anyproblems, i'll have to swap the sand out for gravel. OR convince my wife we need another 50-55 gallon tank.

[ROB281]

Re: Changing a saltwater tank to freshwater

has anyone used crushed coral for a freshwater substrate?

[Spot86t]

Re: Changing a saltwater tank to freshwater

I've got it in a 40g divided tank that used to be a salt tank.  It previously had shell and some really course sand in it - which might be argonite.  I just rinsed it really well (over and over and over and over, etc...) and added the coral to it.  I've got 3 procambarus alleni, 2 cherax quads, one common ditch cray, lots and lots of ghost shrimp and a splash of trapdoor snails in there.  Plants include plenty of anachris, some parrots feather, a few moss balls, a purple waffle and some hornwort (sp?).  Everything seems quite happy.  

Budget-wise though, had I known at the time, I would have gotten pool filter sand instead.  Did that in my 55 this weekend and it was a dream to rinse and deal with.

I have some of the crushed coral in a 10 gallon I use for my guppy fry, but my wood shrimp don't seem to like it.  neither did my peacock eel.

[Mzungu]

Re: Changing a saltwater tank to freshwater

Crushed coral is used by a lot of people who have tanks with high-pH/hard water needs, since it's a good buffering substrate. However, if you have fish that like to burrow or root around in the substrate, it might not be good for them.  :)