Changing gravel methods?

[quasar]

So i've had my 90g for a year now and i think it's time to change the ugly white gravel i have that i got on special.
What's the best way to change the gravel without hurting the fish? Should i take all the fish, water etc out and change the gravel? Should I just empty the tank half way and scoop out all the gravel? Or should I probably not do this because the tank is already populated?

I just figured I'd get some opinions. I haven't changed or bought anything yet, me wants da info fiwst .

Thanks in advance if you take the time to answer me!

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[ufarooqi]

I have not done it but did think about if i had to do it, so i would use a pipe and syphon the gravel out into a tub, while the gravel will sink to the bottom and water will overflow, i guess i would do half on my regular water change and the remaining on my next change, the above method will only work if the gravel is of small size, i guess if its larger then the syphon will not work effectively.


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[quasar]

Ya my gravel is too big, the siphon has a block and they dont pass through. So i guess id have to manually remove them then clean

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[Mount_Prion]

If you really want to ensure the health of the fish, bucket them with air pumps (and if the room is cold, heaters in pvc pipes or something), totally empty the tank but keep the filter media wet/aerated depending how long the process takes, and then, after your new substrate has been thoroughly rinsed, add it to the tank BEFORE refilling. Add the water slowly. This should make for way less of a cloudy mess.

Then, once the tank is filled again and running and the water seems relatively clear, drip-acclimate the fish back into the tank as though they were new to it.

In the past I've hooked up plastic tubs with strong HOB filters and a bunch of water just to let water run through substrate for like a week before adding it to clean it out a bit.

 

[quasar]

Hmm maybe i should just avoid it then. I generally have bad luck so I'll just wait till I redo my tank

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[virgil2090]

I changed out a 55 gal tank from gravel to PFS
.i did a 50% WC, plastic dust pan with a hole in the handle, scoop it up, then run water out the handle.my filter intakes are low I left filters running.

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