kra-z-fishmumm

I just took out all the colored (blue-green) gravel from my Betta 10g/seperated tank and the water turned BLUE, I was trying to change over to all marbles (I had put them in a long time ago, so they are cycled)! I had to take the bettas out and then a big water change. Not the whole tank, but half for sure....getting off the subject. How long would it take to make it so the gravel won't leave color in a tank? or is it always going to have residue like that? Just wanting to know if I'm going to have to throw away the gravel. Thanks

sirdarksol

That's odd.
Not sure what to make of that.

luna

How well did you wash it before putting it in...or did you not wash it at all?

That stuff leaches a LOT of color into the water. You could wash it a dozen times (no soap, obviously, but swishing it in clean water) and it will still lose some of that dye every time. I know because I washed some gravel for over an hour and it was still losing dye every time. I ended up using glass marbles instead.

Something I didn't try, and is suggested for cleaning (well, sanitizing) and preparing items for additions to tanks is to boil it. The movement in the water, combined with the heat, may help draw more of the dye out of the gravel so it won't do it in the water every time you agitate it.

AggieYen

Hmm - did you say you were taking OUT the gravel when the water turned blue? DO you intend on leaving the gravel in there? I would take all the gravel out and replace it with glass marbles, as you mentioned - you may get a mini-cycle in your tank, but you have most of the good bacteria in the filter anyway, so it won't be anything bad. Just be aware that taking out the gravel is going to make a HUGE mess in the water, and it'll take a while for all the gunk to settle down. (I did a substrate change a few months ago) But when it does, you won't regret it. The way I see my betta boy drag his fins along the substrate, and poke his little head in between the marbles when he forages.. I'm just happy I changed the substrate. Check every marble to make sure that none have chipped or broken before putting them in.

dandilyin

I have those marble looking things in my 55g tank. They are all so pretty because they have blue and green swirls in them, and look amazing when the light hits them.
I recommend them because it adds color and looks kindof original.
I wont go back to using those colored gravels, they are too much of a pain.

Ntruder1400

I washed and washed and washed my blue gravel for an hour and a half before adding it to my 10g. The gravel was nearly void of color by the time I added it, and I still got color leach into the water. There is no way to ever get dyed gravel totally clean. I think you just have to weigh the aesthetic plusses of colored gravel with the inherent negative of color-leaching. It has only happened to me when first adding water, and then when trying to remove the gravel. The dust settles down the rest of the time.

kra-z-fishmumm

I washed, washed, washed....well you get the idea. I did it for so long because I have this huge white bowl I was using and it seemed to take forever to not see the blue,,,but then with every week cleaning, it would stir it all up. I had marbles in with it, a lot of them, when I was cleaning and it got all stirred up again is when I decided to take the colored gravel out. I didn't clean the marbles because I didn't want to mess the tanks cycle up. I checked this morning and all is fine. 0 amm. and nitrites, 5 Nitrate. But boy was it a mess. I think I will use it for what another person on a different thread suggested,,,decorating the top of potted plants. Thanks for the responses.

August_Jacque

I've got a black large smooth[ish] substrate in my main tank, and I've been wanting to change over to sand. My first problem is finding the sand. My LFS does not carry it, and when I asked if they could order some, was met with a load of confusion and second guessing, etc. The second problem is my lack of knowledge of how it's going to change my tank matanace schedule. What are the requirements of having a sand substrate? Lastly, Is sand even a good choise considering my fish, tank, etc?

FL CommunityFans

Get Pool Filter Sand from your local pool store. Works just fine. Minimal rinsing is needed. Sand is good all around imo

COBettaCouple

One of the reasons we were happy to give up gravel for flat glass was the dust and all from gravel. Coated gravel does better, but I figure you had a ton of dust in the tank and taking the gravel out stirred it up.

August_Jacque

Thanks. =]