Changing substrate

[Electric eel]

Does any one know if your sustrate should be replaced at anytime? Mine is 3 years old. Should I scoop out the old and replace it? Will this have an effect on my water quality?
Thanks

[Diana]

It is up to you whether you would like to change the substrate, but after 3 years I would be inclined to. It can trap lots of nasty stuff like phosphates.

Be very careful replacing it though, because disturbing it could release harmful gases into the aquarium.

I would reccommend replacing small portions at a time, maybe 1/3 at a time. If its fine enough to siphon out I would do it that way, since then you minimize the release of gases. And then just scoop in the new stuff. I would wait a couple weeks in between substrate removal sessions.

-Diana

[Kostas]

I thought a deep sand bed acts like a filter system of its own, I didn’t realize someone would want to replace it..isn't it like wine, only gets better in time?


When I first bought my 90g tank I added really fine sand and even after a few months of it running, it would blow up into the water very easily so I bought larger sand to throw on top of it ones, and I had to add like a cup a day, made such a mess of my tank - now I have like a 4-5”sand bed

Mine has been in my tank for about 4years now, I am not worried about it, if you want to keep it clean get a fish that filters the sand or sand shifting star fish, something that moves it around and finds food in it to eat, but I hate those guys…once I bought a horseshoe crab that I got rid of rather fast since he threw so much sand on my rocks.