Switching over ?

[DREW]

I have a 15 gallon long FW setup w/ 2 handicapped Electric yellows, 2 dwarf puffers & 1 candy stripped Pleco , w/ 4 ghost shrimp. LFS already said they would take them. I've had the yellow haps since they were fry , left over from the 1's from my 29 gal. when it was a cichlid tank.

I've been really thinking bout switching this one over to SW.
To be like a refigium ( or something like that).

It has a lot of drift wood & regular rock. I know I'd have to get rid of the wood, I might keep the rock in it. My question is would I have to take all the water out & start w/ new water ?

I was thinking of taking half the water out & adding SW & a couple live rocks from my 29 SW tank. Would this work ?
The 15 gal. all ready has sand in it but it is just play sand.

Would a pair of percs. do OK in a 15 gal ?
Was thinking a nano reef for my 29 gal within a year or so .

Sorry bout all the questions.

 

[mogurnda]

I would get rid of the water and sand and start over. Or at least get rid of the water and wash the sand. I don't see a lot of benefit to keeping the old water and sand, and there is the downside of all the nitrate and phosphate and debris that they will bring with them. It looks like a big bloom of algae waiting to happen, in my view.

 

[DREW]

Thank you mogurnda,
I didn't think about the nitrate and phosphate and debris .

Is it possible to wash the sand without actually removing it & moving the tank.
Like fill & drain it a few times?

 

[Gealcath]

One thing to point out is FW bacteria wont survive in SW and SW bacteria wont survive in FW (even though they do the same thing, they are adapted to that specific enviornment, a rapid change will kill them.)

 

[mogurnda]

Like fill & drain it a few times?

I suppose. Fill the tank, swirl the sand, let it settle, siphon the water, repeat.