RE-Aquascaping: Have you ever changed it up and why?

[Back where it all began]

I run a tank with more rock and my Duncan’s and leathers are easy , so I tend to add a new rock or two and move things around. Not drastic, but enough to change the water flow and create new interest for my fish. If my corals were harder, I would not disrupt the system as much. Also, I tend to be slow about the changes so as not to stress my fish.

 

[DesertReefT4r]

Yep several times on several tanks. Either for moving, pest or fish removal, removing sand bed and upgrading tanks. I habe not rescaped a tabk because I just wanted to change it up. Removing and rearranging rock will cause destabilizing effect and should be done only if necessary.

 

[ReefReadyYouTube]

I had to do a rescape. I had a tank crash from neglect but this time around I’m truly committed!

 

[Dolelo96]

Changed out all my rock after Velvet wiped out my fish. Again, when I needed more room for corals. I’m working on it again, because I have some really big pieces, Space Invader Pectina & Indo Purple Tip Frogspawn, that don’t play nice with surrounding corals.

 

[bblumberg]

I rescaped the right half of my 150g (with help from service guy) which improved look and made more swimming and hiding spaces for fish amid the rock. About a year later, I rescaped the left side to do the same thing - make more hiding and swimming spaced through the rock and also to remove hundreds of gobstoppers and utter chaos that I traded to a local wholesaler for some expensive fish (rainbow bassletts) I would have been unlikely to buy otherwise. No problems with cycles that I noticed.

 

[Treenk]

I bought a serpant star that was likely too big for my tank and it died the only way to get it out was to take out all the rock. Worst part is the rocks look worse now I couldn't get them to stack as nicely

 

[mattybecks]

It wasn't my plan to re-aqua scape, but my Macrodactyla Doreensis (corkscrew anemone) was way stronger than I thought now he has grown and literally pushed my rocks apart, and to the front of the tank to find a spot he liked. He seems really happy now directly under the lights and in the centre of the tank. Had to rearrange all my rocks.
new aquascape is the first video, old aqauscape is the second one.

 

[Dommerguy]

i literally just did it 2 days ago funny this was just posted! i did it because i didn't like my old scape, and had no room for corals

 

[Bob Weigant]

I’ve done it more than once

 

[Braves Fan]

Geez ,, Aqua Scaping ,, my nemesis ,, I haven't got a artistic bone in my body ,, read that part again lol

I have scaped ,, re scaped and re scaped my tanks so many times over the years and never ,, ever ,, been happy with any of them when I set up my new tank ,, my plan was to have as many SPS corals in the tank as I could get ,, I wasn't going to go down the road of re scaping and re scaping my tank over and over again,, I wanted this tank be as stable as I could ,, not be moving rock around ,, breaking SPS frags up because I bumped them with my hands or the rock falling over and decimating growing corals,,

I got smart this time around I bought pre made Aqua Scapes from Carib Sea ,, I have never been happier ,, I have added a rock or two here and there ,, but the pre made scape is the bulk of my scape ,, I added a bunch of Bio Spears to my sump tank to carry the Bio Load for my system ,, I have a bunch of them in my sump tank that started life in my previous system ,,

JMO my scape or Carib Sea scape looks awesome ,, I don't give it a second thought ,, that's its not a scape I put together I did have to pick it up and put it into the tank ,, I guess that should count

 

[Thespammailaccount]

Yes for coral placement flow or lighting

 

[jazzfisher]

Yes, because I added a Marble Wrasse that was on a mission to kill any other wrasse in my tank. Ended up taking out nearly every piece of rock, so it went back in differently lol!

Just did this yesterday to remove an evil Fairy wrasse! UGH!

 

[don_chuwish]

I've only done it because of a full tank replacement. But honestly it's a great way to re-energize the passion for the hobby. Making a big change is fun.
Good reasons would include what @revhtree talks about, removing invasive pests. But also just redesigning because you want to change the look, make room for more coral, or colonies that have grown, etc.

 

[Oldsalt]

Had to get out pesky gorilla crabs that hitched a ride. That was the 1st re-scape. Then again after knocking over rocks when putting in corals, then once more for the same reason. The rocks have been creeping downward due to fish and shrimp excavating caves but all have finally hit the bottom. I recently found a great product at the local pond shop called "Gold Label Pond Sealant". It's a food grade sealant that cures under water. It doesn't leech out any toxins (guaranteed aquarium safe by the manufacturer) during or after cure and comes in black or clear. I had to modify my sump a while ago in order to be able to fit my new skimmer plus raise the water level in its chamber. The stuff adhered to the pvc and glass under the water with no problems and was fully cured the next day. It skinned over in 15 minutes, so I was able to start the pumps immediately after making the mods. Then I made a DIY ATO with an inductive float (not mechanical) float switch. I attached the switch to an L shaped pvc shelf and tried to stick it to the sump using 3M waterproof double sided tape (it was useless and fell off in minutes!), so I used the Gold Label Pond clear and it's still in place 8 months later. Now I use the stuff to mount frags and to bond any loose rock. It's made here in Australia and I've never seen it in any other country on the internet but maybe can be shipped from The Pond Shop to the USA (link supplied at bottom). It forms like a semi-hard rubber (only slightly harder than silicone) that has enough give for large gaps but is plenty firm for close fitting pieces. Even high water pressure areas haven't leaked from the start. Amazing stuff, though fairly excessive at $AU45 for gun sized cartridge. But it lasts for ages. You must remove the screw on tip and put a decent piece of plastic wrap (not that thin food wrap) over the tip and tightly cover it asap after using, otherwise it will cure all the way through if there's even a tiny bit of air leakage. Doesn't any company make screw on tips for just that purpose? Anyway, my tank and sump are 1500 litres (340 gallon) all up. It's a 6x3x2.5 - pretty deep! Having said all that, I am thinking about rescaping again just for aesthetic reasons. The tank is about 2.5 years old.
Here's a link to this stuff :

Gold Label Pond Sealer 290ML - The Pond Shop

Bonds all materials even under water!

www.thepondshop.com.au

 

[Jon Fishman]

Sometimes just because I’m bored

 

[darkrabbit]

I'm about to! Got a PAR meter and realized my rockwork, in addition to not being ideal for placing the corals I wanted, was also not high enough to provide light for SPS and nice hiding places for fish. Bought 45lbs of rock for my 55gal and am planning on using the existing rock as well to make something all new and hopefully improved.

 

[Katrina71]

I did it to add a rock that I thought would be perfect for a nem. It was! (Now my nem will move for spite)

 

[vetteguy53081]

Since we are likely getting snowed in Again. I will be making an attempt to get this into the Right corner of tank or rear center and loading it with 48 frags and 8 SPS colonies over time.

 

[ruhmreef]

Yes. because i have had moving a lot last 2 years

 

[Alan Webb]

yes i have just finished re aquascaping as the anemone has created chaos, moving the smaller rocks and creating holes in the areas i would normally place smaller corals on.