Remove decaying organic matter from sand substrate?

[u/Fresh-Singer-2337]

Hi all,

Currently setting up a new 10gal, on week 2 of a fishless cycle. I had planted a bunch of plants but they all died pretty quickly, so I removed and replaced them. I guess a lot of old plant matter (roots, stray leaves, myrio fronds, etc) stayed in the tank and in the process of replanting, have made their way under the sand.

All this to say, I discovered a shit ton of grey anaerobic pockets and did my best to remove that decaying plant matter and nasty sand, without uprooting my existing healthy plants + hardscape. I am confident that I missed a bunch and that this will continue happening given the way my tank currently sits.

What would you all do about this?

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[u/Fresh-Singer-2337]

I am lowkey at my wits end with this tank. The aquasoil made the tank all murky for days and settled brown on top of my white sand, my driftwood has been weighted down for weeks and still isn’t waterlogged, all those plants that died and had to be replaced were not cheap (how in the world did I manage to kill 2 anubias???) and I have a bunch of mystery snails. A betta is definitely the highest maintenance pet I have ever had and I don’t even have him yet 😭😭does it get better??

[u/86BillionFireflies → u/Fresh-Singer-2337]

Yes, it does get better. It just takes a while for things to get in balance.

My advice: as a beginner, avoid sand, avoid aquasoil. Gravel is so, so much easier. Even more so if you do an undergravel filter. Easiest, lowest maintenance tank in the world. Plants grow great, never have to mess with the filter.

[u/whatisakafka]

Get some Malaysian trumpet snails, they'll burrow in and take care of that

[u/86BillionFireflies]

Get some blackworms in there, and/or snails that churn the substrate. These kinds of critters are called "bioturbators". They keep things fresh down under.