think the main issue I'm going to have though is the tank being at 29°C. I know most plants like it at a max of 28 right? Also my tank is live with quite a few fish so im either gonna have to lay down the substrate and gravel with the water and fish still in there (but at a low water line) or stress the fish out by removing them from the tank, keeping them somewhere while I aquascape the tank then put them back in (which will also mean trying to match the water temps in both tanks)
Definitely remove livestock before rescaping!
While you might manage adding some of the manufactured Aquarium Soils (such as Tropica) to an aquarium with water without considerable clouding or release of excess nutrients (imagine ammonia release), this is still going to be much more stressful to fish than moving them to a quiet location
Filipe Oliveira removes fish before completely rescaping this tank
as he’s quick, the temporary “tank” is only needed for some hours, for longer holding time, add some sort of filter or water movement and temperature regulation
I usually fill the bin (I use any food safe plastic bin of suitable size for the fish, sometimes setting up a couple bins depending on livestock) with 50% tank water and 50% tap water (or whatever you use for your aquarium) - then transition fish back to the 100% tap aquarium ...
Note my tap and aquarium water are basically the same, if you’re adjusting water for the aquarium, then check parameters before moving fish
I don’t feed fish in the temporary tank unless I’m adding a filter and doing water changes, ie, treating it like an aquarium rather than a holding tank ... obviously fish density is generally higher in the temporary tank than in the aquarium, so focus on water quality, eg, reduce temp to 27*C for more dissolved oxygen
To minimize fish stress, keep light dim, minimal vibrations (& don’t loom over the fish re temporary bins are often placed on the floor)
After rescaping the tank, it’s often late, so I just leave the fish until next day - this allows you to recheck aquarium parameters before moving fish (maybe even another water change as there may be fines/nutrients released when planting/adjusting hardscape etc), and means moving the fish during their usual “day” cycle, and you can easily monitor fish after the move for several hours
When moving fish back to the aquarium, keep lighting dim - plants will be fine - you can even leave the lights/CO2 on after finishing the rescape, then switchover to no CO2/dim lights for the transfer day
When ordering any “discus” plant collections, I’d confirm plant species to make sure it’s all plants you want
It’s much easier to add discus to an established planted aquarium (that has been set up for discus) than to do it all in one go as you will be doing
I’d set up the temporary “tank” so that it will be comfortable for fish for a few days
I have extra filters and heater etc so that’s easily done, most discus will be fine in a temporary bin with a sponge filter and 90% daily water changes
You don’t mention want your other fish are, I’d be inclined to house the discus separately
Add discus back to the aquarium first, maybe even wait a day before adding the other fish
