its not why im breaking it down. i was going to move and rescape anyway in a month or so. figured now would be a better time. plus all the dead crypt roots and nematodes and snails etc. made the tank smell awful.
anyway, i have emptied the tank, removed the gravel, moved the stand + tank, cleaned the glass, bleached, cleaned the filter, cleaned the prefilter and surface skimmer, and boiled the wood. when i post this i will go to clean the tubing.
here are pics of the proccess:
btw, i added purigen to the filter in prep for the AS. and i found my amano shrimp, he got stuck under the prefilter (idk how he got in), and starved or something.