Difficulty: Easy
Instructions
Things You'll Need:
- Razor blades
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Step 1
Take time every week to clear the filter strainers of any plant debris or other waste, and wipe away any algae from the inside walls of the tank with an algae scraper or scrubber pad.
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Step 2
Make a date every two weeks to clean your filter. Consult manufacturer's instructions or an aquarium-supply retailer for advice on your specific model.
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Step 3
Clear the filter impellers of any slime, algae or plant waste, and replace any activated carbon bags in your filter.
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Step 4
Clean the underside of your aquarium's canopy or hood with an algae scraper or scrubber pad.
Comments
lemurnandy said
on 9/30/2009 You may want to check out the website below, they have a lot of great information and people who have lots of how to knowledge on aquariums:
http://www.myaquariumclub.com/
lemurnandy said
on 9/30/2009 Moving them stresses them out and stress is bad. My fish keep out of the way of the suction hose, and I have never sucked one out with it, since they can typically swim faster than the thing can suck. But keep an eye on it and if you see one get sucked out, just get it out of the sink and back in the tank fast.
If you have fry (fish babies) then suctioning your tank can be adventurous at best. Most people either keep the fry in their own gravelless tank, or in a fry net/cup in the tank so they don't get suctioned by either the filter or the cleaning methods.
lemurnandy said
on 9/30/2009 to suck up the muck, but I found it made the water murky for hours afterward, so I started using the above method with much better results.
Also, NEVER suction all your gravel at once or change all of your filter media at once, as this destroys the good bacteria that an aquarium needs to maintain a good balance for the fish. At most, you clean 1/2 the gravel, and only change one filter meium at a time. Personally, I rinse out the sponge in my filter once a month in aquarium water (stop up the sink when you are cleaning to preserve some of the water for washing the sponge out-but make sure you keep an eye on it so the water doesn't overflow in the sink) then put it back. The others I alternate chaning as per the instructions on the filter.
You do NOT have to remove the fish to clean the tank, in fact, it is better for them if you do not move them at all if you can help it. Mov...
lemurnandy said
on 9/30/2009 Once suction has started, I go back to the tank, and hold the wide end of the suction hose in the gravel, making sure not to move it around too much, and putting as far into the gravel as I can. The water inside the wide end of the hose turns murky as it suctions out the muck. Once the water in the hose starts clearing, I slowly back the wide end out of the gravel until all of the gravel is out of the hose and then I do another part of the gravel. The gravel is heavy enough that it doesn't get sucked into the hose (a few pieces will get sucked out, but as long as you did not put the narrow end of the hose into the side of the sink with the garbage disposal, you can just pick it out of the sink. I learned the hard way that gravel from the tank and garbage disposals do not mix. I had been using the method of gravel cleaning where you stick the hose in the gravel and shake it aroun...
lemurnandy said
on 9/30/2009 OK, so that got cut off. To continue: the other kind requires a manual start, which I do by putting the wide end into the tank and the narrow end in the sink (always with the narrow end at a lower level than the tank's water level) and suck on the narrow end until I see the water coming towrds me in the hose, then I quickly drop the narrow end into the sink. To be cont'd