Cleaning

[Krissy]

Hello,
As some of you guys know I'm new to keeping fish and want to know everything I can know to keep them healthy and happy. For the past 8 months I have been doing 50%-75% water changes weekly in the morning then cleaning the gravel once a month(what I was told to do at the fish store). I do it in the morning because I think the fish have rested enough to not get so worried(dont really know though) After talking to numerous people, they said I am killing off the good bacterias, changing too much water and so forth... So my questions are: What is the best time of day to clean your tank? How many times a month should you do water changes and clean the gravel? And How much water should you change when doing this? I always test my water on a weekly basis to make sure the ammonias and nitrites are at 0. Any info on how other tropical fish keepers clean their tank would be greatly appreciated, Thank you!! (given out free drinks)

 

[Kissifish]

For starters, 25% water change is as much as is recommended weekly. Siphon debris at the same time. I do mine in the AM and then, feed the little guys just for putting up with me.

Good that you check your water parameters, too. Especially, ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, pH, temp.

 

[joshua]

how do u clean your gravel? u scoop them up and wash them?

 

[platypus]

I agree with kissifish, 25% weekly is good. If you clean the gravel make sure you don't do it too thoroughly though as this is where loads of the beneficial bacteria lives. I normally do a quarter of the gravel one week, then another quarter the next etc. I think this is safter than giving it a really good going over once a month. Also, if you want to clean the filter media of all its gunk, make sure you don't do this at the same time as a water change/gravel clean, as again you could be wiping out too much bacteria. When you rinse the filter, do it in a jug of tank water rather than tap water too.

As for the best time of day - I do mine any old time, usually on a Saturday while I'm waiting for the football to start

how do u clean your gravel? u scoop them up and wash them?

You can buy gravel vacuums at your lfs that will clean the gravel without disturbing it too much so you're not uprooting plants/stressing your fish out etc.

 

[Eelzor]

I third the 25% change method. 50-75 is not nessary and may conflict the cycle.

 

[Mollymomma]

my cleaning is just like playtpus' but I do mine in the afternoon of a school day so I don't have 4 kids underfoot or wanting to "help". I used to let the kids help but on 8 year old with a gravel vac in hand can do alot of rearranging of the plants & decorations and will always manage to get at least 3 gallons of water on the floor!

"I'm sorry mommy I didn't see that little fishy near the tube" has been heard at my house too ( fishy survived his trip up the vac & onto the floor)

So now I don't trust anyone to "help"

 

[Eelzor]

yes, mol that is insainly frustrating, I know what its like. Like my godson wants to 'help' alot as well in the house for other chores as well, and it seriously wrecks everything.

 

[platypus]

Hee hee I manage to make a mess of things and I'm 24!! Like the time I was emptying water out the window and spilt some on our Sky digibox! 2 hours later:

BF: Honey, why isn't sky working and why does it smell like burning hair?
Platypus: Well I'm sure I have no idea. Yep, nothing to do with me. No water spillages here, no siree *whistles*

Still had to pay £65 to get an engineer out though - I think the boyf saw through my cunning facade!!

 

[Jo]

darn and blast those men...and you were trying sooo hard to be sneeky platypus...full marks for effort...!

 

[platypus]

cheers geeza! The upside is that now every time he tries to procrastinate when it's time to clean the fish out I can just say 'well remember what happened last time I did it on my own'!!!

 

[mrV]

Any theory to defend that 25% is better than 50-75% which keeps water quite pure before next water changing?

 

[Jo]

The upside is that now every time he tries to procrastinate when it's time to clean the fish out I can just say 'well remember what happened last time I did it on my own'!!!

he he....good get out clause....!!

 

[platypus]

Any theory to defend that 25% is better than 50-75% which keeps water quite pure before next water changing?

MrV,

Good point I feel rather humbled ) .

I believe it's better to change 25% weekly rather than 50 or 75 for the following reasons:

1. You will be less likely to strip your tank of any beneficial bacteria and so cause it to start cycling again
2. Any fluctuations in temperature/water hardness/pH will have less of an impact on the fish and so be less stressful

Erm, that's all I could think of actually

 

[mrV]

1. You will be less likely to strip your tank of any beneficial bacteria and so cause it to start cycling again

there is only harmful bacteria/compounds in water. Beneficial bacteria live in diff. surface, like in bottom..

2. Any fluctuations in temperature/water hardness/pH will have less of an impact on the fish and so be less stressful

Well, when you change water enough (meaning lot), then water parameters of your tank are near your tap water values. So it doesn't change lot. But... If you have changed water 10-20% weekly, or less than weekly like ones in month and now you're doing 50% water changing, so of course water parameters change too.

I have 450 liters tank, changing water (about 200 liters) pH changes about 0,5. From pH 6,5 - 7,0. The change isn't too much

And in natur temperature change too - it isn't steady. And you can also adjust temp. of your tap water...

What becomes to hardness of water, it shouldn't change: If you keep fishes from hard water, then you adjust GH, before putting new water into tank. If you keep fishes from soft water, you shouldn't probably do nothing or if your tap water is hard, then you need to prepare water as you usually do: using somekind of devices etc..

 

[Krissy]

Thank you guys for all the info. I will immediatly start doing 25% water changes instead of 75% once a week with cyphoning the gravel in quarters. I like to try to keep there home clean just because what I was told its like "Swimming in a dirty toliet" That sorta made me ill Oh as for temp, I always do a water check sorta like checking a baby's bottle with the tap water and tank water. It is usually no less or more than 2 degrees.