Cleaning...

[SwimmerWithFish]

My Betta Spike is nicely set up and happy. But now approaches time to clean his tank. For a 10 gallon single fish tank with two snails and two plants what percentage should I change? Even with a vacuum my gravel seems a bit grubby. will the snails take care of it or do I need to scrub them? Also...should I remove the plants during cleaning or will that just disorient Spike when he returns if they are in a slightly different space? I know the cleaning basics, I just need a bit of help on the finer points. Thanks.

 

[FishFanatic04]

No need to remove the plants. Do you have a gravel vac or siphon, then? Just stick it down into the gravel and suck up all the waste you can. With my 10g I change 1 or 2 buckets a week. My buckets are 2 gallons. One bucket is plenty but it doesn't take long so I just do 2 most times. No need to remove things for your clean. I also like to use a basic sponge to wipe the inside of the glass when it looks cloudy.

 

[SwimmerWithFish]

Well my tank is second hand, so it's a bit cloudy. It looks much better now having undergone vinegar and intense scrubbing but there are still a few marks and scratches. However, I think Spike is more than happy with it Thanks! I will be laying out water to add today. How long should I leave it before it is about the same temp as my tank?

 

[FishFanatic04]

Well my tank is second hand, so it's a bit cloudy. It looks much better now having undergone vinegar and intense scrubbing but there are still a few marks and scratches. However, I think Spike is more than happy with it Thanks! I will be laying out water to add today. How long should I leave it before it is about the same temp as my tank?

If the water is within 4-5 degrees of the tank {which is easily judged by hand} then it is fine. I often do colder water changes to mimic rain in a natural setting. It can induce some fish to spawn. As long as you treated with dechlorinator, I wouldn't worry about small temp changes.

 

[Essjay]

If your water supply is very cold, you can add hot water to the bucket and mix to get the new water the right temp before adding it, no need to let water stand around to warm up. If your hot tapwater is from a safe source you can use that, if not boil a kettle.

By safe hot water I mean not like a lot of older systems in the UK where the hot water is stored in a copper cylinder and as the hot water is used, the cylinder is topped up from a cold water storage tank in the attic. These cold water tanks are open topped and all sorts of nasties can get in - dead rats have been known. I don't think you have systems like that in the USA do you? Provided there can be no contamination of your hot water supply, it is safe to use.

 

[SwimmerWithFish]

Well our water comes off of a well, so we don't have chlorine added to it. And my Betta is alone...no spawning until he's all settled in. Thanks! I'll lay out some water to sit now

 

[FishFanatic04]

Oh, that must be nice. Dechlorinator is not cheap I stand by my statement, however, about temperature. Just be within a few degrees and your Betta will be fine.

 

[Essjay]

Dechlorinators don't just remove chlorine. Most of them bind heavy metals too. If you are sure your well water doesn't have these metals, then fine, you don't need dechlorinator. But if your well water does have metals in it fron the rocks the water passes through, then I would still use one. Just read the bottle to see if it binds metals and buy one that does.
I still say you don't need to let it sit, just add hot water to get the new water to the right temp if the water coming out of the tap is very cold.