If you aren’t siphoning gunk and just trying to drain water for a water change you can try attaching mesh to the bottom of the tube so you can drain water without sucking anything inside.
First water change with fish 😰
- Thread starter Rocky998
- Start date
OP
OP
OP
OP
Thanks!
How much water did you change
OP
OP
25%
That should be fine then, I don't think you will have too many problems. I usually get a 4 degree drop on a 25% water change. You are in winter so you will get a little more. Don't Fret.
Np. Pantyhose is cheap and a good way to try it without spending lots of money
OP
OP
Good idea! Thanks!
I'm confused! If it's only a 20 gallon tank, why not use an old school, no fuss no muss cheap syphon that you use by hand, to empty into buckets, then refill using buckets? If you have small fish that are likely to get sucked up (or as in my case, tiny fish, tiny fry and tiny shrimplets that WILL get sucked up) then slow and heavier work is better than hooking up hoses.
A 10-15 litre bucket means you can refill fairly quickly, after temperature matching the new water to the tank temp and using declorinator, and then you can control the flow of adding water back into the tank gently using the bucket and a jug.
Don't forget that if you must use water that's much colder than the tank temp, that you don't have to refill the tank to the top at once. Could replace half of the water you've removed, wait a few hours for that to come to temp, then replace the rest of the water.
As for cleaning the substrate without sucking anything up; as @Essjay said - carefully!
I always have my thumb over the end of the hose that's going into the bucket so I can pause the flow in an instant. Not only does that mean you can prevent sucking up anything you don't want to suck up, it also means you can pause the flow when you're moving the other end to the next spot you want to clean, so you don't have the tank half drained before you're even halfway through.
You could also try a fish tank divider - not one to install permanently or properly, but to gently shoo the fish to one half of the tank, prop divider in there (this is easier if you have a lot of plants that will hold it up) then work on the half of the tank the fish aren't on. The odd fish will likely go around, but it should keep most of them out of the way while you work. Then you clean one half of the tank on one water change, switch and do the other side next time.
Don't beat yourself up! You'll pick up tips and tricks along the way, and find the methods that work for you! We all had to learn how to do this, we were all new to this once, and your methods are gonna vary person to person depending on what you prefer, what your tank set up is, where your closest sink is! etc. You'll get the hang of things, try not to be so hard on yourself.
A 10-15 litre bucket means you can refill fairly quickly, after temperature matching the new water to the tank temp and using declorinator, and then you can control the flow of adding water back into the tank gently using the bucket and a jug.
Don't forget that if you must use water that's much colder than the tank temp, that you don't have to refill the tank to the top at once. Could replace half of the water you've removed, wait a few hours for that to come to temp, then replace the rest of the water.
As for cleaning the substrate without sucking anything up; as @Essjay said - carefully!
I always have my thumb over the end of the hose that's going into the bucket so I can pause the flow in an instant. Not only does that mean you can prevent sucking up anything you don't want to suck up, it also means you can pause the flow when you're moving the other end to the next spot you want to clean, so you don't have the tank half drained before you're even halfway through.
You could also try a fish tank divider - not one to install permanently or properly, but to gently shoo the fish to one half of the tank, prop divider in there (this is easier if you have a lot of plants that will hold it up) then work on the half of the tank the fish aren't on. The odd fish will likely go around, but it should keep most of them out of the way while you work. Then you clean one half of the tank on one water change, switch and do the other side next time.
Don't beat yourself up! You'll pick up tips and tricks along the way, and find the methods that work for you! We all had to learn how to do this, we were all new to this once, and your methods are gonna vary person to person depending on what you prefer, what your tank set up is, where your closest sink is! etc. You'll get the hang of things, try not to be so hard on yourself.
YESYES NEW FISH IDEA!!!
found em at petsmart they look healthy but miserable want to save them
StandbySetting
Fish Aficionado
Temp drops of 6 degrees (I'm assuming F and not C) will be fine, limit it as best you can but there are slight variations in temperature in a fishes natural habitat caused by rain etc.
PlasticGalaxy
Fish Gatherer
Tbh I think you should stop buying "miserable" fish from Petsmart. If they look miserable, assume they're diseased and will either die or just bring disease into your tank(s). It's nice to feel like part of the RSPCA but at the end of the day, the vitality of your own aquarium(s) should be valued over random fish in a shop.
D
Deleted member 149562
Guest
I am old school.....I use a 2 litre plastic jug to take the water out (empty jug into 20 litre plastic tub then empty that down the loo)....for refilling, either 5 litre or 2 litre bottles of water poured slowly, empty bottles crushed and put out for recycling. I do turn off the heater, UV and filter though.....forgot to turn off the filter one time, it wasn't impressed, made some really weird noises at me.
I do have a syphon....just prefer my weekly workout session instead, plus the fish tend to get aggravated with the syphon, they totally ignore the jug....most of the time....the occasional Danio will try their fins at escaping or think I will not notice, doesn't work, they get slopped back in and told off
I do have a syphon....just prefer my weekly workout session instead, plus the fish tend to get aggravated with the syphon, they totally ignore the jug....most of the time....the occasional Danio will try their fins at escaping or think I will not notice, doesn't work, they get slopped back in and told off
OP
OP
I wish it was that easy... But my sink isnt deep enough for my 5 gallon bucket. It just does not fit in. So for now, in the middle of winter I have to go out in really cold weather to re attach a hose to a faucet and hope I conmected it well enough to where it doesn't spray all over me... I love my aquarium... But this... I hate.
And you're probably right... I will find new ways of doing things and it may get better, but rn, I see no bright future.
OP
OP
It depends on how well your petsmart "cares" for its fish (when I say care I mean just taking care of them in general). If their fish are always sick and there are always dead fish, I wouldnt recommend buying from them.
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