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Gravel Cleaner

Depends what veg. My corys appear to enjoy squished Garden Peas.
 
i faced exactly the same prob as you when i first started keeping fish a year or so ago, tried the manual cleaning device and it was rubbish. switched to a battery powered cleaner (you don't have to agitate nearly as much), replaced the rubbish bags they supply with the foot part of womans tights ... hey presto B) .

you will get on better co-ordinating it with a water change though, even a small one. do the gravel vac first (cause you always get a small amount of 'gunk' displaced into the water) then follow it with a water change, 10%, 20%, 30% ... up to you depending on frequency.

i follow the above process every 2 or 3 weeks, followed by 50% water change, after a few hours the water is crystal ... and stays that way for at least a week, usually closer to 2.
 
Thanks cheeky chappie im glad to hear its not only me who found this problem! I think i will defo invest in a battery powered cleaner with the bag (great tip on the tights)

i agree prob best to do this right before a water change as it does kick up waste which can easily be taking out during the water change

thanks again

note im also going to cut back on feeding think i was feeding a little too much. its so funny how the companys selling the food would recommend the highest feeding amounts! ;) what a surprise! hhmmmm
 
I add peas to my tank and they get eaten by my Cory's, Otocinclu and the dwarf gourami (usually just the male), I've even seen my Amano shrimps taking some.

I use cooked peas with the outer shell/skin removed. Then I just drop the inner part of the pea into the tank ....... never get any leftovers !

I also use cooked broccoli stalk .... the Otocinclus and gourami enjoy this.

I also use a variety of pellets, frozen food with a little flake. I usually feed over a 4 or 5 day cycle..... example
Day 1 = Fed twice.
Day 2 = No food, this encourages them to scavenge around the tank and use up any waste.
Day 3 & 4 (sometimes day 5)= Once per day .

I dont stick to this too rigidly, but everytime I do two feeds in a day, I miss the next day.
 
That's amazing...I can't believe fish actually like Veg?? :rolleyes: I might try that as all I have at the moment is catfish pellets and flakes....is there anything else I should feed them?

How to you prepare the peas before you give them some....just cook them? And can it be any kind of peas?

I am worried I am feeding my fish too much so I have been feeding every second day.....can they go hungry if I don't feed them enough? How do I know whether I am giving them enough? :-(
 
Someone once told me "happy fish are hungry fish" :) I guess what was really meant was, that overfeeding is dangerous and can lead to many problems and disease. Of course we don't want to starve our fish, but feeding every other day (or 5 times a week), is really not going to starve your average community fish. In fact, it will help to prevent overfeeding which leads to excess nitrates and unhealthy conditions.

Peas can just be put in a cup of boiling water for a couple of minutes or so. Then "pinch" the skin off and drop in tank.

Remember not to overcook or even fully cook vegetables. We all know nutritional value gets lost the longer it's cooked.
 
I agree my fish are alot happier since i decreased the amount of times i was feeding them! they are all more active and i see them alot more.

And everyone seems to enjoy the odd scavange at the bottom of the tank now and then, i think they were getting lazy knowing i dropped food in so much.

My cory have come to life! and seem to love scailing the stones for left overs!!

I was feeding 3 times a day as recommended on the fish food but this was way to much!!

peesa said:
Hi following this carry on im experiancing with the basic cleaners i was thinking of investig in somethin like this...

http://www.aquatics-warehouse.co.uk/acatal...atems__124.html

What do you guys thnink? Has anyone used this product sounds too good to be true! Is it?
Click to expand...

Also anyone got any info/comments on this filter is it any good? would like to find out some peeps experiance with it before i invest in one!

thanks
 
I've had a similar one, and to be quite honest (in my opinion) is a waste of money.
It's sitting in a box in the attic collecting dust.

Stick to the good old siphon gravel cleaner :nod:
 
yeh i thought that may be the answer on these types of gravel cleaners but im rubbish at using the basic ones lol :/ i thought this type may be better since im useless lol
 
I know for a fact Petco sells a pretty good electric Vac priced at 25 bucks.
 
peesa said:
Might sound like a really dumb question :*) but how the heck do these things work?

I had a lovely clear tank 5 mins ago, put the gravel cleaner in moved it up and down vigourasly as intructed and all it did was upset every pieice of debris in my tank and now its a cloudy messy dirt floating everywhere.

How is that cleaning?? Do these things actually work i can only get it to make a mess not suck out dirt!?!?!
Click to expand...

Hey I did the same thing the first time I tried to use mine! It took practice - and realizing that the entire suction cup part has to be submerged initially, then allowed to fill with water before it will work. Sometimes it still makes the cloudy mess but usually I can get it to work :) I seriously think Chance (fish) would be laughing at me if he could when I can't get it to work right LOL
 
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