Gravel Vac

[t.ropical_m.istx3]

how can you do an effective gravel vac without messing up every plant in the tank? i spent an hour and a half replanting my tank this morning after doing a gravel vac. i didnt realize i had so many teenie plants. how do you guys do it?

edit: i hate punctiation.

 

[SuperColey1]

how can you do an effective gravel vac without messing up every plant in the tank? i spent an hour and a half replanting my tank this morning after doing a gravel vac. i didnt realize i had so many teenie plants. how do you guys do it?

edit: i hate punctiation.

I don't. I gravel vac (or rather sand vac) the open parts and leave the planted parts, as they will look after the gunk theirselves, much the same as you put manure into your flowerbeds.

 

[t.ropical_m.istx3]

hmm. most of my tank is planted, but most of them are dinky little things. there's like, two spots our gravel vac will fit where there arent plants.

 

[vinylman]

Use your larger gravel vac for siphoning the water in/out, then just buy the smallest one you can find for vacuuming the more awkward areas.

 

[xtremefishyfan]

I have a five inch gravel vac and I only vacum the open parts to get the debris out of the gravel, this works well. My bottom feeders normally clean the awkward bits for me.