Second Hand Tank Need Help

[jakey]

i have just got a second hand tank with fish and everything in it but the tank is looking very dirty and unclean so it needs a proper cleaing out just wundered how to do this eny1 got a guide or enything to help thanks

 

[Ace Of Spades]

i have just got a second hand tank with fish and everything in it but the tank is looking very dirty and unclean so it needs a proper cleaing out just wundered how to do this eny1 got a guide or enything to help thanks

What sort of dirt is it, Just general Scum or is it Algae?

 

[kj23502]

Well, where do I start? It depends on what type of 'dirty' is in there. If it's algea, I would go w/a bristlenose pleco. They stay small, around 6", and are known for being good algea eaters.
Plus, by adding one it'll continuously help with the algea problem.

If it's scum all over everything...that can be hard. One thing I've done before is take out my fake plants and decorations and soaked overnight in a bleach/water soloution....At this point I don't remember how strong...maybe 1:4 ratio 1cup bleach to 4 cups water, although don't quote me.
That took it off pretty good. Just make sure to rinse, rinse and rinse again. If it smells bleachy, its not clean! I've never had a prob doing that w/my tanks.

You can get one of those algea scrapers to clean the glass. If the rocks look like puke(totally gross/yucky) you can scoop'em out and throw'em and just get new. Before anyone chews me out ....most of the nitrifying bact is in the filter and only a TINY % is in the substrate, so you'd be alright doing this!

Tell us a little more about what you're dealing with!

 

[jakey]

thnks for that i am dealing with just a general unlooked after tank it has water and fish ini have thrown the ornaments and fake plants out already i dont have another tank for the fish and what to do with my filter and fish. all i want to do is clean out all water and scrub it clean how long will i leave it for and any ideas on where to put my fish a cheap soloutin that is (bit short on cash) thanks

 

[Ace Of Spades]

thnks for that i am dealing with just a general unlooked after tank it has water and fish ini have thrown the ornaments and fake plants out already i dont have another tank for the fish and what to do with my filter and fish. all i want to do is clean out all water and scrub it clean how long will i leave it for and any ideas on where to put my fish a cheap soloutin that is (bit short on cash) thanks

You have no friends with tanks?, How many fish are we talking and how big?

 

[jakey]

You have no friends with tanks?, How many fish are we talking and how big?
[/quote]

8 cichlids of some sort aprox 2" to 4" also i have 3 plecs approx 2" and i have a friend but i trhink his tank is bit overstocked already thanks

 

[Ace Of Spades]

Eeeek, Well the only solution i know Is buckets, put your fish in buckets while you clean it out, AND BE SURE TO STICK YOU FILTER MEDIA IN A BUCKET OF WATER ASWELL. Sorry for the caps but if you dont all the good bactieria will die and youll have to start all over again

 

[jakey]

Eeeek, Well the only solution i know Is buckets, put your fish in buckets while you clean it out, AND BE SURE TO STICK YOU FILTER MEDIA IN A BUCKET OF WATER ASWELL. Sorry for the caps but if you dont all the good bactieria will die and youll have to start all over again

if i empty out all the water do i need to put in aquasafe and how long will i need to let it cycle for also will i just keep changing over the heaters in the buckets evry half hour

 

[kj23502]

I wouldn't worry too much about heat in them for just a few hrs. A few times I forgot to replug in my heater on my 29 gallon(after a water change) that had african mbuna in it and it was around 67 degrees F for a day or so . They will 'slow down' and become less active, which might be good for them when they're in buckets. I've never lost any fish...thank God! So i imagine that for a little while, it should be alright!

Like ACE said have a bucket to put your filter in/or keep your filter in tank water...depending on which type you have you'll keep it wet in different ways.

OH YEA.....make sure any bucket you use is CLEAN!!! Rinse, rinse and rinse again if it's ever had anything in that's bad for fish.....otherwise contaminants from the bucket could kill your fish.

I would start the project early in the morning...clean the tank hopefully by at least 12 noon. Then fill it back up w/water using the declorinator and I'd let it sit for a little while, few hours. The declorinator pretty much instantly declorinates, but it's a good idea to let it sit for a bit. (Some people need to do 90% water changes in some cases with fin in and they end up fine.)

If you do it w/in about 6-8 hours, I'd say you wouldn't need to cycle the tank. Although, you may have a mini cycle depending on how your bacteria holds up in your filter. If you get a mini cycle make sure to do water changes to keep ammonia and nitrite levels at or below .25ppm....if you don't have a liquid test kit, then get 1!! I wouldn't think that the mini cycle would last very long.

One more thing. Make sure the temp of the water you're putting in the tank is about the same as what's in the buckets. Then when you add the fish back in, they won't get a temp shock! After the fish are back in, put the heaters in and it'll start gradually warming back up and your fish will start becoming more active.

 

[jakey]

thanks very much for that kj much appreciated as i am new to this does declorienating meen addidng aquasafe

 

[kj23502]

thanks very much for that kj much appreciated as i am new to this does declorienating meen addidng aquasafe

Yep, it does ...You're welcome...I love helping people !!! Just make sure that you get the conditioner that treats chlorine and chloramine!! Some only do chlorine. So if you happen to have chloramine in your water supply too, it'll cause probs for fishies! It will say on the container.

Oh by the way...my 29 gallon was a temp tank used until my 125 gallon was set up and is now being used a quaratine tank for the new fish I'm adding to my big one. Please don't think it's ok to use as small tank like that in the long run or that I'm incompetent not that i'm very competent anyway

 

[jakey]

thanks again kj much appreciated

 

[kj23502]

you're welcome. If you have any more ?'s and can't find the answer by searching the forum, then feel free to post again and I'll try to help as I'm sure others will try to help as well!


Can I suggest, look around on all different forum topics.. but's it's very addicting. There are some awesome pics of fish!! I'm now thinking that when I'm done stocking my big tank, I may use my 29 gallon as a south american puffer tank

Who knows. I might change my mind again. If I do that, it won't happen till prob the end of summer.

 

[WaterBender1995]

to simplify things & after doing this for YEARS I suggest just getting a razor blade and while the fish are still in there scrape the insides of the tank, do a proper water changes and let the filter take up the rest, afterwards replace the media.

 

[kj23502]

Yea. I suppose that would work too!!! After your done scraping, you could use a siphon hose to suck some of the settled junk off the bottom. Water might look yucky for awhile!