Tank Clean Up

[Stroker]

I was having some alge problems but I got it all killed. I took a wash cloth and wiped down most ov the glass even though I still need to finish, but my rocks are covered prety bad too. Plus theres just a bunch of crap at the bottom that gets stirred up any time I have to get in the tank. Is this normal. Do I need to clean out the rocks? I have a bio filter to help keep the bacteria is that enough? What works best to clean the sides of the tank? I've lost that nice clear water I used to have and don't know if it's the water or the dirty glass.

 

[rdd1952]

It sounds as if you aren't doing water changes and gravel vacs often enough You should usually do a 15 to 25 percent water change each week and vacuum the gravel when you do to get rid of the waste and debris on the bottom of the tank. You can use an algae mitt or algae scraper to get it off the glass. I have found that the mitt seems to work better for me.

 

[Yazan]

For the rocks, I heard useing bleech with aquarium things is okay.

 

[vinylman]

For the rocks, I heard useing bleech with aquarium things is okay.

Only in a very, very weak dilution; around 20 parts water to 1 part bleach, IIRC.

 

[Miss Wiggle]

For the rocks, I heard useing bleech with aquarium things is okay.

Only in a very, very weak dilution; around 20 parts water to 1 part bleach, IIRC.

yup that's right

here's a good topic on weekly maintenance which should keep your tank pretty clean

http/www.fishforums.net/Step-by-step-Gui...ce-t171045.html

 

[Stroker]

here's a good topic on weekly maintenance which should keep your tank pretty clean

http/www.fishforums.net/Step-by-step-Gui...ce-t171045.html

That was a good article. And honestly the first time I've heard of a gravel vacume. It's aperant my father in law who has about 5 tanks knows nothing about proper maintenance. I assumed with his experiance he must know how to set up a tank and mantain it, but his advice was monthly water changes which I have been doing since x-mas when we got the tank. That gravel vacume will also make draining alot easier then scooping and throwing it out the window.

 

[Stroker]

I went to lfs and got an alge scraper, a gravel vacume, and a test kit. Nitrates, nitrites, hardness, clorine, and ph were all good. The Alkalinity was a little low, but I don't think thats a big problem. I did my last water change on the 15th so I scraped the sides, dropped my bio wheel in the tank and vacumed the gravel. It barely helped anything because it was so bad to start with. Should I leave it alone? Will the next few water changes catch up to where it needs to be? Or should I put my fish in the replacement water when the temp is right and change all the water and lightly rinse the rocks? I will say the bio wheel was put in new on the 16th because the old filter died when I changed the water, but all my levels were still good befor the change. Right now I have my replacement water sitting in the sun. Probably took 3-4 gallons out of a 10 gallon tank.

 

[Jozlyn]

What were the test results, can you post them please? You need to test for Amonia as well! Don't mess with your tank's Ph, you'll only end up doing more harm than good.

Do vacuuming/water changes weekly, you can do up to 50% at a time. This will eventually catch up, providing you are not overfeeding or overstocked!

Are you adding dechlorinator to your water before you put it back in your tank?

What sort and how many fish do you have?

When you say rocks, are you talking about gravel or ornaments? If they're just rock ornaments take them out and scrub them with a nail brush in used tank water to clean them.

I don't know much about bio-wheels as I don't have one, but isn't that where the bacteria live? If you've replaced your bio-wheel then you've lost your bacteria colony and your tank will start cycling again. Someone more knowledgable than me will have to answer that question for you.

 

[Stroker]

I actually went ahead and replaced all the water and rinsed the gavel just a bit. I was halfway through the process when i posted that and waited as long as I could, plus we wanted to move the tank from my son’s room to the living room so the whole family could enjoy. The old filter we had was just a hang over the side type and it quit working so we had to get the new bio wheel. It does have some bacteria on it and I kept it wet, I also don't think I washed too much bacteria out of the gravel as I just slightly rinsed it. When I put in the fresh water (yes I used a declorinator) it still kicked up a bit of debris from the gravel so I don't think I did much harm. It may cycle some but now that I have the right equipment I can keep an eye on everything. Most of the fish in there are the same ones from when it was new and I had never heard the term cycle in reference to aquariums so they survived it once they should be just fine, plus I don't think it will have to go through a full cycle. The test kit I got didn't include ammonia I'll stop and get one on the way home from the office. My tank is a 10 gallon with;

2 Clown loaches (their tiny and when they get bigger I will find a bigger tank for them but I needed to stop a snail problem)
4 Neon Tetras
2 Black Neon Tetras
1 Glass fish
1 Cory catfish
1 African Dwarf Frog (he’s going in his own tank with a new friend soon)
I know I’m a little over crowded but like I said the loaches are young and I will have them out soon, I also plan to remove the frog from this tank.

 

[mandiemoo]

The clown loaches will need removing eventually as you say, but just a word, Cory's like company of their own kind. I'm not fantastic on working out stock, but I think you may have reached your limit if not gone over, so getting a couple of friends for the cory isn't going to work.

As for your bacteria, if your filter ever goes again, make sure you keep the part where the bacteria is in some tank water so they don't die off and you can use them in the new filter - it helps put the bacteria on the new filter quicker.

 

[Stroker]

but just a word, Cory's like company of their own kind.

Guess thats what I get for shopping at Petsmart. She said one would be plenty for a 10 Gallon to use as my alge eater. At least I did see that they school with other fish too. Of coarse maybe thats why he keeps chasing my Loaches. I also need a friend for my Glass fish but the lfs are all out and can't get any right now.

 

[rdd1952]

The test kit I got didn't include ammonia I'll stop and get one on the way home from the office.

Ammonia is THE #1 most important test kit to have. You can test or nitrite all day ad think everything is fine because there isn't any. But there isn't any because the tank hasn't started cycling and the ammonia is building and building and not being processed. And in the mean time, fish begin to die

My tank is a 10 gallon with;

2 Clown loaches (their tiny and when they get bigger I will find a bigger tank for them but I needed to stop a snail problem)
4 Neon Tetras
2 Black Neon Tetras
1 Glass fish
1 Cory catfish
1 African Dwarf Frog (he’s going in his own tank with a new friend soon)
I know I’m a little over crowded but like I said the loaches are young and I will have them out soon, I also plan to remove the frog from this tank.

You should remove the clowns ASAP as they will grow to 6" or so in the firt year. Because of the tank they are in, they could begin to experience stunted growth very quckly. You should also return the cory as he will not do well by himself. They really need to be in groups of at least 3 but you don't have room in your tank to add more.