sdf@abcom.ATT.COM (6362 Two Gateway Center Newark) (04/02/88)
I've had my aquarium (20 gals. fresh-water tropicals) up for about a year now and I've noticed two things. First, There is a large (and growing) deposit of fish waste collecting at the bottom of the tank underneath the gravel (even though I do regular gravel cleaning & water changes, and I believe that the Second Nature power filter model 3 is adequate for that size tank). Second, when I do water changes there is an overwhelming "fish market" smell coming from the water. (Yes, I know that this is natural as I AM keeping fish, but it gets really bad at times). To make a long story short, I am considering breaking down the tank completely to give it a full cleaning. I need some advice from all you aquatists out there in netland. Specifically: 1. Is it really necessary to break down a tank from time to time? I've heard conflicting opinions about this from lots of people. 2. When I do the cleaning I'll need to put the fish in a spare 10-gallon tank for the short time I'll be cleaning. Is there anything I need to know about doing this (other than the obvious temperature/ph concerns). I plan on using some of the water from the large tank in the temporary to cut down on the shock of the transfer. 3. Is there a special cleaner I should use, or will plain old water do the trick. Don't worry, I'm not stupid enough to use any kind of chemical cleaner in the tank, but do I need to do anything special to the water before I use it? If you can answer any of these questions, or have advice on something I've completely missed, please let me know. Thanks in advance. Stephen Fried AT&T Technologies Newark, NJ. ------------------------------------------------------------ Since my employer has nothing to do with fish, I don't think they care what my opinions are!
Ram-Ashwin@cs.yale.edu (Ashwin Ram) (04/05/88)
In article <571@abcom.ATT.COM>, sdf@abcom (6362 Two Gateway Center Newark) writes: > I've had my aquarium (20 gals. fresh-water tropicals) up for about a year now > and I've noticed two things. First, There is a large (and growing) deposit > of fish waste collecting at the bottom of the tank underneath the gravel > (even though I do regular gravel cleaning & water changes, and I believe > that the Second Nature power filter model 3 is adequate for that size tank). Consider installing an undergravel filter. The bacteria living in the gravel help break down fish waste, uneaten food, etc. into (relatively) harmless compounds. A UGF aids this reaction since it causes the water to flow down over the gravel surfaces, increasing the water's contact with bacteria. What size gravel do you use? If the gravel is too large, there are too many holes for waste to fall into, down to the depths where a standard gravel vacuum can't pick them up from. There will always be some waste at the bottom but it shouldn't be too much. > Second, when I do water changes there is an overwhelming "fish market" smell > coming from the water. (Yes, I know that this is natural as I AM keeping fish, > but it gets really bad at times). Actually, this doesn't sound "natural" to me. Good aquarium water has a slightly earthy but relatively pleasant smell. Bad smelling water indicates a problem, e.g., high nitrite levels. Check your water chemistry. > To make a long story short, I am considering breaking down the tank completely > to give it a full cleaning. Good idea. > 1. Is it really necessary to break down a tank from time to time? Wish I knew. I did it and it seemed to help my tank. No ill-effects as far as I could see, but you have to be careful. Treat the reassembled tank as relatively unestablished, since the cleaning will destroy bacteria. > 2. When I do the cleaning I'll need to put the fish in a spare > 10-gallon tank for the short time I'll be cleaning. Is there > anything I need to know about doing this (other than the obvious > temperature/ph concerns). Use water from the tank being cleaned. Stick in some plants (plastic one will do) so that the fish can hide -- they will be pretty scared. Remember to cover the temporary tank and keep the lights dim. > 3. Is there a special cleaner I should use, or will plain old water > do the trick. Cool fresh tap water works wonders. You might try dissolving some aquarium salt (e.g., Aqua Saline) in the water -- I suppose table salt will do too. No chemicals, detergents or even soap. As I said in a recent message, rinsing destroys bacteria. Be gentle -- don't scrub more than necessary and don't swish the gravel around too much. Use lukewarm to slightly cool water, since water that's too hot or too cold can kill bacteria. I think this is more important for the gravel than for the tank itself. I kept some of my old water and added it back to the (cleaned) tank to help it get reestablished. (There will be some in your temporary tank anyway.) You might do this unless you want to change all your water, depending on what monsters you suspect are living in the old water. I also avoided cleaning my power filter at the same time, since I didn't want to kill all the bacteria. Hope this helps. -- Ashwin. ARPA: Ram-Ashwin@cs.yale.edu UUCP: {decvax,ucbvax,harvard,cmcl2,...}!yale!Ram-Ashwin BITNET: Ram@yalecs