Should i clean aquarium gravel

You want to be a good fishkeeper, you want your fish to be happy and healthy. So, naturally, you want to know how often you should vacuum your aquarium gravel. It stands to reason that your fish should be the same? The difference between your aquatic pets and your terrestrial pets is that your aquarium is more of an enclosed environment. Fish poop does break down and is consumed by beneficial bacteria, snails, and detritus worms. When it comes to vacuuming your gravel—like so many things in fishkeeping—there are no hard and fast rules.

And while that might a straightforward rule to follow, it ignores all the variables at play. It could very well be that you can get away with only vacuuming your gravel once a month. On the other hand, you might need to be vacuuming it every day!!! First thing you need to think about is: do you have a lot of fish in your tank. In addition to how many fish, what kind of fish do you have?

This is important to consider because no two species of fish are the same. Some are just inherently messier. Whereas, some large cichlids have this frustrating habit of chewing up, spitting out, and chewing up again and again. As you can imagine, this makes tons of mess! New gravel is another reason not to put fish in a new aquarium until it has been filled with water and filter allowed to circulate the water for at least a week. To avoid any clouding of the water, a second step may be necessary.

After fully cleaning out the dust and debris using the bucket method, get a large strainer and wash small amounts with the hose to get the last of the dust out of it, and then pour into the new aquarium.

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Mobile Newsletter chat avatar. Mobile Newsletter chat subscribe. Aquarium Fish. How to Clean Fish Tank Gravel. Biological Filtration Gravel provides a home for beneficial bacteria that eliminate waste products in the aquarium.

If there's no gravel, it's necessary to change the water very often. These useful colonies of bacteria can only thrive in gravel Habitat for the Fish Gravel creates a pleasant habitat for the fish. In a comfortable environment the fish will experience less stress and be much healthier.

Aesthetic Appeal Last but not least, gravel makes the aquarium look so much nicer than with a bare tank floor [source: Buzzle ]. Fill a bucket half way with dirty fish tank water. Fill the balance of the bucket with clean tap water. You must mix old and new water together so as not to injure the fish by changing the water conditions too drastically.

Place the fish in the bucket. Unplug all electrical aquarium equipment. Not only does the number of fish affect how quickly your tank will get dirty, but the kind of fish you have will affect this as well. Some are messier than others and will require tank and gravel cleaning far more often than others.

Goldfish also produce a higher amount of waste compared to most fish as they will eat quite a bit. Then there are the fish that make a mess with their food, like cichlids, who enjoy chewing up, spitting out, and re-chewing their food over and over.

Fish like these will require a more frequent cleaning schedule. On the other side of this, there are certain fish types—algae-eaters and the like—that will eat some of these bacteria and take care of some of the tank maintenance naturally for you. Fish waste breaks down and produces ammonia spikes in the water.

That is because not all bacteria are bad bacteria. There are good bacteria that work to keep your aquarium cycle going live and strong. These beneficial bacteria in your aquarium will convert ammonia into nitrite and nitrate. And generally, they are happy enough and hungry enough to take care of this ammonia processing for you.

It generally takes around a month for a disrupted cycle to correct itself, and for this reason, many will err on the side of caution when deciding when maintenance is required. However, there are usually two places bacteria most commonly live: in the filter or the gravel.