Fish tank adds an aesthetic look to your home, and makes you feel calm and relaxed, so you need to care for your aquariam and keep it clean. It may take some effort, however, periodic maintenance helps your fish have a happy and healthy life.
How to Clean your Fish Tank – Step-by-Step?
Before you start cleaning the aquarium, consider not harming useful and necessary bacterial colonies that eliminate any wastes and toxins, so be careful to choose safe and eco-friendly cleaning materials specially made for aquariums.
Supplies you will need:
· A large bucket for water change (used for aquarium use only)
· Algae scraper
· Toothbrush for cleaning plants and interiors
· Scissors for pruning plants
· Chlorine remover (aquarium water conditioner)
· Glass cleaner (made for aquariums)
· Cotton towel
· Towel for polishing glass
· Gravel broom with suction tube
· New filter media (in case of filter change)
Steps to clean the aquarium
1- Water Quality Test: Use the water test kit to ensure that the harmful wastes of nitrate and ammonia are less than 40 ppm. It is detrimental to fish health. If the proportion rises, you may need to change the tank water completely.
2. Algae removal: To keep a clear view of the fish inside the aquarium, scrub the tank walls with an algae scraper to remove it, make sure to choose a scraper with a smooth surface to avoid scratching glass or acrylic.
If the tank cover has any grown algae, remove it using water without soap so as not to harm the fish, use a small toothbrush to gently clean the decor, rocks and aquatic plants and remove algae.
Don’t forget to prune aquatic plants inside the tank and get rid of any dead leaves. If floating plants cover the entire water surface, remove 30 to 50% of them until the plants below have enough light and the fish get enough oxygen.
3- Clean Aquarium Gravel: Using water siphon or vacuum to clean gravel well, as it moves it all to get rid of impurities, fish waste, leftovers and siphon them outside the tank. A thin piece of cloth or precise mesh can be placed on the siphon tip to avoid sucking small fish.
5- Add new water: you need to replace the dirty water siphoned out of the tank with your vacuum. It must be treated water at the same temperature of the tank, use the thermometer in this step. In the case of using tap water, it is preferable to cool it to get rid of heavy metals and impurities that harm fish, and one drop of water conditioner should be added.
Before you start changing the water, make sure to cut the power off the internal equipment to protect it from damage.
Clean the Tank Filter
It is recommended to clean the filter after two weeks of fully cleaning the tank. Cleaning process may damage the beneficial bacterial colonies on plants, rocks and gravel, while some of them remain inside the filter media, and changing the filter at the same time might trigger a dangerous ammonia spike since there is not enough useful bacteria for toxins removal.
If using carbon filter or ammonia absorption, it must be replaced after three weeks at most, and to clean the filter, you need to gently clean ceramic rings, inner fiber or sponge to get rid of any debris, make sure to maintain the same temperature of the tank water during the cleaning process to ensure the protection of beneficial bacterial colonies.
How often should the aquarium be cleaned?
The filter should be cleaned every two weeks or at least once a month, it is responsible for collecting waste and impurities within the aquarium, and by accumulating it the filters may be clogged up, so you have to clean the filter to get rid of any contaminants and ensure that the fish are healthy and the aquarium is clean.
