Tank cleaning....more importantly substrate cleaning!
Janelle D'Arcy
Member Posts: 94
Hi all I have a question, hopefully I am not repeating an old question that's been answered before.
As most of you know I have a well planted tank, with sand substrate, I have white sand and sachems black sand. When I do my maintenance clean I have only Been scooting along the top, not penetrating the sand too much. My question, if I don't penetrate the sand while cleaning does it build up with toxins produced by waste? Does this become lethal? What do most aquarists do if they have a planted tank like me?the black sand was extremely hard to clean, in fact it couldn't wash clean, so I put it in anyway it has settled as you can see from my photos but when I do disturb it or the Corey's dig down into it it does lift quite a bit of dirt/ dust like substance up but eventually it clears again, your opinions, advice would be great.
As most of you know I have a well planted tank, with sand substrate, I have white sand and sachems black sand. When I do my maintenance clean I have only Been scooting along the top, not penetrating the sand too much. My question, if I don't penetrate the sand while cleaning does it build up with toxins produced by waste? Does this become lethal? What do most aquarists do if they have a planted tank like me?the black sand was extremely hard to clean, in fact it couldn't wash clean, so I put it in anyway it has settled as you can see from my photos but when I do disturb it or the Corey's dig down into it it does lift quite a bit of dirt/ dust like substance up but eventually it clears again, your opinions, advice would be great.
Comments
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IMO, sand is the best substrate, but it does have it's drawbacks for example, you can only skimm over the top of it and yes it can build up poisionous gasses that are deadly to fish. Now what I do prior to water changes, is run a Knitting needle through the sand mine is plastic, which helps if there is any build up of gas which I have never had and it does help to stir up any poop or whatnots that get between the grains of sand. I hope that helps a bit.Sometimes when I reflect back on all the beer I drink I feel ashamed. Then I look into the glass and think about the workers in the brewery and all of their hopes & dreams.
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What's IMO sand heintz?
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In My Opinion=IMO
Oops, I forgot to put a comer between IMO and sand, grammar or punctuation was never a strong point with me
) Sometimes when I reflect back on all the beer I drink I feel ashamed. Then I look into the glass and think about the workers in the brewery and all of their hopes & dreams. -
It's always advisable to do a gravel vacuum at least once a month The hose and nozzle can be bought in several sizes depending on tank size to be cleaned
from aquarium shops, shopping online gives you a wider selection. 
"I'm a Doug Addict" 
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Yea, apparently there's a new battery operated one, on the market, don't know if it's any good though. :-??
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I have the one I have always used which is a Good size. I like the knitting needle idea! I'm going to give that a go, I have always been notorious for really vacuuming up my floor of the tank really really well, which didn't matter so much with just the White sand and very little plants, but now I have the black sand and the added landscaping I have to be more careful! Great thanks guys for the input! I love this forum!,!
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I have sand in my tank and i get into it. the sand will normally get about half way up the syphon tube, then i hold it on an angle and it all falls out.
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Like Doug, I also 'get into it'. The knitting needle idea is brilliant. Thanks.
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Hi Vicki and welcome to the forum do stick around, why don't you start your own thread and tell us what you have in the way of tanks and fish, also post pics as well. If you don't know how to just click the link below
http://forum.livefish.com.au/discussion/7946/html-used-here-for-photos#latestSometimes when I reflect back on all the beer I drink I feel ashamed. Then I look into the glass and think about the workers in the brewery and all of their hopes & dreams. -
Thanks for your comments, there were helpful advices. I will try some of them!
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Hey,
Probably a bit late to reply. Have you thought about adding malaysian trumpet snails? This would help to airrate your substrate and hopefully remove the pockets of anaerobic bacteria. I find these guys to be great as they are generally nocturnal, eat waste and do not eat living plants. Hope this helps. -
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Just use a symphony to clean the sand
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This autocorrect amuses me.animal_expert01 said:Just use a symphony to clean the sand
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Oops...
