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hello all

i have made my 72 gallon a planted tank
i was just unsure as how to clean my tank now that its loaded with plants..
i usally vac the gravel and do a 25% water change every 2 weeks, its hard to do that now there is plants, rocks, and logs in the tank and lots of fish...looks good but i don't want to have to tear it all down or apart to clean...i will if i have too but...
so i wanna now what you guys do to keep yours clean
any sugestions would be great thanks.
mike

Having a fully planted tank is not uncommon. It is very easy to clean as it can not be deep vacked because there are no spaces. I run my fingers though and over the tops of the low plants while I am holding the syphon unit. I also run my fingers over the plants at least once and some times a week and the filtration system picks up the floating gunk.

Water changes far too low unless you are running a planted tank only by that I mean no fish at all. If you have fish it is advisable to do a 30-40% weekly water change.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info
Look here for my
Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
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Hi,
Wave your hand over the tops of the planted sections in a
circular motion to bring any loose debris up out of the
plants and into the water column where the filter and
siphon will remove it.

Frank

-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

Hi Leachim,

As has already been suggested there is no need to gravel vac a heavily planted tank, doing so would damage the roots of the plants and generally make a big mess. If you have areas of substrate that you can get to with the gravel vac then by all means vac those areas, otherwise just siphon up as much of the gunk from above the substrate as you can. Anything left in the substrate will hopefully become plant food.

I am going to disagree with the advice above on one point however - the water change volume. Obviously water changes are a necessity and I'm not saying that you should stop water changes completely, but saying that every tank must have a certain percentage changed each week is a bit too rigid for my liking - every tank and every hobbyist is different with different needs and routines.

If you are aware of your water parameters (particularly nitrate and any added ferts) simply change as much or as little as is necessary to keep the parameters within a healthy range for both your critters and your plants. Especially important for you right now (while everything is settling again after being planted) I think is to monitor your tank pretty closely. Get to know what your tank parameters are and how they respond to changes such as water changes, CO2 or any fertilisers and act accordingly. You may need to water change more volume or more frequently while things are settling in, you may not. You'll get a feel for it over time.

Don't forget to share some pics of your tanks progress if you can.

Good luck and have fun

G_T

Never be afraid to try something new. Remember that a lone amateur built the Ark. A large group of professionals built the Titanic.

hey thanks for the replies
i will stick with my regular water changes...it seems to work well for me and my fish..plants look good to.
i should mention i also have 3 filters on this tank. i have 2 rena's #3 and one magnum 350 with two bio wheels.

i will try your suggestions of stirring up the bottom then vaccuuming it up..lol sounds silly why didn't i think of that?
i would love to showoff the progress of my tank but i do not know how to post pics.

sincerely
michael

POSTING PHOTOS

This is an old thread but all the information is there.
I would also post a topic in "The Recovery Room" asking members what they use and which is the best and easiest to use.

Have a look in [link=My Profile] http://www.fishprofiles.com/forums/member.aspx?id=1935[/link] for my tank info
Look here for my
Betta 11Gal Desktop & Placidity 5ft Community Tank Photos

Keith

Near enough is not good enough, therefore good enough is not near enough, and only your best will do.
I VOTE DO YOU if not WHY NOT?
VOTE NOW VOTE NOW