Matedoggy

Just wondering your thoughts on how often to do a major cleaning? I am talking about moving rock formations and everything to give the tank a good vacuum. Usually I just vacuum out water and do a little bit of the gravel once or twice a week. How often do you guys move plants and stuff like that to give the tank a good vacuum?

Mike19

You should be aiming for at least one weekly water change of around 10-20%

Welcome,

Bare in mind that some fish are more messy then others.

Toxic

25% water change every 10 days for me. my tank is under stocked so I worry more about losing the good bacteria than anything else. I tend to vacuum portions of the tank, not all of it each time. I feed my pellets to my Cory's in the same location each time so I know where to clean the gravel for this. I use small amounts of flake food for the neons and guppies, I feed live brine shrimp that I raise to them every other day to complete there feeding. Each tank has different cleaning needs, large pleco's are messy compared to a small school of neons. I keep an eye on my nitrate readings to indicate when a water change is needed, other tanks you can see when it needs it.

joy613

I have live plants so I don't vacuum the gravel. I do change things around when the mood strikes me. I understock my tanks like toxic does it makes for a more peaceful tank and healthier fish with less work.

TropicalGrimmish

from what your "aquarium info" says,i do a weekly water change at about 30%, your got a few fish in your tank with big bioloads, also vacc your gravel every weekly water change at least half.. i never really move stuff around i like to stickin to the same theme.

MeGustaUnaPez926

As many others have said, weekly 20-30% water changes are necessary, and you should rinse out the filter (with tank water) about once a month. You can re-arrange the tank as often as you want, I guess. I think it might stress out your fish if you do it to much. I see you have cichlids, so its a good idea with them to rearrange the tank before you add more fish, so that everyone has to re-establish territory.
However, you don't want to add any more fish to your tank. It is very over stocked. The pleco will get 2 feet long, and they produce a ton of waste. The CAE is cute now, but as it grows it will stop eating algae and kill all of your other fish. I don't really know anything about cichlids, so I can't tell you if you'll have any issues there, but corydoras are schooling fish, and need to be in groups of at least 5. I'm not sure if I'm reading your info right, do you have 9 tetras or loaches? Lets hope its tetras because clown loahces will also get 18 inches long.
Good luck with your tank.

pepetj

I used to do a thorough vacumm, including moving things around every two weeks in one half of the tank I keep my Oscars.

Since I upgraded my mechanical filtration (powerhead with attached canister -intended for activated charcoal but filled only with filter floss, placed near substrate level where historically more organic waste ended up) I don't move things around too much. Just the surface cleaning with the vacuum (sand substrate, I don't use gravel) of half side of the tank weekly as I take water out. I do a 50% water change weekly in that 145gal tank. What I do weekly, no matter what, is finding those deep substrate areas (some change location as the Oscars, Severums, Convicts and Kenyi all do their own aquascaping with the sand) and stir them with the vacuum.

In my other tanks, maintenance is quite easy as far as substrate vacuum and moving decor goes. I lift and clean behind hollow decor that serves as caves for some bottom dwellers once every one or two months. It's amazing how some fish keep the substrate clean (e.g. Silver Dollars, Pandas and Bronze Corydoras and to some degree Kuhli Loaches), and then the inverts cleaning crew: Ghost Srimps, Nerite and Apple Snails.

Pepe
Santo Domingo

Angela_96

If the tank info is correct the cichilds and other fish are non-compatable. The other fish will soon become the cichilds supper. Then it won't be overstocked anymore.

W/ lake malawi cichlids there are no other fish that can be mixed with them they are extremely aggressive fish.

Also w/ cichilds a good weekly taking out the rocks and all is what I do. Then another 25 percent change a few days later.