Cleaning Gravel Outside Of Tank ?

We have successfully siphoned water( 40% water changed ) using python vacuum after 2 weeks of having our first male Betta.
I was wondering if I use vacuum 2 weekly and changed- 30-40% water ( 5 gallon tank ) what would be a good time to clean tank completely ?
Apart from two weekly siphoning water , Do we need to take out gravel once in a month or in two months to clean gravel outside of tank (as I have seen some people do) ?
Thanks in advance

 

Considering that you plan to change out 60% - 80% of the water on a weekly basis, there really is no need to break down your tank for a cleaning.
If you are careful not to overfeed, most of the accumulated gunk in the substrate will disolve into the water column, where it will be syphoned away.

 

You should not remove all the water and gravel from your aquarium as it contains healthy bacteria that keeps harmful residues like ammonia controlled

All you need to do is weekly water changes and hoover the gravel in situ

If you ever did take it all out you would have to start your cycle over and over again, so leave it in the aquarium and just gently clean it and change the water inside the aquarium

 

We have successfully siphoned water( 40% water changed ) using python vacuum after 2 weeks of having our first male Betta.
I was wondering if I use vacuum 2 weekly and changed- 30-40% water ( 5 gallon tank ) what would be a good time to clean tank completely ?
Apart from two weekly siphoning water , Do we need to take out gravel once in a month or in two months to clean gravel outside of tank (as I have seen some people do) ?
Thanks in advance

Your fish tank is the one thing in your home that you don't want to keep spotlessly clean. I have had tanks with gravel in them for years. The only cleaning they ever got was gravel vacuuming. There is no reason at all to remove and clean the gravel. The folks that are doing it are causing their fish a lot more stress than necessary.

 

Considering that you plan to change out 60% - 80% of the water on a weekly basis, there really is no need to break down your tank for a cleaning.
If you are careful not to overfeed, most of the accumulated gunk in the substrate will disolve into the water column, where it will be syphoned away.

Thanks ...I was actually planning 60% change in 2 weeks ?

 

Npk

You should be doing water changes weekly...not fortnightly

 

I am going to be pretty blunt with you but only because I want you to really understand why you need to be changing water and why you don't want to break this tank down every month or so.

If you will read through some of the threads about all of the heartbreaking things that are happening to Bettas you will understand the need for stability (I don't mean the product, I mean a stable home for your new pet) and you will understand the need for consistent water changes and doing them often enough to protect your fish. The water can look clean but can be deadly for your fish. .

You will understand why you need to be doing water changes no less than once a week or even more often than that for now because the tank your new water pet is in isn't cycled. Meaning its not yet built up the bacteria that will help keep his water free from dangerous amounts of ammonia.

With just one little fish in a 5 gallon tank it will take a while for the ammonia to get up to life threatening levels but over time as your little guy is exposed to them over and over he will sooner or later start getting sick. It may start with his fins starting to rot away.

Read all the threads asking how to treat fin rot and you will see that I am not just saying this to scare you. These threads pop up on an almost daily basis.

I can't count the number of threads that start off with my Betta was fine yesterday but he is laying on the bottom this morning. He wasn't fine yesterday. He was slowly being poisoned by living in not so perfect water.

Like you most of the folks that come here asking for help are new to having water pets and don't realize how important it is to keep the water not just looking clean but doing water changes to remove the things we can't actually see.

All this to say: Keep his water fresh and clean, allow the cycle to grow and he will bless you with his company for many years.

 

To follow on from mattgirl has said above.......you have been given really good advice Npk

You need to follow it because if you let things slip or do thing your way and thus choose to ignore the advice and your fish starts to suffer or it passes away, there are a lot of good & experienced people here who have advised you on how to care for your fish correctly and we will not be happy if you then ignore that advice and your fish suffers as a result

Many of us have been in fighkeeping for a very long time and we have all asked for advice and learnt from our mistakes in the past & we still do and, speaking for myself, I tend to lose patience with those who ask for advice and then ignore it and I am sure that I am not alone in feeling that way cos we are guardians of the fish that we keep and seeing a fish pass away or get avoidable illness due to ignored advice gets people's backs right up

 

Thank you all .. there is a communication gap . May be because English isn’t my first language .
First of all , no one is ignoring advice over here .
I am asking again as a) I am a beginner
b) I care for my fish
c) I was told different things at pet store !!!

The very fact I am clarifying things over here is cause I care for my fish .
Nevertheless, thank you all . Appreciate the info !
Those who are losing patience please ignore my messages !

 

Thank you all .. there is a communication gap . May be because English isn’t my first language .
First of all , no one is ignoring advice over here .
I am asking again as a) I am a beginner
b) I care for my fish
c) I was told different things at pet store !!!

The very fact I am clarifying things over here is cause I care for my fish .
Nevertheless, thank you all . Appreciate the info !
Those who are losing patience please ignore my messages !

Please keep asking questions. I am willing to answer the same question over and over until you totally understand the answer.

I know you wouldn't be here if you didn't want to do the very best you can for your water pet.

If you will follow the information in my Fish in cycle thread your little guy will come through the cycling process with flying colors.

Unfortunately we can't always trust what pet store employees tell us. Some know what they are talking about but sadly lots of them don't. They are mainly there to sell things. We have nothing to gain other than the joy of knowing we have helped someone provide a safe home for their water pets.

 

Nowhere in my messages I was rude to experienced keepers . So why be mean to those who have doubts !
I think this isn’t the place for seeking advice especially for beginners . Considering
deactivating my account .

 

No where in my messages I was rude to experienced keepers . So why be mean to those who have doubts !
I think this isn’t the place for seeking advice especially for beginners . Considering
deactivating my account .

Please don't do that.

 

Npk please don't take their stern advice as being mean. That is not what they are intending and their frustrations are not directed at you.

They do want you to listen and learn from what the experienced members here have to offer. They are trying to get you to understand how important frequent water changes are, how often you should perform them as well as proper tank maintenance. They are doing this because they care and they want you and your fish to succeed and have a happy, healthy life.

Hang around for a few days and you'll see the threads they are referring to. It's great that you're here and are asking questions. All we ask is that you listen to the advice and try to understand it completely. If you don't understand it, ask more questions.

 

We have successfully siphoned water( 40% water changed ) using python vacuum after 2 weeks of having our first male Betta.
I was wondering if I use vacuum 2 weekly and changed- 30-40% water ( 5 gallon tank ) what would be a good time to clean tank completely ?
Apart from two weekly siphoning water , Do we need to take out gravel once in a month or in two months to clean gravel outside of tank (as I have seen some people do) ?
Thanks in advance

Hey! Welcome to the forum

If there was a miscommunication issue, I hope that you can get past it so you can benefit from the infinite amount of valuable information that this place and its members have to offer Since I joined 8 years ago, I have stopped coming around only when I have had to take my tanks down because life got busy and complicated. But you can be sure that if I have a fish tank set up in my house, I am constantly here lol. These people have helped me save more fish, plants, and inverts than I can count

That being said, I think you've received plenty of great advice here already I got stuck with a fish-in cycle not long ago and it's not a fun thing lol. I was stressing a lot because I paid a lot of money to ship a specific fish from Thailand, and of course, I didn't want anything to happen to him! I'm gonna share my old post here with you, so that you too can benefit from all the great info that other members in this forum passed down to me. I think you'd greatly benefit from reading the whole thing. I followed their advice religiously and worked very hard for three weeks to keep things stable and safe for my fish. This included daily water changes and prime dosing to detoxify the water. It was hard work, but my fish is as healthy as he could be and the cycle did't affect him the slightest bit.. So it was all worth it.

Help - Help! Forced To Do A Fish In Cycle

Ask all of the questions you may have, as there are very helpful people here in the forum and really there is no such thing as a stupid question. People get into fish keeping without realizing how much work and learning is involved in the hobby, so as long as you're open and receptive, you'll constantly find yourself reading, asking, and learning.

 

Nowhere in my messages I was rude to experienced keepers . So why be mean to those who have doubts !
I think this isn’t the place for seeking advice especially for beginners . Considering
deactivating my account .

I believe what they were trying to say is...Beginners come and ask questions and do not follow the answers. Then they are mad because their fish is sick or died. Everyone on here even the experts have questions from time to time. Nothing you said was rude. They are just trying to make sure you understand the processes for a happy fish. Just hang in there everyone is nice and helpful here.