How Do You Clean A 20 Gallon Tank?

[GloFish Freak]

Hi,

I recently started a 20 gallon fish tank in December and I don't know how to clean it. I have 1 algae eater, 3 Glo Fish, 2 Black Skirt Tetra's, 2 X-Ray Tetra's, 2 Albino Corydoras Catfish, and 2 Dalmation type fish..

I am going out tomorrow to get a few cleaning supplies to start my cleaning process, I already have some water that is at room temperature on standby when the water changing commences. I'm having a hard time trying to get the fish to actually try to adapt to new water changes, and the constant poop is creating a hazard.. 1 glofish has died, 2 black skirts died, 1 algae eater died, 2 honey gourami's died, and something else died, I can't remember.

Please someone help me..

Thanks

 

[Crazyboutfish]

Welcome to fish lore!
In your aqaurium info, it says you have 80 ammonia. I'm not quite sure what that means, but ammonia should be at 0. This could be contributing to yor fish losses.
First of all, let's go through the supplies you need for maintenence.
You need:
gravel vac/siphon
water conditioner (prime is reccomended)
thermometer
bucket
Srubber (optional)
ok, now we'll go through step by step on how to change your water.
First you will turn off you heater and filters. You have to turn them off so you can avoid breaking them or hurting yourself.
Next, you will siphon out 40-50% of the water. You'll want to use your gravel vac, and you will stir up the gravel with it to release the uneaten food and waste and it will be sucked into your siphon. You'll either want to be siphoning the water into a bucket or out the window.
If you'd like, you can scrub off the algae at this time.
Then, you replace the water you took out, with fresh tap water. Before the water goes in your tank, you will want to condition it with a product like prime, to get all the chlorine and other chemicals out. Make sure this water is the same temperature as the old water.
Now you can turn everything back on.
If you are wondering about changing filter media, you only need to do this whn it is falling apart.

Now, there are many things that could be killing your fish. Do you know about the nitrogen cycle? If not, I'd read up on it to make sure you cycled your tank correctly. You will also need a test kit, most people on this site recommend the API master kit. You need to know the ammonia, nitrite, and nitrate readings in your tank at all times. The first thing you should always do if you are losing fish, is test your water.

 

[ooosparkeyooo]

+1 to Crazyboutfish, make sure you get your water tested and buy a API maser test kit if you really wanna keep fish.