How to Clean a Fish Tank? (DIY)

Fish can be a great living addition to the home and office. They are easy to look after, relaxing to see, and kids love them. Regular checking is one of the most important things of retaining a good water quality. For tanks having plant, weekly checking is quite essential to remove algae out. In a freshwater aquarium having only fish, water factors should be checked on the weekly basis with test kits. Regardless of the test results, the fish tank with a good purification system should have a monthly water check at the minimum, to lower down the quantity of nitrates in the water. Read the article below, to know the steps to clean a fish tank.

Before you start cleaning your fish tank, you must know about the kind of fish you have and their requirements. You should have been given some directions when you bought your fish, on how frequently you have to clean a fish tank. All these small things plays an important role to clean a fish tank.

Clean a Fish Tank

Steps to Clean a Fish Tank

Steps to Follow:

  • Unplug the purifier or pumping machine of the fish tank.
  • Take out any decorations and artificial plants, and rub all sides of the fish tank with an algae scrubber.
  • Take out the pump or filter out of the fish tank. Move all the decorations and artificial plants, to a container or tub.
  • Manually clean the decorations, filter and artificial plants with a scrubber in a soft way. During this time, any waste that was cleaned up will settle down in the tank.
  • Connect a pebble cleaner. This will get attached to an outlet, or use a manual sucker used with a bucket to gather the water. Begin the manual sucker and push the pebble cleaner into the pebble all the way to the end, and wait there as all the waste will rise into the manual sucker.
  • Repeat it until the water begins to clear, then either close the valve or squeeze the tubing to let the pebbles fall back down.
  • Lift the pebble cleaning tube out of the pebble and place it back down close to the last part you have just cleaned.
  • Now, it is the time to take a break when you have removed around thirty percent of the water. If some waste is still present in the pebbles, you can repeat the same process where you have stopped with the next water change.
  • Look at the temperature reading in the fish tank, then go to the tub and maintain the same water temperature like in the fish tank.
  • It is a very crucial step. Adding water of a changed temperature can unnecessarily hassle the fish, making them more vulnerable to diseases such as itch.
  • Flip the tap pump to drop water into the fish tank, or fill a tub and drop the water back into the tank to new levels. If using a tap pump, add some de-chlorinator while the tank is filling if you have chlorine in your tap water. If you are using a tub, add the de-chlorinator to the water before dropping it into the fish tank.
  • Exchange your decorations, artificial plants and reconnect the filter.
  • Plug in the water heater and resume the pump.

Additional Information to Clean a Fish Tank:

It is very important to keeping the tank clean when it comes to maintain the good health of your fish. Make sure you are cleaning your fish tank at least once every alternative week. Luckily, if you overlook to clean your fish tank, you’ll have a very clear reminder that green algae, tinted and murky water. That is the biggest sign of your negligence and your fish tank is quite late for a clean.