When your fish tank rocks are dirty, you ask, what is the best way to clean the fish tank rocks? However, there is no simple answer. Each substrate of rock is different, and it requires a specific cleaning method. When your fish tank gets dirty, you may panic. It is crucial to stay calm and figure out the best way to clean your fish tank. Dirty rocks make a home aquarium look poor and unattractive. However, it is easy to clean!
Why are my Fish Tank Rocks Dirty?
Your fish tank rocks are located at the bottom of your aquarium. Therefore you may think that they are not going to get dirty. However, one day you walk downstairs to your home aquarium to see the tank overrun with a dirty appearance. This leaves you to ask the question, what is the best way to clean fish tank rocks?
The dirty appearance on the rocks of your aquarium is called algae. Algae can be caused by a ton of reasons. Check out our article on algae to help discover how to remove it in your home aquarium. The top reasons for algae in your fish tank is from overfeeding, poor filtration, and too much sunlight! These problems can be fixed!
How to Clean the Rocks
Your home aquarium contains beneficial bacteria. This bacteria should not be removed from your aquarium. If the bacteria were to be removed, the parameters of the fish tank will escalate. However, the rocks should be cleaned properly. Never remove your substrate from the fish tank. The removal of the substrate will cause your aquarium to turn brown, and the fish will stress. However, you need to clean the rocks. To clean the substrate, we recommend using a fish tank vacuum. Listed below are the steps to accurately and safely remove the algae from your freshwater fish tank.
Step 1
Before finding the best way to clean fish tank rocks, make sure to clean the algae off of the plants and decor. When conducting the cleaning process, start from the top of the fish tank and work your way down. This will cause the excess algae to fall to the bottom of the aquarium.
Step 2
After cleaning the decor and plants in your freshwater aquarium, it is time to clean the rocks. Use a water siphon to suck up the rocks to remove excess algae and dirt from the substrate. When doing this step, work your way from the left side of the aquarium to the right. This will cause your aquarium to stay clean during the algae removal process. This technique will also reduce the stress of your fish.
Step 3
After working your way from left to right, your aquarium rocks should now be relatively clean. However, it is important to empty the dirty water. These are known as freshwater water changes! Water changes are crucial for the health of your fish and aquarium. When conducting a water change, take out 20 percent of the water with the siphon. If you take out too much water, the health of the home aquarium may be affected. That is why it is crucial to measure the amount of water during a water change. Place the excess water in a bucket and dump the water down the drain!
Step 4
After removing the water in your aquarium and dumping it, it is time to put more water back in the tank. At this step, your fish tank should be just about half full, depending on the size of your aquarium. Before putting water in, make sure to never use just sink water for the aquarium. If you use sink water, your fish will die. This is a common problem for many beginners in the freshwater aquarium hobby. However, it can simply be avoided! You can use water with the right chemicals! Make sure to check out PRIME to put in the sink water to make it acceptable for home aquariums. However, we recommend using filtered water to avoid any unwanted chemicals in the water.
Put the desired water in a bucket at home and mix the proper water enhancers. Now pour the clean water in your home aquarium carefully to avoid stressing the fish. We recommend placing a plate on the top of the water and the clean water on the plate. This will avoid stressing the fish in your freshwater aquarium. The water will not crash on the substrate, and the tank will look healthy! Make sure that the water that you put in is not too hot or cold. Use a thermometer to measure how hot the water is!
Step 5
After pouring in the new water, your aquarium rocks are now clean. Repeat this process once a month, or when the rocks start to look dirty. We recommend purchasing a cleanup crew to help reduce the dirt on your rocks. The substrate will look as good as new! Our favorite clean up crew member is purchasing a Pleco! These fish can be purchased at just about any local fish store! The price range is only around five to six dollars for a small one. However, they can grow HUGE!
Cleaning Fish Tank Rocks
In conclusion, you now know the best way to clean fish tank rocks! It is important to clean the rocks often. When you clean the substrate, you will be much happier with the overall appearance of the aquarium. When you have friends and family over, they will love the aquarium. If you have any questions, feel free to reach out to us! We want to help with the success of your home aquarium.
