How to clean the aquarium at home correctly and how often: external filter, soil, sand, bottom and walls from plaque

Why and how often should you clean your aquarium?

Water can turn green due to water pollution or insufficient lighting.

Cleaning of aquariums is carried out in the case when the aquatic environment of the tank is clearly polluted. This takes into account not only external pollution (green deposits on the walls, dirt floating up from the bottom), but also poor test results.

You need to change the water if:

• nitrogen limit exceeded;
• the walls are covered with a green coating;
• when the inhabitants of the aquarium move, a dark trail remains behind them;
• fish get sick, move little or almost never come out of their hiding place.

Also, a water change is carried out in cases where the filter is clogged. A blockage in this device may indicate increased hardness of the water, which is bad for aquatic organisms. In addition, with a broken filter, the aquarium will quickly become unusable, and its inhabitants will die.

Experts recommend changing the water in the aquarium and cleaning the walls if one of the pets died in the aquatic environment. Timely fluid replacement will help stop the infection, if any.

It is recommended to clean the tank 1 or 2 times a week.. When choosing an individual cleaning frequency, it is important to consider how quickly your aquarium gets dirty, what size it is and whether it has a cleaning filter.

Preparing for cleaning

Turn off all electrical appliances before cleaning.. Only the upper lamps are left on, which help to see all the details of filling the container, and external filters.

If the water changes completely in the aquarium, all large objects are pulled out of it: shelters, snags, plants.

The extraction of plants must be treated with extreme caution. If you have real algae growing in your aquarium, they need to be shortened periodically so that they do not grow too much. Before draining the water, it is recommended to cut off excess branches and leaves, especially those that are covered with green bloom or silt.

If you want to remove a plant, simply uproot it. If not, there are two options:

1. Leave the plant at the bottom, and do not pour out the water from the container to the end. You can use a siphon to drain some of the liquid, leaving the necessary minimum that will keep the plants afloat.
2. Together with a part of the soil (it is convenient if the plant was purchased in a pot), carefully pull out the culture and temporarily place it in another aquatic environment while the aquariums are being cleaned. As a rule, a full drain of water is carried out only during general cleaning, which occurs much less often than usual.

And, of course, the inhabitants of the aquarium should be placed either in water-filled bags or in a temporary aquarium.

Cutting the leaves and stems of the plant in aquariums where shrimp live is not recommended. Plant sap, which is released at the same time, adversely affects the state of marine organisms. If it is necessary to reduce the area replaced by the plant, you need to pull it out and only then cut it.

After the items are pulled out, and the plants are processed, you should start processing the water and walls.

Necessary equipment

The scraper is the easiest aquarium cleaning tool to use.

It will be difficult to clean the aquarium without special tools. You can, of course, use ordinary cleaning tools (felt cloths, etc.), but they are only suitable if the water is completely drained from the container.

It is better if the owner prepares the necessary tools before starting the procedures.

Scrapers are used to clean the walls. Their edge can be made of metal or a softer material. Metal scrapers are not suitable for plexiglass aquariums: this material scratches easily. If your container is fragile, use a magnetic scraper. It is small in size and is controlled by a magnet that is attached to the outside of the aquarium. Such a tool is very convenient for cleaning the open surfaces of the aquarium and allows you not to wet your hands. But it is difficult for them to manage in places with bends of the walls. Scrapers are bought in pet stores.

If it is not possible to purchase scrapers, use an ordinary household washcloth (fresh, without traces of detergents).

To remove plaque from the scenery, a stiff brush is used, the bristles of which will not leave scratches on the clay surface. It is also better to buy it in a specialized store.

A siphon with a pear is indispensable when it is necessary to pump out water

A siphon with a pear or a simple hollow hose is used to pump out water. The siphon is more convenient to use, helps to quickly remove contaminated water layers, but it may seem to some that it is not worth spending money on it.

To competently catch fish and other aquatic life, a small fish net is used. Usually all owners of aquariums have it from the first days of fish care.

Finally, in order to correctly clean the filtering parts of the pump filter, you can use a cotton swab and a small watering can, with which the mesh or sponge inside the device will be washed. To pour water, you also need a watering can, bucket or hose. The exact tool is selected depending on the volume of the container.

Cleaning the bottom of the aquarium and decorations

To clean the bottom of the aquarium or decorations, you will need a siphon or hose

To clean the bottom of the aquarium, you must use a siphon or hose. During general cleaning, it is possible to completely replace the underlying material, but the algorithm of actions for regular small cleaning will be analyzed below.

When all the inhabitants and decorations are removed, it is necessary to stir up the soil or sand – walk with your hand or the tip of a hose and raise the sediment into the water. As soon as obvious dirt rises, it must be removed with a siphon or hose. To do this, the hose is directed to the point of accumulation of sediment. This procedure is enough to remove minor contaminants.

Decorations are cleaned outside the aquarium. Place the item under a gentle stream of warm water and use a brush to remove the buildup. If the surface of the decoration is flat, you can use a scraper or a porous sponge. Under no circumstances should detergents be used for cleaning. If it is necessary to reduce the concentration of algae, special cleaning solutions and tablets are used, but not standard cleaning products.

Wall cleaning from plaque

Cleaning the walls with a sponge will help save the glass

Take a special scraper or sponge. Temporarily turn off the pump filter and remove deposits from the walls, no matter in what order – from above or below. Although, if you are using a magnetic scraper, it is more convenient to start from the bottom of the walls. Then the removed algae with the help of a scraper will be lifted up, and they can be completely removed by taking them out together with the scraper.

But most often, fine silt and green algae are not removed along with the tool, but begin to flow into the aquarium water. This is no reason to panic. All algae particles that are in the water during the cleaning of the walls will be removed using a siphon. Even if they sink to the bottom, you can easily lift them back by walking over the sand or rocks with a hose.

Cleaning the internal and external filters

Water filters are cleaned with extra care. The cleaning technique depends on what material is used inside the unit to purify the water.

If a sponge with aquatic microorganisms is inserted as a filter element, it must be cleaned with extreme caution. The porous material is washed not with running water, but with the liquid that was pumped out of the aquarium (use cleaner water bodies, not those that contain sediment).

If the material in the filter is not natural and does not participate in the creation of the microclimate of the aquatic environment, then you can rinse the filter element under running water. Ordinary sponges without microorganisms, nets and ceramic balls are easily washed. All of the items listed can be replaced with new ones if cleaning does not bring good results.

The filter is cleaned and replaced last, when all other parts of the aquarium have been cleaned.

Filling with clean water

Before filling, water must be insisted for 2-3 days

After all the internal elements of the aquarium are cleaned of plaque, you can pour water. To do this, use a watering can or hose. The water that is poured into the tank must be filtered, but not boiled..

In the first few minutes after pouring water, sediment will rise. It is necessary to wait until it settles to the bottom of the aquarium. Then you will notice how much cleaner the container has become.

You can put the fish in the aquarium no earlier than a few hours after cleaning. If the cleansing was general, you will even have to wait a few days: the old microclimate, comfortable for the fish, should be created in the tank. Particular care should be taken to populate a cleaned aquarium with shrimp and tropical fish.

Cleaning without draining water

It is possible to carry out purification of the aquatic environment without draining the liquid. To do this, you need to remove fish and snails from the water and turn on the pump filter at full power. Some of the water will still have to be pumped out with a siphon in order to remove the stirred up liquid with particles of silt and algae. But during the removal of sediment, less than a third of the liquid will have to be pumped out.

Otherwise, the process of cleaning an aquarium without draining the water is exactly the same as with draining.

Helper fish and aquarium care tips

Crossoheilus is a natural aquarium cleaner from algae.

If your aquarium gets dirty too quickly, get special cultures that clean up the aquatic environment. Cleaner fish (such as crossocheilus) or snails, which are sold in many stores, are suitable.

When buying, be sure to consider the compatibility of the fish you have looked at with the ones you already have. If your aquarium contains predatory fish, such as catfish, you can not buy cleaners and snails. They will just get eaten.

To improve the situation in the aquatic environment and reduce the frequency of cleaning without the use of special cultures, cleaning preparations can be purchased. They are sold in the form of solutions or tablets. It is more convenient to use solutions: they are packaged in packs of 500 ml, and only a few milliliters are needed for a one-time destruction of green algae. Most cleaning solutions are safe for fish.

Be sure to use a filter that will pump water and remove mechanical impurities and sediment from the water. In aquariums without filtering devices, water becomes contaminated 3-4 times faster. The more expensive and larger the filter, the better the condition of the water in the tank. It makes sense to purchase an expensive aquarium cleaning system in order to save time on cleaning the aquatic environment. Filter cassettes or other material inside them must be constantly changed. The criterion for replacing the cassette is that the filter has become worse to pass water.

Please note that the rate of water pollution also depends on the number of inhabitants of the aquarium. If there are too many, cleaning will have to be done 2 times a week. In order to less frequently resort to purification of the aquatic environment, it makes sense to resettle some of the inhabitants into another container or purchase an aquarium of a larger volume and with a more powerful filter that will compensate for the excess number of inhabitants.

Plaque on the walls can be removed not only during general cleaning. If you have a magnetic scraper, simply place it on the wall of the aquarium and keep it there at all times. At any time you need, you can remove excess dirt by lifting the scraper from the bottom to the surface and then cleaning its plane from the removed plaque.

Video: Do-it-yourself aquarium cleaning

Cleaning the aquarium is a mandatory procedure that should be carried out at least 1-2 times a month. Cleaning the tank allows you to improve the living conditions of the fish and make your home decoration even more attractive. To make cleaning faster and more efficient, it is recommended to use special cleaning agents and formulations designed exclusively for the aquatic environment.