How to properly clean an aquarium?

The aquarium, soil and decoration for it must be thoroughly washed after purchase. Prepare everything in advance in the bathroom so that it is convenient to turn and rinse the aquarium so that it does not slip out of your hands. Put dry, clean towels nearby, prepare a surface on which you can put the washed aquarium.

The larger and heavier the fish house you bought, the more likely it is that you will have to wash and carry it together, think over this moment in advance.

We wash the new aquarium with hot water with a dishwashing sponge and a special product. At the end of the procedure, rinse everything thoroughly with a shower hose. The primer and decor should be washed with warm water and allowed to dry. If the aquarium is so large that it is not possible to wash it in the bathroom, it is better to leave it at the installation site and wipe it with a special aquarium cleaner or XNUMX% hydrogen peroxide, it does not need to be washed off with water.

To clean the aquarium in which the fish already live, you do not need to move them to another place for a while, for them it will be unnecessary stress. It is also not necessary to remove the soil and completely drain the water. Our task is to maintain hygiene in the existing ecosystem, the environment familiar to your fish.

Scheduled cleaning of the aquarium is best done once a week. It includes cleaning the glass of the aquarium from the inside, siphoning the soil, replacing part of the water with fresh water. The siphon of the soil must be carried out as it gets dirty. Usually no more than once a week.

If there is not enough time to clean the aquarium at all, then you can use special products for aquariums. With their regular use, you can change the water much less frequently, up to 1 time in 5-6 months.

We clean up in a strict sequence:

• We remove one tenth of the water from the aquarium so as not to splash it around. We get the equipment that the aquarium is equipped with. The filter, thermostat, aerator should be properly washed and set aside. We look at whether a haircut is needed for aquarium plants, if necessary, we carry out the appropriate manipulations.

• We clean the walls of the aquarium from the inside with a kitchen sponge: the hard and soft sides of the sponge allow you to remove both light and more noticeable plaque. In specialized stores, it will not be difficult to find magnetic brushes for cleaning aquarium glasses. But when using them, skill is needed, since the slightest grain of sand that falls under such a brush can turn into a scratch on the wall.

• A metal scraper will help you quickly and effectively remove heavy plaque from the inside of the walls of the aquarium. A handy alternative to a scraper is an unnecessary plastic card. If your aquarium is very large, or if you have a herbalist and are afraid of damaging the plants, consider getting a glass cleaner with a long handle and detachable nozzles.

If after cleaning with a sponge in hard-to-reach corners of the aquarium, the surface can be cleaned with a toothbrush with hard bristles. A toothbrush is also suitable for cleaning decorative elements. Some aquarists prefer to clean with a battery-operated electric toothbrush, but if you have a small aquarium, you are unlikely to need an electric toothbrush to clean it.

• Next, siphon soil. If we see settled particles of food that has not been eaten by fish, the remains of fertilizers for plants, then it is necessary to clean the bottom of the aquarium. When choosing a siphon, you need to focus on ensuring that it matches the size of the aquarium. On thematic forums, experienced aquarists often share their impressions of using a particular siphon. Their experience will certainly help you make the right choice.

Soil siphon can be carried out with a vacuum cleaner. It may come in handy if the aquarium is very large, or if you do not want to wet your hands with water once again. In a vacuum cleaner, the key element is the filter mesh, choose it with special care. In any case, when siphoning the soil, look carefully so that fish and other inhabitants of the aquarium do not accidentally get into the tube.

It is time to partially replace the water in the aquarium with fresh water. To do this, it is enough to drain 30% of the aquarium water and carefully pour in fresh water. Be sure to use a water conditioner: with its help, you can instantly remove chlorine and heavy metals, as well as enrich tap water with useful components.

Another option is to prepare the water for the aquarium yourself. Although at the present time, with the availability of air conditioners for water, this is not always advisable. To do this, pour cold tap water into a glass container with a wide neck (a three-liter jar is suitable), cover with gauze and leave for a couple of days. The settled water no longer contains chemical additives that are in tap water and which are very harmful to fish. Bottled water from the store can also be dangerous for fish, it is not suitable for the chemical composition.

At the end of the ritual, we put back the equipment that we have already washed. Sometimes you need to wipe both the inside of the lamps and the lid of the aquarium. Wipe the outside with a clean, dry cloth. If unsightly marks remain on the outside of the glass, they can be removed with a window cleaner.

If an emergency situation arose, for example, the fish fell ill and died, then it is necessary not only to clean the aquarium, but to disinfect it. In this case, you need to use a special tool with disinfectant properties and strictly follow the instructions. All aquarium equipment must be boiled – heat treatment eliminates dangerous bacteria.