cleaning fishtank rocks...?

Question

I have been trying to clean my rocks for a really long time but they won't get clean! They still have a bunch of fish poop in them. I can't figure out how to do it and the instructions that came with the tank didnt say anything about cleaning the rocks even though it came with them and tells you how to clean everything else, including the plants! Can you help me get the poop out of the rocks? I'm planning on getting a new fish soon because my other died a few months ago so I want really clean rocks! Thanks!

Also, what are some fish that can live in pretty cold water. I have a small tank big enough for one fish, maybe 2 small ones. I keep it in my basement and its cold. I think thats part of the reason why my last one died. I don't have a heater I dont think one would fit in my tank. Do you know of any fish that can survive in somewhat cold water?

Answer 1

Use a gravel vac if the rocks are still in the tank. You can get a cheap one at almost any petstore.

If you took the tank apart already then you can boil them. Just put them in a big pot add water and boil. If you don't have a big enough pot you can do some at a time. Or you can bake them.

If your fish died from a parasite then I would either boil or bake to make sure the parasites are gone. Make sure you still get a gravel vac though so you can clean the rocks after you have the new fish in the tank.

What size is the tank? Goldfish are cold water fish but they need a minimum of 10 gallons each. Heaters are cheap and they make some for tanks as small as 2.5 gallons, maybe even smaller if you look around. If you can go buy one of them then you will have a lot more options.

Answer 2

If you are talking about large decorative rocks you can use an old toothbrush.
If you are talking about your gravel, you can purchase a gravel vac.
it is just a flexible tube used to siphon the water out of your tank during water changes and has an extention that is wider at the end for sucking the waste out.
There is also a battery powered one that you can get if you dont want to siphon out the water.
Or you can put the gravel in a colender or strainer and try to rinse it out that way.
at one time i had to do this and i put the gravel in a large bucket out on the front lawn and kept stiring up the waste and empting it out it took about 5 times to get all the waste out.

If your tank is very small you can always just throw out the gravel and buy new.

Cold water? Goldfish are the only fish that i know will tolerate cold water. but why cant you get a heater? they come in many sizes and wattages.

if you are starting over setting up the tank please read the information at the site i have attached.
Very small tanks (small enough for 1 or 2 fish ) should not be used by novices because you will need to do water changes almost daily. a habit that is difficult to form.
If your tank is that small, i would only have a betta in there and they require warm water 74-82 degrees fahrenhite

Answer 3

To clean the rocks just put them in a strainer/colander and rinse them out. If the rocks are really fine and might fall through use a strip of cheesecloth on the strainer/colander. As for the cold water fish part, you could get a goldfish which are hardy and cold water fish. A Betta could probably survive to as long as the water is ranging from 70 to 80 degrees. Good Luck!! :0)

Answer 4

NEVER USE SOAP phosphates in soap are very difficult to remove from the gigantic surface area of the gravel, and it causes all kinds of health problems for even the most hardy fish species, problems including (but not limited to) bent spine, fungal infections,hole in the side disease, and other ulcerations!

Nunya has it right, boil the gravel to kill the parasites! also a siphon can be purchased very cheaply at any pet store that sells fish. (Siphon is the same as a gravel vac) When you cycle the tank to prepare it for your next fish, be sure to wait until the cloudy water settles in clear, You can jumpstart the tank with a little bit of eco-start or live benificial bacteria culture (this helps break down the ammonia & nitirites in the tank) make sure that you remove the chlorine from the water with a de-chlorinating solution, then add your fish, goldfish are tolerant to the cold, in fact they thrive in water temp' between 55 & 70 degrees F. Goldfish need at least 10 gallons of water each. (even tiny feeders) I dont know the exact size of your tank, but if it is smaller than ten gallons, you should not get a gold fish. If it is under ten gallons you could buy a small heater with a thermostat, and get a beautiful betta, or a few neon tetras (one inch of fish per gallon of water max) If you are dead set on not having a heater, small loaches will thrive in a smaller tank in cold water, you could add a snail, and a freshwater clam, maybe even a crawfish, or some fairy shrimp, most of that will have to be gatherd from the wild, as they are not commonly sold in pet shops... you could try bait shops as well, for live minnows or smelt...also hardy to cold water.

Answer 5

I'm assuming youre talking abou the gravel in your tank...you need to get gravel vacccum they can be found in any pet store and are essential to maintaining your tank. Do not take the gravel out and rinse it off it will just disrupt you tank terribly (there is a biological filtration system that develops in tanks as the become established. This typically takes roughly a month) this is especially important if you plan on adding new fish (also do not drain your tank). . IMO you should vaccum your gravel weekly draining about 20% of the water out of your tank and replacing it with new water. This is necessary to keep your fish alive.

Answer 6

I imagine you could boil some water, add some powdered arm and hammer super washing power, and then pour the boiling water over the rocks in a bucket... Shake it around, rinse, repeat.

Answer 7

I used to scoop them (or dump) them all out into a strainer/ colander and the run them under high pressure hot water, shifting them as I go. That use to clean them very effectively.

Answer 8

soak in disinfectant and warm water, rinse really well and dry in sunshine...snails or algae eaters will also clean after you get new fish