For a 10 gallon aquarium, how often do I clean it?

Question

How often should I completely change out the water? Once a month? More? Less? There are 2 goldfish in it. Thanks!

Answer 1

2 goldfish will outgrow a 10-gallon tank in less than six months. That being said, you should never ever completely change out all of the water, as you will destroy any biological filter you have.

Generally, for well-stocked tanks, 20-40% weekly is recommended. However, in your case, you should be doing 20% changes every 3 days to combat ammonia and nitrate levels. (20% is 2 gallons.) Make sure the water you're adding to the tank has been dechlorinated with a good water treatment, and make sure it's roughly the same temperature as the water in the tank (within 4 degrees).

EDIT: People, goldfish are HUGE waste producers. There is no such thing as a small bioload with two of them in a ten-gallon tank. As adults, these two fish should not be put in anything less than a 55-gallon tank by themselves because of their potential size and waste output.

Answer 2

For two goldfish I would trash the 10 gallon and get one that they will be happy in. Common goldfish (the kinds with single tails) need about 20 gallons each and fancy goldfish (the kind with double tails) need about 10 gallons each. Also, you need powerful filtration on a goldfish tank! If you have a 55 gallon tank, you need filtration that is at least 550 gallons per hour. Most filters will be rated right on the box what kind of tank they are for, but that is for tropical that do not put so much of a strain on the bioload. Get yourself a suitable sice tank and a water testing kit. Do some research on the nitrogen cycle and let your test results tell you when to change. Once a tank cycles, you should be able to only do about a 50% water change weekly, providing you have proper filtration and are not overstocked.

Answer 3

I have two "large" goldfish in a 6 gallon tank. One guy I've had for 2 1/2 years the other one for 1 1/2 years. You need to clean once a week. Perhaps you could make it to every 2 weeks - but no longer. You need to wipe down the insides of your tank to eliminate algae and you need to change 25-50% of the water. Don't COMPLETELY change the water, because they need a certain amount of their own bacteria to live on. Get Stress Coat, Stress Zyme and Ammo Lock. You MUST use Ammo Lock or they will die. Ammo Lock neutralizes ammonia which is the biggest killer of fish. Ammonia is caused by fish peeing and pooping all the time. You must be consistent about cleaning. Don't have too many ornaments in the tank either. Your fish need to be comfortable. Until you get comfortable with how to care for the tank you need to conduct ammonia and pH tests every week. Go to the pet store and ask for these testers. Also, be careful about overfeeding. This also puts more toxins in the water. Only put in enough for them to eat in about five minutes. Also if they have those big poop strings floating around the tank, that will look unattractive. You should get yourself a plastic spoon or a syringe/turkey baster of some sort so you can lift that out of there. Always be sure that the materials you use in the tank are ONLY for the tank, and not used for other things. If you follow my advice your tank should look pristeen.

Answer 4

If you change the filters once a month you only have to lower the water level by three gallons and put a fresh three gallons in and then only change it completely about every 6 months. I have 7 aquariums in my house,...Only three up right now 2 55gallon ones and 1 30 gallon one so yes I do know what I am talking about.

Changing too often causes stress and sometimes will kill your fish.

Answer 5

The above advice is good, although I would recommend changing no more than half of the water at one time. Changing too much of the water at once will be stressful for your fish, especially if the new water is not the same temperature as the tank water. Once a month will be fine, especially with such a small bioload in the tank. Putting plants in the tank might help with nutrient levels. If you want to change more than half of the water per month, do water changes every two weeks.

Answer 6

I have had aquariums that I never cleaned. Just changed some of the water. They where covered with algea and the fish loved it but it looked horrible. Clean enough so it looks nice but don't over clean. The fish need the bacteria that lives in the gravel. Change half of the water once a month.

Answer 7

Did you cycle? and a couple of fancy goldfish want 30-40 gallons, and a couple of hardship-free goldfish want one hundred+ gallons. they'd look like only little small goldfish now, yet they get huge. they want double filtration and water transformations a million and must be performed two times a week. both purchase a ideal tank and set it up, or get rid of them.

Answer 8

You should never completely change the water in the tank. I recommend that you replace 10% of the water weekly.

If you don't already have a gravel vacuum you should get one as it makes life much easier for doing water changes.

http://fishgeeks.cheappetstore.com/advanced_search_result.php?keywords=gravel+vacuum

Answer 9

10% water change every 2 weeks. As for cleaning it out I would recommend using a siphon to clean it every month. (Ami knows what she is talking about if you have the time follow her advice)

Answer 10

You should never take all of the water out. Fish tanks have bacteria in it that is good for your fish. Once a month would be fine. When you do clean it, keep 20% of the old water in it to keep the benificial bacteria.