Cleaning fish aquarium?

Question

I am cleaning my fish aquarium out and wanted to know where do I put my fish I need to take them out because the owner of the house just gave me this aquarium and it's really nasty and I have to clean everything out it's totally dark and green very nasty plus a fish just died. So can I use tap water if I don't have a filter and do I need to keep some of the water to put the fish in or what?

I have alot of rocks in it and little decorations that are green do I keep those cuz they are just covered with too much algae just throw those away or what and keep the rocks thanks for any answers.

Answer 1

This may sound a little odd, but in some ways, your tank has a lot of healthy things going for it. There is bacteria that grows in the gravel and the filter that is very good and necessary for the health of the tank. The algae in controlled amounts, can also be good for the tank. You don't want to lose these things in your cleaning process. Make sure you go do your shopping for supplies before you take the fish out of the water.
1. Take out some of the old water in the tank and put the fish in that water. Take a cup from time to time and scoop up some of the water and pour it back in the container the fish are in like a waterfall. This adds oxygen to the water. Save half of the old water. This is important. Then begin cleaning the tank.
2. Leave a little of the old water in the bottom of the tank and use that water to wipe everything down. Don't scrub the tank squeaky clean. Just wipe the walls down well with a scrubber made for aquariums.
3. Don't use a sponge that you have used with soap. Do not use soap or any chemical cleaner on anything. Don't rinse anything in tap water.
4. Don't take out the gravel and clean that completely clean. You will remove all of the beneficial bacteria that is growing in the gravel. Just siphon the gunk out of the gravel. If you don't have a store bought siphon or vacuum, a turkey baster works great.
5. Use only your fingers to rub off the algae on the decorations. It sounds odd, but leaving a little algae in the tank will slow down the process of new growth.
6. Once you've cleaned everything with the tank water, remove as much of that old water as you can from the tank and throw it away.
7. You mentioned that you don't have a filter. All fish need filtration, not only to remove harmful things from the water, but also to provide oxygen. You need to get as good a filter as you can afford. It's not necessarily the cost that makes it good, but how much water it pumps and what kind of filtration it provides. A good filter is important.
8. Install the filter in the tank, but don't plug it in yet. Get the media in the filter good and wet with some of the old water.
8. Add new tap water treated with Amquel to the tank. Pour in the old water that you saved. Plug in the filter and make sure that it's pumping water.
9. If these are tropical fish, they need to have heated water. You need to get a heater also if you don't have one. You must make sure that the new water matches the temperature of the old water or the fish will go into shock and could die when you add them to the tank. If they're goldfish, you don't need a heater, but the new water you add should match the temperature of the old water, at least by touch.
10. Once you have the water at the correct temperature, you can add the fish.
11. Don't worry if the old water makes the tank look a little "off" and still dirty. You can deal with that at your next water change. The important thing is that you kept some of that beneficial bacteria.
12. Do weekly water changes after this of about 25%. Get a master test kit and regularly test your water so you can be sure that you are maintaining good water quality.
Good luck and have fun with your new tank!

Answer 2

How horrible. I agree with chelsi you SHOULD slap the owner. As for cleaning Put some tank water in a bucket and put your fish in the bucket. Also put the heater in there too cuz it seems your gonna have to do this for about a couple hours, or so maybe even more. Start by cleaning out all the water out of there. and take all the rocks decorations and plants and scrub them till tey shine (not really but you get what I mean) just so that there's no more algae. As for the rocks you should replace them cuz they're going to be a pain unless you want to put it the effort. use an algae brush to scrape off all the from the walls of the glass. DO NOT USE CLOROX OR ANY OTHER HOUSEHOLD CHEMICAL AS THIS CAN LEAVE RESIDUE AND KILL YOUR FISH so please don't use it. All you need to do is get some new gravel, some water conditioner, and food. and you're set to go. Good luck and i hope you're a better owner than the previous ones. Hope it helps.

Answer 3

You can put the fish in a large bowl or glass (depending on how big they are). You'll want to keep them in some of the same water they are already in otherwise you will shock them and they might die. Once you take the fish out, clean out the fish tank. Do not use any bleach or cleaners. I wouldn't even use soap unless you are positive you can get it all out of the aquarium. Normally if you just use hot water, it works fine. After the tank is clean, fill it back up with water. You can use tap water, but you will need to let the water sit for 24 hours so that any chlorine, etc. evaporates out of the water before you put the fish in...or again...they will die. Or, you can buy some stuff in the fish section at Wal-Mart, or wherever, that you put a couple of drops in the tank and it purifies the water so you can put the fish back in right away. You do, however, need to make sure the water is room temperature before you put the fish in because that will also shock them.

Answer 4

keep some of your water that your fish are currently in, put them in a new clean bucket, or a large clean bowl. (rinse it good to make sure no soap residue. Clean new tank out, (gravel is cheap enough then to try to clean all algae off the little pieces. scrape sides well and wash with hot water.
You can use tap water as long as you have a dechlorinator, and know what the ph is coming out of the tap. Do you have a ph test kit? Set up clean tank, adjust the temp (78ish) and ph 7.0. Then take a cup of the water from new tank, and add it to your bucket/bowl to adjust temp slowly so you dont stress out the fish too much. Just add a cup at a time over a 15 minute period, then put them into the new tank. You need to have a filter on the tank, as well as an air pump and heater. You can purchase these right at walmart if you cant afford a higher brand one from a petstore.
Hope it cleans easily for you. Have fun

Answer 5

You take the fish out, and put them in a container with some of the water from the fishtank. Be careful to keep the container covered if it is small, they will jump out. You don't want to keep them in there too long, the water will get cold, and they won't have enough air. Make sure you have drops to treat the water for chlorine etc available, you can get it from the pet store.
Then you clean everything, the tank the gravel, plants, everything from the tank. Fill it, and start the heater as soon as possible, as soon as there is enough water in the tank to cover the heater. You can heat some of the water to bring the temp up quicker, don't use hot water from the tap, the water heater is full of minerals and crap. Put the drops in, follow the instructions on the drops, then add the fish.

Answer 6

I have a 25 gallon and a 55 gallon fish tank and when I clean them I get a bucket and fill it with some of the water from the tank. Put your fish in it and then dump the rest out. I soak my rocks and deccorations in hot bleach water to get them clean. Just make sure that you rinse them really well. When I am ready to fill the tank back up, I use tap water. Try and make sure that it is the same temp that it was when you started. When you are ready to put the fish in I catch mine in a net and then place them into the clean water. I also test the PH of the water.

Answer 7

Don't take your fish out the tank - it will stress them out (physcially and mentally). When you want to change your water - take some tap water in a bucket and add ur fav chlorine remover (tetra makes a nice one) - let it sit for an hour. Siphon out about 30% of the water and replace it with your prepared water. Rinse out tank ornaments and replace - don't use soap! Repeat another 30% in a week and then 30% more a week after - its a little bit of a hassle, but puts the least stress on your fish. changing all your water at once will eliminate all your bacteria and throw your nitro cycle out of balance. Good luck

Answer 8

You need 2 slap the owner, this is a disgrace. No fish should be treated this way. Do'nt use tap water. get some water drops to purify and try and get a filter. UGHHHHH..DISGUSTING!

Answer 9

dont do anything just go to petsmart and get a pleco they clean up really fast!

Answer 10

You don't want to keep the rocks them you can get at any stores if he had fish that just die you might want to clean it real well because it could cause your fish to die. just clean it with vinegar really good