when do i clean my freshwater fish tank and how?

Question

2 weeks ago i bought and setup my 20 gallon freshwater fish tank. That monday i bought 3 fish 2 i know for sure are mollies.The next day i notice 9 or 11 baby fishes swimming around the tank (petsmart didn't tell me mollies are livebearing fish,least i got my money worths right). But now my fish tank stinks and the water is sorta cloudy. Also it's so pink fuzzy stuff on the rocks. If anybody could help please do so!

Answer 1

Please, don't listen to somebody who changes his water every six months and relies on chemicals to make up for laziness.

Magic man is absolutely right. You should do partial water changes, leaving the fish where they are. You should vacuum the gravel at the same time to keep too much waste from building up.

You must be careful not to overfeed. This is the most common reason for stinky and cloudy tanks. Fish don't need much food and you do not need to stuff them to the gills at every feeding - it only creates waste. Anything they don't eat should be syphoned out right away or the leftovers cause problems like you are going through.

I also agree with the theory of mystical star above - you can't have a fishes water too clean. Daily water changes are excessive and can turn the hobby into a chore, but I should hope a persons fish are worth weekly maintenance. A gravel vacuum, water change, perhaps the scraping of algae off the tank walls, won't take you more then 20-30 minutes each week.

SInce your tank was only set up 2 weeks ago, it's still in its newest stages and not yet cycled. Water changes will additionally keep toxins lower and keep your fish from getting ill or dying.

Again though, be very careful with feeding. Once, twice, three times per day is fine, but feed them only what they will consume in about 2 minutes, TOTAL. SO if you feed them twice, try for just a minute. This by no means a rule of course - any advice should be taken only with common sense.

And do yourself and the fish a favour and don't add anything besides dechlorinator to the water, and in the case of mollies, some salt. Anything else complicates the issue and increases the chances of further problems. Water clarifying chemicals, for instance, are a good way to put a band-aid on a problem instead of actually figuring out what's wrong and properly fixing it.

Answer 2

Really depends on how many fish and what kind. As some are dirtier then others. In my mollies tank I do a 25% water change daily. There is a saying I use.....the fresher the water the happier the fish. I do a complete tank changes once in awhile but not much. If you do this do not wash the orniaments and sponge and charcoal. They need the bacteria. This way you don't end up with new tank syndrome. That never ending cloud!!!

I find when I change a bit of water a day that they breed better and have their fry easier.

Basically if I see a cloud starting I do the water change according to the cloud in the tank. If the tank gets really cloudy their is a major issue..Like a dead fish...maybe you need a new sponge. Even if you buy gravel and you happen to pick up snails in your tank. The snails can cause a cloud.

Start getting in the habit of smelling your water daily b4 feeding. You will learn that there is something wrong if you notice a different odor.

I have noticed that when my mollies are ready to drop their fry that a little cloud happens as well.

Basically it is trial and error. I have brought many fish back to health by knowing my tank water and what to do!!

I use the siphon to suck up the fry. It works well..

Good luck!

Answer 3

DO NOT remove the fish and DO NOT dump all the water... that would be a big mistake. Extremely poor advice, that will badly damage the fishes environment and probably cause the deaths of the fish.

You need a little piece of equipment called a gravel siphon. This is available from any fish store and is quite inexpensive. You will use it to clean the gravel as you remove about 25% of the water and then replace that water with fresh, dechlorinated tap water. Do this once a week and the tank will stay clear and clean.

Replace the cartridge in your filter every other week as well.

The pink fuzzy stuff you see is fungus growing on uneaten food. The best way to prevent this is to be very careful not to feed the fish more than they can eat in 2-3 minutes at each feeding. Siphon any you see out when you clean the gravel.

That's really all there is to it!

Hope that helps and if I can help further feel free to email me.

MM

Answer 4

How big will this tank be? For a starter, 10-20 gallons should be fine. To keep your tank clean, you need to siphon (gravel vac) your gravel (or sand, whichever you prefer), occasionally rinse your decorations and fake/real plants, get an algae pad and scrape the algae off the glass, add declorinated water. If you do not have declorinated water, set a bucket of water out for 24hrs to declorinate it, or you could add a water condition and add a bit of aquarium salt to help reduce stress. Let your tank cycle for at least 24hrs or if you are too excited, get zebra danios to cycle your tank. When danios sre actively swimming, that means everything is good. You should also perform routine water/equipment checks to make sure everything is functioning properly. Any scavenger fish wil help keep your tank clean, such as cory cats or a pleco.

Answer 5

I would not recommend doing a waterchange right now since you have fry in your tank

Get yoursef an amonia test kit, and if you amonia is to high you can get the amonia decreaser and use it as directed.

Regards your water being cloudy, you can use a "Water Clarifier", put it in as directed and your water will clear up after about 24 hours.
If you want to do a waterchange just get a Gravel siphon from Petsmart, it is easy to use and defiantely works

I have'nt done any waterchanges on my tank since about 6 months, the only thing I do is to exchange the carbon filter once a month, putting in "Easy Balance" once every other week as directed and filling up my tank with fresh water once a month as well
My tank doesn't smell, is clear and my fish are happy and healthy
As far as your fry, put them into a plastic breeder if you don't have any plants in your tank for them to hide and feed them with "First Bites"

Answer 6

ugh -- all these people contradict eachother!

i would follow magicmans advice -- siphons do work!

in addition because its a new tank you want to do about 10% water changes with gravel vacuums every day or two until it doesn't smell anymore.

then do 10% every other day for the rest of the month. it sounds like more work than it is -- really its less than 30 minutes -- shorter when you get used to it.

once your tank is established 20-25% a week is all you have to do.

Answer 7

put all the fish in a cup or tupperware, then take the tank outside and dump out ALL the water. make sure u wash the decor in the tank with WARM water, no soap, it leavs a sticky residue. then put it all back in, then fil it with bottled water, and put the fish back in it, and ur done! )i have lotsa fish too, so i know what im taling about!)

Answer 8

siphons DONT work. and i have mollies and i do full water changes once a month and they always do fine, so just make sure the adults are separated from the babies(so the mommies dont eat em!)and you should be fine(just separate during cleaning time)