I have had a 35 gallon freshwater tropical aquarium setup for about a year now. I have two sucker fish that take care of the walls and stuff inside the tank but I am having a problem with poop and stuff collecting on the gravel.....is there some sort of a sucker fish that cleans the gravel? I had catfish in my last tank but they grew to be over 12" long and ate all my other fish so I'd rather not go that route.....any suggestions?

 

We had the same problem. I don't know either except for cleaning it monthly with one of these dealy's:

 

is it an algea eater,i think thats what we used to call them,or is that your sucker fish

 

not sure what the red x is that bob posted, but they make suction tubes that will suck up the light stuff but the gravel drops back down. you can siphon it into a bucket and filter the water to put it back, or refill with clean water. i always replaced about 1/4 of the water every other month when i had my 50 gallon, enough to clean it up but not enough to kill off the good bacteria in the filter. i only had a few fish though, 2 oscars and a monster plecostamus to eat the bits of feeders the oscar's dropped.

 

Yeah... I agree with shorty... you have to siphon 10-20% of the water every month or two. it's really easy and you should really only have to spend about an hour doing it....

 

thanks guys....I'll go to the fish store today and tell them I need a red XI mean a gravel syphon thingy

 

You can get them anywhere..... even at The Wal-Mart....

 

Yeah, I don't know where the PIC went!!!

We do it MONTHLY and suck out 75% of the water!!!!

 

how do you make the new water the right temp before putting it back into the tank? I've always had problems with that. I only change water as it evaporates...normally just keep a gallon on the stove so the pilot light will warm it up slightly. Then add the water conditioner and pour it in the tank.

 

With the ULTIMATE GRAVEL VAC(the one we use), you just turn the valve at the faucet to fill the tank once you're down cleaning/draining it. You can feel the tepm of the water BEFORE sending it back to the tank and I just kinda guesstimate the temp.


Description: No more carrying pails of water to and from your aquarium! The Ultimate Gravel Vac™ is a complete clean, drain and fill kit that connects directly to your sink faucet. It allows you to automatically begin siphoning by simply turning on your sink faucet once connected. Next, begin cleaning by inserting the Fish-Saver Cleaning Claw into the aquarium gravel and moving it from side to side or front to rear. In addition, you have complete control of the water flow during cleaning and refilling of your aquarium. By adjusting the water flow during cleaning, you are able to insure that the maximum amount of dirt is removed with the minimum amount of water. The Ultimate Gravel Vac™ Kit comes with either 25’ of hose (# 11570) or 50’ of hose (# 11571).