timbruun Posted February 8, 2010 Report Share Posted February 8, 2010 I'm debating on removing all my rockwork in my african tank so I can give it a good cleaning and redo it. I would like to leave the rocks out for a week or so, so I can do a couple water changes after cleaning up the tank also. Will this be too stressful on the fish? Is there a better way to get everything clean? The algae on the back wall seems like its starting to get hard and won't come off easily. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Fishful Thinking Posted February 8, 2010 Report Share Posted February 8, 2010 What kind of fish and how many? You could use a razor blade on the back wall algae. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timbruun Posted February 8, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 8, 2010 Fish are yellow labs, demasoni, leleupi, petricolas. I was thinking of using the razor. Then a couple water changes to make sure it's all gone. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Wingin' It Posted February 8, 2010 Report Share Posted February 8, 2010 Nerite snails do a wonderful job of ridding tanks of that hard green algae. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timbruun Posted February 8, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 8, 2010 I tried snails in there. Not Nerites but I had ramshorns, mts and trapdoor. As far as I can see the mts and ramshorn and all eaten and the trapdoor I took out because it was getting picked on too much. Plus if I'm taking all the rockwork out anyways, the glass is easy to clean. The snails wont' get the rockwork that well. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
gobies et al Posted February 8, 2010 Report Share Posted February 8, 2010 I can see the advantages to removing the rocks to facilitate cleaning. I would be inclined to lift them out and place them in a bucket of tank water, keeping them wet, clean, and put the rocks back in until the next cleaning. This way, you would not be losing all the good bacteria on them. Taking them out and leaving them out could precipitate a mini cycle. Just a thought. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timbruun Posted February 8, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 8, 2010 What are the odds of causing a mini cycle? I was thinking of cleaning with hot water to make it easier. I'm not sure if I even have a pail/tub big enough that doesn't leak to hold all the rocks. Not including the bathtub which I'm not going to use. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BettaFishMommy Posted February 9, 2010 Report Share Posted February 9, 2010 i don't think the rockwork alone would have enough of a colony of bacteria on it to start a mini cycle if that bacteria were to be scrubbed off/dried. most of the bacteria would be in your filter media and in your sand/gravel. My main concern would be the amount of stress and aggression in the tank while the rockwork was out, since there would be no hidey holes / rest spots. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timbruun Posted February 9, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2010 That's what I was wondering. Will there be alot of aggression? Will it be ok for a few days? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkangel Posted February 9, 2010 Report Share Posted February 9, 2010 Get yourself a veggie scrub brush or some coarse scotchbrite pads. Takes all the crap off of the rocks pretty quick. A crest spinbrush works wonders in all the little holes and cracks that are on the rocks. With a veggie scrub brush and spinbrush you can do it rite inside the tank and let the filter pick up whatever algae the fish leave behind. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timbruun Posted February 9, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2010 Will doing it right in the tank not spread the algae more? I have too many rocks to do it in the tank anyways. They are stacked quite a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
darkangel Posted February 9, 2010 Report Share Posted February 9, 2010 Unless they are really badly covered with algae I would'nt even worry about cleaning them. Throw a couple bristlenose plecos in the tank and let them munch on the rocks. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timbruun Posted February 9, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2010 Had a couple in there.. The africans were way to hard on them. I've got some otos in there now but they get picked on a bit too. And they don't seem to be eating it that fast. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
BettaFishMommy Posted February 9, 2010 Report Share Posted February 9, 2010 IMO, you want to find out the source of the algae and work on the problem that way, instead of adding critters to keep it cleaned up. maybe your lights are on too long, direct sunlight on the tank, too many phosphates in the water, erratic water change schedule...... all possible factors in the invasion of the algae. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
timbruun Posted February 9, 2010 Author Report Share Posted February 9, 2010 I'm avoiding the adding critters. The algae isn't really getting worse but it won't clean itself off the rocks is my problem. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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