One of the most important aspects of animal husbandry for fish hobbyists is to keep their pets environment clean, healthy and happy. The tank should be maintained as a natural environment. However more fish are killed through poor cleaning procedures than by neglect.

Time for Cleaning .

Due to the remaining of the fish foods in the tank the water smells sour and acidic and it becomes dirty. This is the stuff which is turning the ornaments and the side of the tank brown and takes up all the oxygen in your tank water as well. In this situation additional aeration of the water will not be sufficient. This is the time to clean your tank.

The buckets, scratchy cloths, nets, should be cleaned and only used specifically for your fish. They should not have been near any bleach or detergents. So dont use a bucket which has been used to bleach clothes.

Sterilizing the equipments .

. Make a very strong solution of salt water and soak the buckets, etc in it after each use.

. Take a bucket of water from your tank and net your fish into it, so that their body temperature will not be affected by a strong temperature difference in the water.

. To this water add a spoon or so of sea salt  dessertspoon for preference, per bucket. This cleans them of parasites and any fungal spores and infections. The less you handle them physically the less chance they will get fungal infections, as the protective sheath of mucus will not be disturbed.

. Now take a piece of rubber tubing and drain off the tank water into another bucket and tip it away. You should drain off by sucking into the tube until the water touches your lips. The bucket should be below the tank so the water flows freely. Do this until the tank is empty.

. Then rinse the ornaments under a running tap and take a bucket of salt water and put the ornaments in to it. Also rinse any plants, if they can be disturbed. If you have plants well rooted in the gravel, you will have to flush the tank with clean water and keep draining off it out until it is clean.

. Remember that the plants need the slime as food, so it is a case of care and balance. You will not be able to remove the bottom filter if the plants are really well established, but take the air line and push the air underneath to flush out the bottom filter soil as you siphon.

. Salt water will not damage your plants in the way you are using it here, as sterilant. The filters should be removed, and all that black slime underneath the filter, removed.

. Generally a good rinse underneath a running tap is a good enough clean, but they too can be soaked in salt water. Also treat air lines, air stones, and pumps and tank heaters. The gravel should be rinsed off until the water runs clear, and it too left in salt water soak. Scrub around the walls and base of the tank with the scratchy cloth and with a level of salt water in the bottom of the tank, to remove the last of the soiling. Empty the tank and rinse with clean water to make the tank sparkling.

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