how do you clean 150 gallon fish tanks?
by Aquaboy on Wednesday, April 21st, 2010 | 6 Comments
i have been thinking of buying a tank at petsmart its 150 gallons but i’ve been wondering how would you clean it what would be the best thing to do? Would i need a undergravel filter?what do i need any ideas?
The tank at petsmart comes with a lot of stuff. Filter,heater,net,some plants anda rock etc..
i know the tank is deep and my hand is not…
i dont want to be swimming with the fish to clean the tank…lol
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If you get a pre-drilled tank, then you will need the plumbing kit and the sump, plus a submersable pump rated for 1200 gph. If you get a standard tank, I would recommend getting two of the biggest, most powerful canisters you can afford. Do not waste your time with an undergravel kit. Canisters are much more versitile. I like the Rena XP canisters. They are midlevel in price, very easy to assemble and prime, and they are reliable. You would want to buy a python kit or make your own. I use a siphon with a hose that is long enough to go out my front door and into my shrubs.
About once a month you take %25 of the water out and replace it with clean and there are things called aquarium vacuums that clean the gravel on the bottom of the tank , there is also a fish called the Hypostomus plecostomus , it keeps the algae level down , which can make the tank dirty.
well that would be hard to handle but you would need the under-gravel filter, and each month take some percent of the water out and just do that, or you can take all the water out, it depends on the water and the fishes how often you need to clean it also.
Well the way i clean my 200 gallon tank is i use a big siphon called “the python” i bought at a aquarium specialty store which i screw into the garden hose and it provides back pressure which gets water out quickly and easily clean the gravel.
I do 50% water changes every month, i have a Rena XP4 Canister Filter and i replace one slot every month.
Buy “Prime” water conditioner for this since one cap full will clear 50 gallons.
Also most of the stuff that cames with the tank you are buying is useless its the cheapest stuff and will most likely not get the job done, for a 150g tank you will need a Rena XP3 Canister Filter.
Talk to a petsmart employee to get advice on how to change set up and all that on the filter.
First thing you should know is NEVER empty the aquarium. 50% is still too much water. I would stay in the range of 20 to 25%, that is and has been recommended for years, and that is all thats needed. You may want to get alge eating fish to help keep the alge low. They also sell scrubber with a magnet so you can scrub the inside of your tank without sticking your hands in there. They have gravel vacums big enough so that you wont have to get the scuba gear on. I would not recommend a gravel filter, just get a canister. For a tank that big I would recommend getting real plants. Just be careful where you get them from, some people keep snails with the plants they sell you, which can lead to a huge snail population in your tank without you even wanting snails.
you should have a large bucket of clean water and another empty bucket. Turn off the filter and leave the fish in the 50% remaining water. Slowly pour the clean water you got by using your hand to make the water less likely of hurting the fish. then take out 50% of the water and replace it. Then you can either take out 25% of the water only but it can take really long before finishin it. If you want, you can just change 50% of the water a week instead of the whole thing to save time. Don’t forget to check where the fish is so that you won’t end up hurting the fish in the tank.