When it comes to keeping a good fish tank and healthy fish, one of the essential activities is to clean the aquarium sand. Aquarium sand is filled with different forms of waste. Many people believe that sand is tedious to clean than gravel since it is fine, but washing or preserving it is similar to how gravel is cleaned. You will also use the same tools a big bucket, gravel vacuum, a stirring stick, so the cleaning process for aquarium sand is no different from cleaning aquarium gravel. Below are the best tips on how to clean aquarium sand to help you do this like a pro.
How to Prepare Sand For Aquarium
It doesn’t matter the kind of sand you want in terms of planning when it gets cleaning to it.
All sand must be prepared before cleaning in any aquarium, which means washing it more or less. Now let’s go through a fast step-by-step process.
- Weigh the amount of sand you’ll need for your aquarium first.
- The sand will now be rinsed and washed, which you can do easily. Fill a big bucket with the water, then add the aquarium san, mix it, and drain the murky water out.
- Continue to repeat the process until the water is mostly clear. That will eliminate the dust and small particles in the sand that you don’t like. The key argument here is to remove dirt and other small particles from the sand.
How To Clean Aquarium Sand
While aquarium sand is frequently pre-washed, most sands are dusty and must be cleaned before placing it in the container. The fish tank can become murky if you don’t know how to clean aquarium sand properly.
The easiest approach to clean the sand is to put a tiny volume in a bucket and use a hosepipe to spray water onto it.
You may have to keep shaking the gravel around, then wash out the muddy water before it runs clean. You should then tip the sand into another bowl, and rinse the next pan.
Instructions:
- Once you’ve vacuumed the gravel from the container, put the vacuum over the tank. Gently shift it at the correct height at which waste is drawn in, and the sand stays.
- Do not put the vacuum deep within the sand since sand always retains debris on the top surface. Just hover up the top layer.
- Turn over sand after the first run and vacuum again to do an extensive job of vacuuming dirt from the sand.
- Push sand around the tank with the mixing stick to keep it from rotting fish waste and debris under the container. Decaying matter can become a black sheet that introduces poisonous gasses into the water, which can kill fish. Swirl the sand with the stick before placing the fish back into the tank, and the other attractive components of your aquarium.
- Dry the sand in the heat of the sun to kill bacteria. It may also help the aquarium sand in good condition.
- Changing water and washing the sand must be performed twice a month, at least. You can find the task much more straightforward to do, and every day there will be less waste to get rid of.
How To Make The Sand Settle Faster In An Aquarium
Now that you know how to clean aquarium sand, here are some tips on how to settle your sand in an aquarium. Sand is light and can float in the sea. It may take up to 7 days for the sand to settle in your aquarium.
1. Do Not Run Filter
- Some people believe that operating the aquarium filter is advantageous as it can draw the sand out of the water and has not yet settled down.
- Although the filter could suck any sand out of the water, the same sand can wreak havoc on the pipe. It doesn’t sound good to get a pipe clogged with thousands of grains of sand.
- It produces stream pressure and water movement while using a screen. The only thing you achieve when using the tank filter is agitating the sand rounding more.
2. Do Not Move The Tank
- Another mistake that several newbie aquarium owners make is to put the sand with the water in the tank, then transfer the container to another spot.
- Don’t touch or push the tank until you get the sand and the water out in the tank. It’s merely agitating the sand more, and slowing down the cycle is the only thing you can achieve by doing so.
- Choose a place for your aquarium, then bring the water and the sand. Placing the sand in the tank after the water can sound counterintuitive, but that is the way to do it. Don’t go dumping water over the tank, because that’s how you’re causing a huge mess.
3. Perform Water Changes
- Another thing you should do to make the sand settle more efficiently in your tank is to conduct regular water replacements.
- You’re going to miss a bunch of sand, but if you’re making regular water adjustments of around 50%, you can slash the period it takes the sand to settle down in half. Only strive not to agitate the water and sand too much if you do such shifts in water by 50 percent every day.
- The gentler and cleaner your tank will be, the happier you will do, and the faster the sand can calm down.
Conclusion
There you have the steps on how to clean aquarium sand. Always wash your sand to make sure it has as little dust as possible, which causes cloudiness in water. It’s essential to keep your sand clean because that’s where the fishes thrive their food and make your fish tank healthy. Then follow the tips we’ve given to make the aquarium sand settle faster, and keep it hassle-free. Get more tips on aquarium care.