misnoma Posted June 25, 2005 Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 Righty.. I'm somewhat new to this planted tank thing, however the plants in my 430L planted tank are growing like wildfire, with me having to trim em every 3-4 days and replant the cuttings. Now this is making the tank look fantastic and all.. however I forsee a problem... how on earth do I vac the gravel without hoovering all the plants out of the substrate... there's barely enough room between plants to get the gravel cleaner through as it is. So.. how do people with heavily planted tanks keep the gravel clean? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Shilo Posted June 25, 2005 Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 Simple: You don't! The plants in your tank are a great filter system, they will remove any ammonia or phosphate etc produced from any gunk decaying in the substrate. It will also produce mulm which will only help the plants grow even more (mulm = soil). If there are any great furry chunks of left over food laying around then you can just syphon these bits up, but I would just leave the rest as is. Transform that gravel vac into a CO2 reactor or file it away in the spare parts pile. Its too bulky. Instead just use a length of tubing to syphon up any unsightly bits and peices. Any fish poo etc will just help you save money in ferts. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
misnoma Posted June 25, 2005 Author Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 I like that answer cheers Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted June 25, 2005 Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 If there are any bits you particularly need to siphon out then use the hose without the siphon tube on the end. It will fit easily around the plant bases without damage. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PENEJANE Posted June 25, 2005 Report Share Posted June 25, 2005 Awesome! never thought of that Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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