Fish in Cycle Q

[tamtam]

I've been reading up on fish, both articles and following through threads that pop up on here.

A post or 2 that I've read had someone mention that you shouldn't vacuum your gravel frequently with your water changes. That it will disrupt BB and slow your cycle down. I'm wondering if there is any truth to this? I really just want to clear up my curiosity and since I haven't seen it pop up in any of the articles I've read yet I figured someone may be able to help me out.

I thought that most of your BB is housed in your filter and that something like your gravel wouldn't have much of an effect. I also thought you'd want to remove any food that makes it's way to the bottom to help control ammonia levels while your going through all the frequent water changes.

If you are suppose to avoid vacuuming does that also include plants/decor under the same idea?

 

[Terrance]

Its not true. The poop is just the source of ammonia. Remove all of it during your water change. The fish will end up generating more ammonia via pooping later.

 

[librarygirl]

I thoroughly vacuum my sand and gravel in both tanks weekly with water changes, never had any issues. Uneaten food and waste can build up on the substrate which in my opinion you'd want to remove regularly. In larger tanks, some people vacuum half the substrate at a time, which is fine too, but I've never had any issues cleaning everything at once.

 

[jetajockey]

There is an amount of bacteria in the substrate, and removing it can cause some tanks to go into minicycle. There are lots of reports of it. It doesn't mean you can't vacuum your substrate though. I'd leave a good bit of mulm in the substrate if you have live plants.

 

[tamtam]

Thanks! I don't have any plants so no worry there, though good to know for future tanks.