Messy tank

[somethingsfishy]

So I have a 90g with a 20g sump and I'm having problems with the mess left by the fish in the tank. I find myself vacuuming
three times a week. So I have questions... Is this normal to vac so much? Is it possible to build a cuc for freshwater? Should I have some power heads to create current? Would adding some grass like plants help? I don't mind the cleaning as I'm Always tinkering with the setup anyway. Just trying to see if there is anything I can do to help with the mess.

 

[Bubble_B0y]

are you overstocked?

what fish do you have in your 90 gallon?


Adding a powerhead wouldn't hurt to provide extra gas exchange and oxygen. It may also help push all the waste off the substrate.

 

[somethingsfishy]

I have
4 angels
9 glofish
2 gourami
5 clown loaches
1 tiger barb (I know)
4 Amano shrimp
2 inca snails
1 common Pleco

I don't think I'm overstocked but I think I have a messy Pleco. I have two power heads I used a couple of times but it just stirred up the mess.

 

[redsea]

Yep, a lot of it is probably from the pleco. They make huge messes! LOL. I don't know much about plants, but they may help because I think some plants use it for nutrients. Not 100% sure though. Good luck!

 

[aqua_chem]

When you say mess, are we talking leftover food bits/detritus or fish poo?

 

[somethingsfishy]

I'm talking about fish poop. Food doesn't last long on the bottom of the tank due to the clowns and shrimp. it just seems like I'm missing something so I was going to build a cuc for freshwater (shrimp, snails).

 

[somethingsfishy]

I thought detritus was poop?

 

[aqua_chem]

I thought detritus was poop?

In my book, detritus is any number of things that can be floating along. When my crypts go on strike and decide to all melt at once, I generally have a ton of little tiny things floating around. Java moss is a major source of litter for me as well.


I don't know about the pooping ability of loaches, but I know that a properly feed pleco can really make a mess of a tank. You might try feeding less. I feed my fish every other day, once a day.

 

[Bubble_B0y]

yepp plecos are big polluters.
24 hours after a water change, the sand is already covered with black poop!

 

[somethingsfishy]

So last night I changed 30g and vacd the sand and this am it's covered in poop again. It's only been 12 hours.