my fish room smells, suggestions?

[dax29]

Sometimes my fish room gets a little gamey. Anyone have any tips for keeping smells to a minimum? I mean, it doesn't reak or anything, just smells a little stale.

[Andos99]

Water changes, carbon, and better ventilation.

[PsiPro]

Bigger fish tanks! (Wont help the smell but I know i would like to hear that answer)

[dax29]

I do 40% water changes every 3-4 days on 2 tanks and every 7-10 days on 2 tanks. I don't run carbon though, which I know could be an issue with odor. The room isn't well ventilated either, nor can ventilation be improved. I guess carbon is as good a shot as any. I just don't use it much anymore. Thanks. I didn't think of carbon. I may open a box of baking soda too.

[Fishyfanatic]

Air fresheners! j/k You could try putting a fan in the room to move around the air or a dehumidifier.

[dax29]

I may try that too fishy! Thanks.

[tropicfishman]

maybe your fish need deoderant? lol

[dax29]

Could be! They really don't work out much though.

[Zagz]

Baking soda would be a good idea for the room in addition to some carbon in the filters. Is there a window that opens in the room? I'm guessing not from your posts. I believe there are some baking soda air freshners you could probably use. Those plug in styles not spray ones I mean.

[jim532]

I use the plug-in air fresheners ( the cented oil ones) one of them has a fan in it to help circulate the airfreshner into the room, It's on a timer so it only runs for about an hour before i get home.
But ultimatly water changes and opening a door or window once in a while helps a lot.

[aquakev]

if its not from amonia or nitrate from the tanks it may be mildew or buildup on the walls from too much moisture. think of you much evaporation you get from the tanks, and if there is no ventilation, where does it go? One thing you dont want is to get mold on the walls.

[TomK2]

Gravel vacs? I do really frequent water changes without a python (installed plumbing for water changes), and therefore tend to forget about gravel vacs for too long a time. Tank odor disappears after I do a gravel vac. Otherwise, in a multi-tank room, ventillation and dehumidification are a good idea.

Haven't used charcoal in a filter in years. I am not gonna start either, it will just tempt me to put off the gravel vacs longer.

[Lonewolfblue]

I second the idea of more circulation, like maybe a fan. If the floor is carpet, you can also use a carpet freshener that is more for getting rid of pet odors, even though the smell isn't coming from the carpet. Will make the room smell better. If no carpet, then if you have a rug in the room, spray it with the carpet freshener.

[Jarred Darque]

I would look into milder/mold i nthe walls from the humidity try just a dehumidifier (this will however cause faster evaporation rates in your tanks) If the smell is coming from the water, then there is something wrong, often times, carbon does nothing but cover up another problem, leave the problem to grow until it is to late. Try the dehumidifier first

[trotty]

What type of filtration do you use? Some HOB can smell if food gets caught above the waterline... Or even in the tank.

[noncentric]

I noticed a terrible smell everytime I got close to my aquarium to inspect the fish/plants/etc. I also noticed this smell whenever I worked behind the aquarium (power strip). At first, I thought it was the water...but the tank didn't smell from the top, only from the bottom. Then, I finally realized what it was...the bottle of Amquel+ inside the tank stand/bookshelf. That bottle reeked!!! I store the bottle in a ZipLoc bag now, but that only helps a small bit.

Anyway...I think my point was...is there anything else in your fish room that might be causing the smell, other than the tanks themselves? That's the only additional thing I can think of, besides the tips already offered by others.

[aquakev]

it might be a dead fish on the floor soewhere! Funny how no one mentioned that.

[7Enigma]

Best thing for tank smell in a room is a dehumidifier. Especially since you have carpet. It will trap all the moisture that is near the ground (as the air cools at night), and release it again during the day when its warmer in the room. Tank maintainence is key, but just as important is the surrounding air.

1 thing to do if you have plants (or even without but don't be as complete) is to use a piece of saranwrap between the gap where the HOB meets the tank (if you have one). I did this when cycling because it was very cold in the house and was keeping the tank at 85F, and the heater was struggling from all the evaporation. You can leave a small gap at either side to allow for some airflow to get through, but you'll be surprised at how much condensation builds on the underside of the plastic.

[aquablue]

About the carpet - the baking soda idea works great with that. Really. Lightly shake some baking soda out on your carpet, then vacuum it all up. It's amazing how much fresher the room feels, and gets me to wondering about what sort of environment my carpet is allowing

[greenmaji]

wow.. the replies just keep coming.. :P

It sounds like you have stagnant humidity to me, from your discription of the smell and situation.
If its lack of gravel vacs the smell is quite apparent, its not just stagnant it smells of fish, I don't think this is part of your problem.

reactionary methods (not a big fan myself)
air freshner
bakeing soda

proactive methods
air circulation
dehumidifcation (if air circulation doesn't fix it, it would need to be pretty bad to need this)