Should you clean a bubble wand?

[bghouse]

My 6gal tank has a 10" bubble wand along the back wall. I'm currently going through some diatom growth. The bubble wand is definitely getting some on it.

My dwarf gourami used to adore swimming in the bubble wall - he'd do it for hours. Since it starting looking icky, he doesn't play anymore.

I've got to change the airline tubing on it soon, because it got some holes (small child, push pin, nough said). Should I take it and wash it off? Would my gourami want to play again?

And does anyone know if the bubble wand should be covered with gravel? I currently have mine kind of sitting on top of the gravel.

6gal Eclipse Tank
1 neon blue dwarf gourami
1 bamboo shrimp
1 gold banded pleco

[QTOFFER]

I've read that certain kinds of airstones just clog up over time and simply need to be replaced, but try washing yours off first. Hot water - NO DETERGENT - should do the trick!

Electrical tape might fix the holes in the airline tubing and save you the trouble of redoing everything.

And you can certainly place a bubblewand under the gravel, although the bubble curtain effect might be reduced somewhat. It might be better to slightly set the wand into the substrate and build a small ridge of gravel in front, so it's not so noticeable.

[QTOFFER]

One other thing, behavioral changes may be a sign that conditions in the tank are deteriorating.
Other than not playing in the bubbles much, does your gourami show any signs of illness? How often do you do water changes? Just a thought.

[bghouse]

Water changes weekly. Check water with liquid test kits 1 - 2 times per week (ammonia, nitrite and nitrate). Temperature is stable. The tank is about 2.5 months running with fish (did a fishless cycle first for almost a month).

Blu (my gourami) currently is trying to guilt me into feeding him more than I have been. But I made that mistake already, and he got constipated. Folks up here suggested a pea - which did the trick. I actually try to feed a pea once a week.

Other than not playing in the bubbles, nothing else seems to have changed (other than he now eats pea bits off my finger)

[QTOFFER]

Originally Posted by bghouse

Other than not playing in the bubbles, nothing else seems to have changed (other than he now eats pea bits off my finger)

Sounds good! I love it when the fish eat out of my fingers - though I admit it feels pretty weird. 8O

[Corty]

Originally Posted by QTOFFER

Sounds good! I love it when the fish eat out of my fingers - though I admit it feels pretty weird. 8O

OH that freaks me out. Easily sends me dancing and screaming to the other end of the room holding my hand like the fish tried to cut it off. You'd think I'd be used to it by now..

I don't mind when they swim past and I accidentally touch a fin or the serpent star wraps a tentacle around my finger for support when he's hand fed.

The pleco is tame enough to be petted now, and is fairly easy to transfer to a new tank by hand.

But uh.. more on topic, my bubble wall was rinsed in water change water, just swished around, and worked a lot better after.

If it gets clogged, I'm told push pins will open up the holes ok.

[gheitman]

You might want to try soaking your bubble wand in a solution of hydrogen peroxide (like that you find in a pharmacy) for 24 hours. I've found that will get it working much better.

[TankGirl]

When I had bubble wands I'd just set them out to dry in the sun for a day or two.

[FishLover14]

I have heard it is best just to reaplace all bubble wands and parts after 1 year.


Dan