How to clean gravel

[quitters]

Do i have to lift up my driftwood and vacum under that? also how deep should i push the vacuum down into the gravel? (it is gravel not sand, and no UGF) the tank is planted, im worried about damaging plant roots and my dissolved undergravel root tabs.

can i possibly hear some of your guy's strategies?

29 gallon, medium plant density, yeast co2

22 inches of fish + increasing population of snails

 

[bman]

About every once a month I lift up the big rock in my cage and clean under it. As for the vacuuming the gravel, since mine is well planted, and I too do not want to destroy the roots, I will hover the gravel vac right at the surface in the same spot for a few seconds. This is just enough to get most of the gunk that is amongst the plants, then move on to the next spot.

I have also made a mental note of where my plant tabs are located, and will stay away from hovering the vac around there too much. (Although, the plants tabs are usually under most of the plants so this is not a problem)

HTH

 

[Jchillin]

I have not moved my driftwood in over a year and I can only imagine what would come forth if I did. Prior to having a heavily planted tank, I did just as bman suggests. However, a heavily planted tank, replete with a carpet of plants covering the substrate cannot be gravel vac'd.

This is the reason I have a combo of dwarf pleco's, ramshorn and malaysian trumpet snails. The MTS work the substrate from the bottom, the ramshorns and pleco's take care of the rest.

 

[malkore]

I've never moved an object to vac under it, nor do I worry about inside any caves/rocks.

just a surface vac here.