cleaning advice

[tina1948]

hi i have had my cichlid set up for about a year the wa\ter is all ways very clear i do weekly 25% water changes but now my water is getting bits floating in it i havve been told to do full clean and wash the crushed coral i have in bottom of tank i have never done this yet,is this right and what best way to do it .thanks for your help . OAP cichlid lovder xxx

[BillD]

Cleaning the gravel with a gravel cleaner weekly should be sufficient. You may also want to consider larger water changes. Assuming that the fish have matured since the tank was established, what was a sufficient change 6 months ago may be insufficient now. At least an occasional larger change should be beneficial.