still use gravel vac?

[JackHammer]

just curious, if you do have plants in your tank, should you still gravel vac or should it be left alone?

 

[nereksnad]

greetings.

you can still use gravel vac in places where there are no plants, but in general using gravel vac near plants might damage their roots, so you don't want to do that. i've read that some people wiggle the gravel vag to sturr up debris and then vaccum it though.

 

[JackHammer]

alright, cool.

ive been using the vac everywhere, including where the plants are. but my plants dont seem to last long so that could be a factor. ill make sure i leave the area where they are next time.

i have the plants planted straight into the rock substrate, do i need to add anything or can they live and grow without anything extra?

 

[IowaGuy]

I cannot gravel van as I my substrate is too light (EcoComplete). However, I do carefully hover over the surface just enough to pull some of the mulm out. I also find it helpful when my fish and/or I stir up the water just a bit as that makes it easier to pull some of that out.

Like another posting said, you can only do it in open spots as you don't want to damage roots or uproot plants.

 

[CorallineAlgae]

I found vacuuming does more harm than good to root systems. Many plants have roots that extend far around the stem. Shoving the tube into the sand not only severs the roots but as they die they produce lots of decay under the substrate making the next vacuuming seem really dirty. This makes it seem like the gravel needs more vacuuming because of the decay. So not only are the plants injured, they aren't able to keep roots in those areas and naturally absorb the waste. Best to just barely kiss the too of the gravel with the tube and go no further regardless of how dirty it looks.

Every 4-5 years you can tear down the tank and wash or change the substrate then replant the whole tank. Some people do that even more often.

 

[Rivercats]

I don't gravel vac at all but I do lightly run my hand through all the plants and over and open substrate (which in my tank isn't much) to stir up and loose detris right at the start of my WC. I find this method works really well for keeping anything off the leaves of plants, stem plants especially.

 

[JackHammer]

I don't gravel vac at all but I do lightly run my hand through all the plants and over and open substrate (which in my tank isn't much) to stir up and loose detris right at the start of my WC. I find this method works really well for keeping anything off the leaves of plants, stem plants especially.

I tried this yesterday and I still managed to get a decent amount of waste out of the substrate so I will keep it up and see how the plants go