Tips For Cleaning Tank (Siphoning)

Silly question number 500 coming up...!

So I did my second ever water change since adding my fish today, around 25% (maybe a bit more, it's hard to tell). I didn't get very far with the siphon before I'd done enough of a water change and had to stop. My endlers seem fascinated with the siphon and constantly swim up to it whilst I'm trying to clean the tank for them, silly things!

However one thing I've noticed, when I pull the siphon out of the water it spits back the last part in the tube back into the tank - along with some of the dirt that I've just sucked up. How can I avoid it doing that? And is there a way to put my fish off the siphon!? Hopefully next time I'll cover more of the gravel ha!


Steve replied with

You'll get better with the vacuuming as you get more practice.

I have found that it is next to impossible to prevent the fish from interfering.  You are kicking up the stuff in the substrate and they are investigating in case there's anything they can eat.  You have to careful because you can end up siphoning one of your fish out of the tank!

To prevent expelling dirt when you withdraw the siphon there are two things you can try.  First lift up the siphon from the bottom and let it run for a while just sucking mid-tank water.  This should flush all the crud into your bucket.  Second, put your finger over the bucket end of the siphon before lifting it up.  This may prevent the stuff being released back into the tank (or it may not depending on how lucky you are)!

I've sucked up plenty of fry in my time. Recently I hoovered up a pygmy cory - it got stuck in the tube but came straight out when I shook it a bit. Because I have sand, I just use the tubing, not the wide plastic thing that attaches to the tubing, and it is much easier to suck fish up with that 
One tip I can give you - use your free hand to hold the tubing. You can control where the water comes out - the bucket or the floor - and also you can pinch the tube instantly to stop the water flow without breaking the suction if you do get a fish stuck.

But I did once damage a betta. I took my eyes off him while I poked the tube under the heater and his tail got sucked up - and a chunk got ripped off. He never went near the siphon tube again. And I'm now extra careful around bettas.

What great tips!  I shall certainly try taking the fat nozzle off of my siphon.....my fishies all seem to have a suicide pact going when I clean them out too

Resa
 

Time for a cuppa and a forage through the forum
Sue, just to be awkward, I have both sand and gravel.  This is because initially I used gravel and then on reading that my little pandas, which as you know, I am desperate to get, needed to have a smoother substrate because of their barbels, I put a large(ish) swathe of sand down in the centre of the tank.  I realise this is probably not ideal but I was worried about removing all my gravel as I was still cycling and didn't want to rock the boat too much. I have been quite pleased with it though as Flockhart, my colisa (hubby named him!) likes to eat his wafers off of the sand while the platies like to root around in the gravel.
It's a water change day though so I will give the siphon a go with and without the nozzle attached.
It seems I have 10 baby platies and they seem to grow while you watch, they're all getting their blue marbling now too.  They're very sweet

I'm very sorry to see that you have to wait so long for your father-in-laws funeral, it does sort of leave you in limbo a bit, doesn't it?  I hope it goes as well as it can do for you.

Resa