Do you vacuum substrate during water changes?

[spike]

Title says it all. Do you vacuum? Do you every time you change water? Do it occasionally? Or never do it.

 

[ralph atl]

never!

 

[jade76]

Out of 20galon change that I do, Ill vaccum a 5 gallon bucket worth. and the sump too!.....slackers!!

 

[tebriel]

I figure the bacteria in the sand are there to eat the stuff settling to the bottom, plus if i stir it up, I have to change my filter sock more often. So i don't vacuum it up. But that's just me.

 

[ralph atl]

your sand in part of your denitifying filter. The only thing you should have to do is suck up some cyno now and then, and add some once a year.

 

[ralph atl]

hey Ramone, u need any Salifert or api test kits?

 

[skriz]

nope.

Even if I wanted to, I can't reach it!

 

[jaydm93teg]

when i try to vacum my algae off the sand it just ends up getting in a big ball and the vacum wont suck it up so i have to scoop it out with a net. Not really sure why this is but it seems to work for me.

 

[platyplakia]

Every time. Like Jade, about a 5 gallon bucket worth every water change. And I do water changes weekly.

 

[spike]

mysterybox;201594 wrote: hey Ramone, u need any Salifert or api test kits?

Why you ask Ralph? Have some you want to get rid of? But to answer your question, yes. I have the saltwater kit. Also Alk but have lost my instructions, calcium, phosphate.

 

[ralph atl]

Yes. U can have them. There opened, not perfect, but free. I switched to all Elos except my DD merck phosphate kit.

 

[washowi]

what's a vaccum?

 

[ralph atl]

washowi;201894 wrote: what's a vaccum?

here: