# My first screw up



## robcope (Feb 8, 2011)

Wednesday was tank cleaning day. I removed about 20 -25% of the water, vacuming the gravel of course. removed all plants and the castle my wife bought. Rinsed the tub for about twenty minutes then rinsed and cleaned the plants and castle with only water. Cleaned one of the two HOB filters. put all the stuff back in the tank. put the appropriate amount of prime in based on water change. Filled it back up and the fish became so stressed i thought I was going to lose my mind. It appears I may not have rinsed my hands and forearms well enough and i believe some soap residue got into the water. In response i did another 25% water change and added a cap full of prime and after about an hour everyone was happy. I think that may have been one of the longest hours ever, but thankfully all is well.

Just thought I would share.
Rob
55 Gallon African cichlid tank.


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## kibamf (Feb 12, 2011)

you shouldn't really be cleaning off the decorations, it has good bacteria and algae that keeps your tank stable. Only remove 10% of water during a water change.


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## corE3105 (Jan 26, 2011)

kibamf said:


> you shouldn't really be cleaning off the decorations, it has good bacteria and algae that keeps your tank stable. Only remove 10% of water during a water change.


agreed...i personally think it makes the decor look more like a natural setting with a little green growing on them...then again, i also have a pleco and catfish to keep it from growing out of control


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## Dean715 (Feb 3, 2011)

I use Ivory soap to wash my hands and arms before puttering around my tank. Ivory is pure soap with no additives.


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## robcope (Feb 8, 2011)

Guess we have a different view. In all the years I have been raising cichlids, i have always washed off the plants and any decor that I have in the tank and have never had an issue. One of the reasons I use two HOB filters and an airated undergravel. I love the way the tank looks and my water is perfect. i change 20 -25% of the water every two weeks with no issues, unless of course i do something stupid like I did this week. lol.

i have to say i am going to start leaving two of the fake plants un touched just to see what happens. never really thought about it before. Thanks for the input, much appriceated.


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## rtbob (Jul 18, 2010)

Most of the beneficial bacteria are colonized on the bio media in your filter. Rinsing your plants will not trigger a mini cycle. 

I'm surprised that you only have to change out 20-25% of your water bi-weekly.

On my 100g African tank I have to change 30% weekly to keep my nitrates under 40ppm.

If you are going to add the prime directly to the tank, many (including me) recommend treating the entire volume of the tank.

The temp of your replacement water should be very close to the temp of the tank water.


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## J-Pond (Jun 8, 2009)

I too do 20% water changes although with the fancy goldies I do them weekley, when I had the tropical tank they were bi-weekley. With my goldies I clean the 2 ornaments each change and scrub off the anubias leaves. I clean the front and sides of the tank glass, letting the back house all the algae it wants.
Glad to hear they are doing fine after your mishap.


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## jrman83 (Jul 9, 2010)

Do you test for nitrates once a week before you do your water change....just to see what level of water change you need to do? I'm also surprised you can get away with only 20-25% weekly changes. If you're not testing though....

I change 50% weekly in all of my tanks. I used to change only 30% when I noticed it wasn't getting my nitrates where it needed to be and my fish's health started to become comprimised. This took a few months to occur.


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## robcope (Feb 8, 2011)

At this point water changes are bi-weekly, but most of my African Cichlids are under 2 inches long. more like an inch and a half actually. I am sure as they mature I will have to do weekly changes. Glad to say, my stupidity has caused 0 casualties.


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## robcope (Feb 8, 2011)

I have to say after 25 years of fish tanks, this is the first tank that I ever used any test kits with and all they seem to do is make me paranoid. I have yet to have a nitrate problem. I change the water to avoid any issues and don't worry to much about testing. I am trying to get to a point where I test once a week just to see the changes, but I have never done water changes more than bi-weekly in the past and never had an issue. it seems to me, it is pretty easy to tell if a water change is needed just by looking at the fish. I watch the fish quite abit as it is right by my chair and I would rather watch them then the TV. Guess I am wierd though.


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## snail (Aug 6, 2010)

Dean715 said:


> I use Ivory soap to wash my hands and arms before puttering around my tank. Ivory is pure soap with no additives.


Even so make sure you rinse very well because the soap is also deadly to fish.


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## Dean715 (Feb 3, 2011)

Yes a good rinse also. I dont recall where I read about Ivory but its supposed to be pure soap with no perfumes or lotions added. Who knows? But ive yet to see any bad reactions though and its became the only handsoap we use now, even during my time away from fish. I do a 25-30% water change twice a week. Im sure I could get away with less but its just something ive done for years. I think its something I started while keeping goldfish and just got into the habit of doing so. Of course not having a life makes it easier for me than some.


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## robcope (Feb 8, 2011)

You have a life, it just happens to involve fish :animated_fish_swimm


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## jyy (Feb 21, 2011)

Im glad to hear theyre doing better


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## robcope (Feb 8, 2011)

I am happy to say all the fish are doing really well, no casualties from my stupidity. I did my monthly major cleaning today and decided to just put the plants and castle back in without rinsing them. I have always went to the extreme when it came to cleaning, so i decided it was time to see what it looks like after a few months. Maybe a little algae in the plants and castle will add character. i guess we will see.

Rob


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## mec102778 (Feb 17, 2011)

I love the way my fake bone skull looks with alge on it, also my bubbling pirate cave. It does add that little bit of character.


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## chris oe (Feb 27, 2009)

Soap, even without any additives, is deadly to fish, simply the nature of the molecule. It is important to take some serious care to avoid introducing any soap at all. When I clean things related to the tank I tend to use just the water change buckets (buckets that have only ever been used for aquarium water), and avoid the sink and such as much as possible, sometimes I put down some plastic as a work area. Having soap free tools (tools ie sponges/scrubbers that have never been used to clean with soap) are also helpful. But everybody makes mistakes from time to time, if it has taken you this long to make your first one, you've done really really well. ; )


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## robcope (Feb 8, 2011)

First mistake with this tank lol. I have made many over the years, one time I caused complete genocide with a 30 gallon tank, I still feel bad about that one when I think about it. We won't go into detail as you will all hunt me down and flog me lol


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## Dean715 (Feb 3, 2011)

We have all made mistakes and while I cant speak for everyone im sure I will make more. Ive found this hobby to be somewhere in the area of 80% science and 20% art. What works for one may not work for someone else.


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