Simple but tough question....

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I need to know how to clean gravel without losing any baby fish (fry)?
If I use my python no spill clean and fill I may lose fry becuase the
fry may become vacuumed up and disposed of, which I am trying to avoid
by covering the end of the python with mechanical filter material. I
tried using mosquito netting blocking my 2 batttery powered gravel
cleaners and still lost 1 or 2 fry in just one attempt. My air powered
gravel cleaner would probably do the same. Right now I am feedibg
lightly to buy time before another cleaning is necessary. This is a
tough question and I need an ingenious answer, or just a helpful
answer. Please help! I don't want to lose fry or fish from cleaning!
Thanks - and please respond, this is very important to me. Is there
anyone else out there with the same problem?

[Nitesbane]

> wrote in message
ups.com...
> I need to know how to clean gravel without losing any baby fish (fry)?
> If I use my python no spill clean and fill I may lose fry becuase the
> fry may become vacuumed up and disposed of, which I am trying to avoid
> by covering the end of the python with mechanical filter material. I
> tried using mosquito netting blocking my 2 batttery powered gravel
> cleaners and still lost 1 or 2 fry in just one attempt. My air powered
> gravel cleaner would probably do the same. Right now I am feedibg
> lightly to buy time before another cleaning is necessary. This is a
> tough question and I need an ingenious answer, or just a helpful
> answer. Please help! I don't want to lose fry or fish from cleaning!
> Thanks - and please respond, this is very important to me. Is there
> anyone else out there with the same problem?
>

Yes. I solved the problem by rearing the fry in a tank with no gravel and
using a piece of airline tubing to perform water changes.

[Vicki PS]

> wrote in message
ups.com...
> I need to know how to clean gravel without losing any baby fish (fry)?

What kind of fry, and how big? If they're more than just wrigglers, use a
cheap plastic gravity-feed gravel siphon and drain the water in to a bucket.
The fry will have plenty of time to scoot out of the way, and even if one
gets sucked up, you can usually retrieve it from the bucket intact. Works
with my molly and platy fry.

Vicki PS

[Dick]

On 15 Dec 2004 22:59:41 -0800, wrote:

>I need to know how to clean gravel without losing any baby fish (fry)?
>If I use my python no spill clean and fill I may lose fry becuase the
>fry may become vacuumed up and disposed of, which I am trying to avoid
>by covering the end of the python with mechanical filter material. I
>tried using mosquito netting blocking my 2 batttery powered gravel
>cleaners and still lost 1 or 2 fry in just one attempt. My air powered
>gravel cleaner would probably do the same. Right now I am feedibg
>lightly to buy time before another cleaning is necessary. This is a
>tough question and I need an ingenious answer, or just a helpful
>answer. Please help! I don't want to lose fry or fish from cleaning!
>Thanks - and please respond, this is very important to me. Is there
>anyone else out there with the same problem?

Don't clean the gravel! I have 5 tanks, one with no gravel. I never
clean the gravel. I do change 20% of the water twice weekly, but the
syphon floats mid tank. I couldn't clean much gravel even if I wanted
to due to the heavy vegetation. By the way, I also removed all the
charcoal from the tank filters. Other steps I have taken in the last
6 months include using a finer mesh filter material and cutting from 2
feedings a day to one with no additional food in the one feeding.

Frankly, I was surprised. I thought I would either increase the
single portion or have to return to the double feedings. Not so, even
though I thought I had been careful to not overfeed, I had actually
been putting more load in the system by at least a factor of two. All
of my tanks have dense fish populations, well over the 1 inch per
gallon rule of thumb.

I know that many people swear that it is vital to clean the gravel.
Mine has not been touched for 2 years. I do think regular water
changes are the most important maintenance factor. I wait for my
filter water flow to spill out the intake before cleaning the filters.
Only the 75 gallon has bio wheels.

dick

[Victor Martinez]

Dick wrote:
> I know that many people swear that it is vital to clean the gravel.

It is vital for non-planted tanks.

--
Victor Martinez
Owned and operated by the Fantastic Seven (TM)
Send your spam here:
Email me here:

[Dick]

On Thu, 16 Dec 2004 11:45:14 GMT, Victor Martinez >
wrote:

>Dick wrote:
>> I know that many people swear that it is vital to clean the gravel.
>
>It is vital for non-planted tanks.

Good reason to have plants. I even have plants in my quarantine tank
which has no gravel.

dick

[blank]

> Yes. I solved the problem by rearing the fry in a tank with no gravel and
> using a piece of airline tubing to perform water changes.
>
You must be a patient fellow, with lots and lots of time on your hands

[TYNK 7]

>Subject: Re: Simple but tough question....
>From: Dick
>Date: 12/16/2004 5:24 A.M. Central Standard Time
>Message-id: >
>
>On 15 Dec 2004 22:59:41 -0800, wrote:
>
>>I need to know how to clean gravel without losing any baby fish (fry)?
>>If I use my python no spill clean and fill I may lose fry becuase the
>>fry may become vacuumed up and disposed of, which I am trying to avoid
>>by covering the end of the python with mechanical filter material. I
>>tried using mosquito netting blocking my 2 batttery powered gravel
>>cleaners and still lost 1 or 2 fry in just one attempt. My air powered
>>gravel cleaner would probably do the same. Right now I am feedibg
>>lightly to buy time before another cleaning is necessary. This is a
>>tough question and I need an ingenious answer, or just a helpful
>>answer. Please help! I don't want to lose fry or fish from cleaning!
>>Thanks - and please respond, this is very important to me. Is there
>>anyone else out there with the same problem?
>
>Don't clean the gravel! I have 5 tanks, one with no gravel. I never
>clean the gravel. I do change 20% of the water twice weekly, but the
>syphon floats mid tank. I couldn't clean much gravel even if I wanted
>to due to the heavy vegetation. By the way, I also removed all the
>charcoal from the tank filters. Other steps I have taken in the last
>6 months include using a finer mesh filter material and cutting from 2
>feedings a day to one with no additional food in the one feeding.
>
>Frankly, I was surprised. I thought I would either increase the
>single portion or have to return to the double feedings. Not so, even
>though I thought I had been careful to not overfeed, I had actually
>been putting more load in the system by at least a factor of two. All
>of my tanks have dense fish populations, well over the 1 inch per
>gallon rule of thumb.
>
>I know that many people swear that it is vital to clean the gravel.
>Mine has not been touched for 2 years. I do think regular water
>changes are the most important maintenance factor. I wait for my
>filter water flow to spill out the intake before cleaning the filters.
>Only the 75 gallon has bio wheels.
>
>dick
>

Dick,
It only works becuase your tank is abudnantly planted with live plants.
If the original poster doesn't have such a tank, they absolutley must vacuum
their gravel.