It’s no doubt fun watching Nemo doing acrobatics in the water and scavenging for food at the bottom of the tank, but this view won’t stay clear for long if you don’t clean the aquarium glass inside. For Nemo’s benefit, as well as your own, you should regularly clean the inside of the glass.
While our article on cleaning aquarium glass explains the tools and basics for cleaning the glass, this article will explore the different methods in more depth and provide you with some tips to make the task less tedious. If you want to know how often to change the water in the tank, we also have advice on that.
Below are several ways to make the aquarium glass squeaky clean and you can even leave your finned friends inside while you do it, if you’re wondering how to clean aquarium glass with fish in it.
There are many ways to clean the tank by hand. For removing algae stains, you can simply use a sponge, but make sure it hasn’t been used for any other cleaning.. Wear dedicated gloves to avoid contact with anything in the dirty fish tank water.
For algae stains that are a bit harder to remove, you could use a window scraper like the one you might use to clean your car’s windows or you can buy one from the pet store that has a brush on the other side.
For a more ‘fun’ way to clean the aquarium glass inside, you could purchase an aquarium magnet. The rough side goes on the inside of the tank and the side with the handle goes on the outside. You simply glide the magnet around and it will dislodge the algae stains. Make sure you don’t leave it in the tank while it’s not in use.
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Believe it or not, there are some aquatic species that enjoy munching on algae and will therefore clean the aquarium glass inside as they’re consuming the green goo. Amano shrimp, catfish and Ramshorn snails are just a few options you have. The algae eater you choose does depend, however, on the size of your tank, whether it’s freshwater or saltwater, and what kind of creatures you already have living in there as they all need to get along.
This is quite a pricey option since an automatic cleaner can cost a few hundred dollars, but if your algae eaters aren’t doing their job properly, then it might be worth considering. You simply attach it to the glass and let it do its thing. One downside is that it cannot turn corners by itself and therefore you will need to move it to each side of the tank.
Here are a few handy tips to reduce the amount of algae stains in your tank, which will hopefully mean you can clean the aquarium glass inside less frequently.
- Plants: Plants not only look cool in your tank and provide places for your fish to hide, they also consume the same nutrients as algae. This leaves less food for the algae to feast on.
- Remove excess food: Algae feed on the food you give your fish so if there is any left over after your fish have had their dinner, then the algae will take advantage of the situation and thrive. Remove any leftover food floating around the tank and ensure you only put in as much as your fish can eat and not a flake more.
Reduce lighting: Algae need lighting to grow so make sure you don’t keep the lights on for any longer than needed. Around 10 hours a day is more than enough.
We hope our article on how to clean the inside of your aquarium glass was helpful and now your aquarium is looking spick and span. Check out our website for more useful articles and don’t forget to register for access to savings and exclusive offers on your favorite brands.