How to properly Move Fishes While Cleaning a Fish Tank?

As an aquarist, the safety and well-being of the fish are the top priority. Every aquarist must be mindful of the creation and maintenance of the best ecosystem so that fishes will have the best life. The most important one is probably keeping the tank clean. An unclean tank full of debris, and unwanted chemicals is not an ideal ecosystem for the fishes to thrive.

Ultimately everything will fall apart, and the fish’s life will wither away. Cleaning a fish tank in regular intervals and maintaining the routine is essential. There is a multitude of ways to clean a fish tank. But before everything else, what you will do is to move the fish and keep them safe until you finish cleaning the tank.

There are a lot of tools that you should avail yourself of. Almost all of them you will get while purchasing the tank. Make sure you use them properly.

In this article, you will be guided to a proper way of moving the fish while cleaning the tank.

How to move the fish properly?

The first and foremost thing which every aquarium owner will do while cleaning the tank is to move the fish. So, get your fishnet ready for this. Scoop them as carefully as you can. Make sure that you are not hurting the fish in any way.

Now it depends on yourself where do you want to keep the fish. You can keep them in a plastic bag or containers. If you have a small fish and a small number of them you can keep them in a plastic bag individually. If you have a larger fish find a container suitable for the size of the fish. Make sure that you fill the container or the plastic bags with aquarium water. Fishes tend to get stressed pretty frequently and a change of atmosphere can stress them profusely. So, it is better to use aquarium water rather than tap water to help match the surroundings.

Also remember to put a lid over the container if you have the species that tend to jump. It wouldn’t certainly be pleasing to see your fishes in the floor and your cat eating them.

Cleaning the tank

Now comes the cleaning part. You can follow any method that you like for cleaning. Detach all the equipment like heater, filter, etc. Clean the aquarium properly and get rid of all the algae and any form of waste. Clean the equipment as well. Remember to clean the pieces of equipment with aquarium water as you don’t want to lose the nitrifying bacteria. Make sure that you have cleaned everything properly.

Moving the fishes back to the tank

After you finish all the cleaning, now is the time to put back the fishes to their comfort. Fill the aquarium with water. Most people use tap water to fill the aquarium, if you are using tap water, make sure that you use a water conditioner. It will get rid of all the chlorine in the water. Assemble and put all the pieces of equipment back to where it belongs.

Use the fishnet again to move the fish back to the tank. Scoop them with care and gently put them back into the cleaned-up tank. Add the water from the plastic bag and container into the tank. Before adding the water, make sure that it is clean, and the fish have not made any waste product.

Why keep fish in the aquarium water?

It is a question that meddles every aquarist’s mind. Aquarium water seeps into every aspect of an aquarium. The pieces of equipment must be cleaned with the aquarium water as the nitrifying bacteria will be preserved.

For the case of keeping the fish in aquarium water while cleaning the tank, it must be so that the fish won’t undergo stress. Fishes are prone to be stressed when they go under any form of change in their surroundings. They will become stressed in a new container but keeping them in aquarium water will reduce the chances of the fish being under stress.

For an aquarist, the well-being of the fish is most important. There are times when you will have to keep the fish separately in another container. The most frequent ones are when you are cleaning the tank. ‘

Cleaning the tank cannot be done without moving the fish and keeping them in another container. As it is a given, make sure you do it in good order and without hurting and stressing the fish. Remember to use a right-sized container and the aquarium water. Aquarium water might not be ideal for humans, nonetheless, it’s the best for the fish.