Sump cleaning?

[niagara135]

I put the biggest tank under my stand that would fit. With the light on top I barely have room to open the tank top, let alone get something in there to clean it. Are there any good critters to put in there to help keep it clean so I won't have to clean it often, if at all??? Right now there are a few snails and blue legged hermits.

 

[Woodstock]

Woody:

Does today and tomorrow count? I am putting in new powerheads and have to be under there anyway. :idea: This is the school tank too! So I am not getting sneaky by saying it is my home tank! (Too easy to do!) :laugh:

Cheers!

Yep, it counts! But no karma until you finish :tongue:

 

[Woodstock]

I put the biggest tank under my stand that would fit. With the light on top I barely have room to open the tank top, let alone get something in there to clean it. Are there any good critters to put in there to help keep it clean so I won't have to clean it often, if at all??? Right now there are a few snails and blue legged hermits.

hummmm... that does sound like a PITA..... maybe you could vacuum out the diterus using a pump and use a micron sock on the output. Then you could route the water right back into the sump(or a bucket) to prevent removing any water. Use anything to suck out the diterus...

Clean up crews can turn algae into diterus nicely but the thing to remember is they only recycle (they poopie too) so you eventually need to remove the waste.

 

[Melev]

Thanks for the reminder, Doni. I need to do it anyway, and will do the same as last time: Using a powerhead, tubing and a filter sock, I'll get the detritus out of my sump!

 

[Rougiem]

Cleaned out both the home and the school tank

School tank's sump was cleaned Friday while I reaquascaped it. Pics on that thread on Monday... :bigbounce

Cheers!

 

[Woodstock]

karma to you!

 

[mnreefman]

i dont have a sump for my tank, however i did clean out the sump for my house today

 

[Woodstock]

LOL! Ok.. that works too!

 

[mps9506]

mmm....
Sump grunge

BTW, for those that use filter socks, have you noticed some filter socks seem to have some sort of chemical in them that makes bubbles like crazy if you don't wash them first, kind of like a detergent or something.
It seems some of them have it, some of them don't. Guess you should be safe and make sure you clean all the filter socks you get in water first before using them.

 

[Woodstock]

I have heard that too Mike... they can also make the skimmer go nuts if not rinsed well I think.

 

[fishhead]

I dont have a sump yet and am thinking on getting one. Do they smell really bad? Worse than a tank?(I know it is the same water)

 

[Woodstock]

Naaa... they smell the same as the main tank. Fresh ocean water Sumps are great! You'll like having one.

 

[Woodstock]

Easy way is to keep it from settling in the sump in the first place. Get yourself about three or four filter socks, somehting like 100 or 50 micron socks. Put one on the drain, and then rotate them out at least once a week, if not more.
Before I was doing this I would just take a powerhead and attach it to tubing and do my water changes while sucking out all the detrius on the bottom of the sump.
Mike

Getting ready to do my monthly sump cleaning :rollingey and I am seriously considering filter socks ............

 

[Yarr]

my sump is insanely clean..... only becuase there isnt an water in it yet.. does that count ?

 

[Woodstock]

LOL! ummmm.. no it doesn't

 

[Woodstock]

Have you cleaned your sump lately????

I haven't... time to clean it again! :smack:

 

[Witfull]

but im making my own miracle mud down there~

 

[Woodstock]

LOL... some like it clean... some like it muddy~~

 

[oldsaint]

I'm trying to ignore my sump and maybe it will go away. lol
I stopped running filter sock for about 3 months but started back about a month ago because it was just too much trouble to clean the sump every month or so. When I wasn't running socks, I would disassemble everything and take the sump out and rinse it outside. What a pita. It measures 40x20x16. Even with socks it still gets a little dirty down there. I think I'll try some of the vacuuming ideas posted earlier. Karmma for having to go thru that today.

 

[billyr98]

i think this might be a good project for this weekend, thanks woodstock for reminding me