# Newbie question about fish poop buildup.



## boringname (Nov 11, 2010)

I bought my first aquarium around 6 months ago. I know your supposed to start with a 20g but I saw a 10g metaframe and fell in love with it. To do something different I have all NA native fish. 6 months in the fish are all healthy and the bio-filtration is fine. My plants aren't doing that well but I think I understand what I did wrong and am working on that. My big question right now is what do I do with all the fish poop. I mean, it has to be building up, right?

When I bought the tank I figured I could vacuum it up with a gravel vac. I now believe the gravel vac concept is fatally flawed. If the suction is strong enough to pick up poop it picks up gravel too. If its weak enough to leave the gravel alone it won't pick up any poop. So I'm trying to figure out what happens to all the poop. Also, until the weather got colder the tank was beginning to smell a little. I am assuming that is poop buildup. I know a carbon filter will fix it but I'm looking for a solution that goes deeper.

So I basically want to know what to expect in the future poopwise and how the old timers deal with this issue.

I'd also like to know if I made a mistake using a sponge filter. Its working fine as for bio filtration but I'm wondering if maybe with a HOB filter all the stuff that gets stirred up in water changes might be going into the filter and get eliminated that way. Or something along those lines.

One more thing, some people claim plants have magic poop eating powers. If I get the bottom covered with plants such as tennelus will that take care of the poop? Just looking for voices of experience here. I figure I'll get another tank within a year and want to make sure I do it right.


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## MrMoneybags (Apr 13, 2010)

the poop breaks down over time into ammonia(um) --> nitrate

plants eat both ammonia(um) and nitrate

you dont necessarily have to gravel vac out your tank...but water changes are recommended to keep the nitrates from building up over time.

if you want to get [more] plants thats fine, as is your filter...but the more water changes and plants you have the cleaNer your water will be


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## lauraleellbp (Feb 3, 2008)

Yes, a carpeting plant will eliminate the need to vacuum the gravel. Though IME carpeting plants will do much, much better in nutrient-containing substrates rather than plain gravel.

Yes, better filtration (increasing flow and better mechanical filtration) will help reduce debris buildup. You can work with just sponge filters, but you need to clean them often, and you won't get as good flow in a tank as you would with a HOB or canister filter. I believe most people that use sponge filters in planted tanks also incorporate powerheads to help with flow.

Yes, you still need to do good water changes to keep the DOC buildups from causing water quality issues and encouraging algae.

Scavengers like shrimp and snails can also help, though IDK what fish you've got so IDK what/if shrimp would be safe in your tank.

I LOVE metaframe tanks!! roud:


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