Aquarium Cleaning

Cleaning The Plastic Plants in The Aquarium

More and more people today are fond of buying fish tank or aquarium. They are mostly found in different homes, in a workplace and most importantly in a Chinese home. Chinese believe that an aquarium can help reduce stress and provides a calm and peaceful environment. However, owning an aquarium also instills some other responsibilities and one of the responsibility is maintaining a clean fish tank.

Fish tanks are not that hard to clean as long as you have the willingness to do the work and as long as you’re organized. Compared to other parts of the aquarium, the more difficult to clean are the artificial plants and other decorations as they can be too small. Algae and mold can easily penetrate these artificial plants. Well, worry no more because here are the few tips in cleaning an aquarium plant.

The things that you will need are fishnet, tap water, tooth brush and paper towel.
Here are the instructions:

  • Make sure to unplug any electrical connections present in your fish tank. Remove the filter and pump and other large decorations.
  • Carefully get the plastic aquarium plants with the use of your fishnet. You can also use your bare hands, whichever way will do as long as you’re comfortable with it. Most people prefer to use their hands. Place the artificial plants inside a large bowl or you can also place it in your sink.
  • With the use of running water, wash the plastic plants to help remove any dirt or debris present in the plants. Running water is more ideal as the force can easily remove any algae or debris that stick to the plants.
  • Start scrubbing the aquarium plants with your bare hands to further remove any debris. It may feel a little slippery but it is an effective tool in loosing algae. Place the debris in the garbage can.
  • Continue scrubbing the aquarium plants and use a soft brittle toothbrush to force any algae or debris that is penetrating deeply into the plants. Some debris are hard to take off, using a toothbrush will help a lot.
  • Rinse the artificial plants with a warm tap water for the final touch. If it still feels slimy, brush it off again. But if the plants are already clean, wash it with warm water and allow it to dry with the use of a paper towel or a soft cloth. Keep it dry for at least 15 minutes or until completely dry.
  • Once the aquarium plants have dried up already, carefully put it back inside the aquarium according to your preferred design.

It is important to avoid any forms of bleach or detergent in cleaning the aquarium plants. Avoid harsh chemicals or strong cleaning solutions. Remember that fishes love to hide in these artificial plants, the hard solutions might kill the fishes in the fish tank. A small amount of chemicals left in the aquarium plants can already result to huge damage with the fishes. Another simple way to clean the aquarium plant is to place it in the dishwasher.

VIDEO: Cleaning the aquarium plants

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