How do I clean my Biorb?
21 March 2010
9 Comments
I have a 30L Biorb, it is really looking dirty with algae all round it, I am unsure how to clean it? My friend has one and she takes the fish out and all the stones etc and cleans the whole thing?! didnt think you were suppose to do that??!! So I thought I better check with some people who hopefully do know?! I only have 2 goldfish (they are huge!!)
You are right, you are not supposed to do a complete clean out and tear down. This removes all the beneficial bacteria that are helpful in the natural cycling of the tank. It forces the tank to go completely through the cycling process every time you do it. Not good for the fish. Lots of stress as the ammonia, nitrites and nitrates spike over and over.
I have tanks that have been set up for over 6 years without a complete teardown. Just get your self a brand new scrubbie and gently remove the algae from the sides. Then siphon half the gravel. The gravel siphoning will remove water and the excess toxins. Never take out more than 1/3 of the water, but do it every week. Gravel siphoning every 3-4 weeks (1/2 each time).
just do what ur friend does. that is what i do to clean my tank about once a month. it never seems to hurt my fish. and i no it wont hurt urs cus goldfish are quite hardy
It’s best to vacuum the gravel, scrape the sides of the tank, and change a portion of the water each week. Unfortunatley these bio-orbs are designed for form instead of function and this can be more difficult with them, but it shouldn’t be too much of a problem either.
Hi, I have a biorb (60l) and we had this problem. have you changed the filter recently ? with the ‘service packs’ you now get an aloe vera gel and another one (not sure what it is) but after changing the filter and adding these sachets the water is now really clear.
If it is really dirty I would put the fish (and the water from the tank) into another container (with the air stone) clean your orb out, change filter etc, fill up (not forgetting a chlorine remover, ie tapsafe) and leave for 24 hours, then put your fish back in.
It is also safe to change half the water again adding tapsafe to the new water, hope this helps
Firstly, a biorb is actually unsuitable for goldfish as it is not big enough. All goldfish reach 25-30cms in length and ‘normal’ goldfish need a minimum of 3ft long tank. Fancy varieties, may be ok for a short while in the largest biorb, as they don’t need as much swimming length as they are much slower……
However, you have them now and presumably don’t have a bigger tank, so lets help you clean the one you’ve got!
Your friend is doing the wrong thing so please take my advice and then pass it on to her afterwards!
Firstly, biorbs need a water change once a week, however, you only need to change a third of the water. In fact, you should never change more than 50% of water at any one time because more than this stresses out the fish.
You also should not remove the fish or the rocks! In a biorb, the rocks are the actual filter, the friendly bacteria essential for making your water save for the fish, live in all the tiny holes in the rock. The water gets pulled down through the rocks and the bacteria break down all the muck. If you wash the rocks in anything other than dirty tank water, you kill these friendly bacteria with the chlorine in the tap water and its the same as having no filter at all and the wastes can build up to dangerous levels in the tank and kill your fish or at the very least stress them out and shortern their lives.
I would begin by wiping the inside of the plastic bowl with a spongy cloth to remove the algae without scratching the surface. Then, using a length of tubing or a small gravel cleaner, syphon a third of the water into a bucket, leaving the fish happily swimming about. Tip this water away and then refill the bucket to the same amount with tap water, adding some tap water conditioner (such as Nutrafin aqua plus or stress coat) and ideally Nutrafin Cycle (which keeps the levels of bacteria stable) into the bucket first. Then, all you have to do is gently pour the water from the bucket back into the biorb using a jug or mug so as not to swirl the fish around.
That’s it! Much less hassle, happier fish and will probably only take half an hour at the most!
Just so you know, goldfish need a little bit of live plant in their diet (cabomba or elodia) like the fluffy pond weed and should only be fed a small amount once a day or ideally, once every other day. If you have fancy (rounded & fatter) goldfish, they should not be fed flake foods or pellets from the surface as sucking in air at the same time as the food can lead to swimbladder or bouyancy problems. You can still feed flake, but you must hold your hand under the surface of the water so that the fish take it mid-water instead of from the surface.
Hope this helps! Good luck! :-)
‘Laughing_Fish’ and ’8 in the corner’ are both absoultely right. I would also recommend getting a couple of loaches as they are algae eating and will help keep your tank all nice and clean.
Invest in a plec you only need a small one it will keep algae in check in the future and they don’t mind gold fish you can by and algae scraper ti’s basically a scouring pad on the end of a plastic stick, and by using that you don’t even have to take the fish out and the pieces of algae will just get sucked up by the filter system you normally only get algae on a fish tank that has sun light on it my advice is to move it to some ware with a little less sun.
Hope this helps.
Why not go to http://www.biorb.com and follow their guide?
We have a 60L biorb with 4 minnows – no problems. We only need to clean it and change the filter every 3 months. Avoid Goldfish – too dirty…
The whole purpose of the biorb was low maintenance. So you get form AND function. If you have lost the instruction manual – contact the company – they are really helpful and will fax/email a replacement I’m sure.
Keep it out of direct sunlight, be careful which fish you put in it and you will be maintenance free for 3 months.
Only big issue we have is getting the filter kits in Canada or more particularly in NS. Amazon.com sell a six pack for $49.99 but guess what – they don’t ship them to Canada and Amazon.ca don’t sell them…
DO NOT get plecs or bottom feeders for the Biorb! the substrate (gravel) used for the Biorb will kill them, as it is too rough for their delicate underbodies. It also damages their nose bristles that help them to feed.
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