How often do you tear apart your tank?

[hstormont]

How often do you tear apart your tank and do a good cleaning or is it unncessary? I have had my tank for a year and never taken it apart. I have a scratch on the front glass from the magnet cleaner I think, and was thinking about putting that side to the back, but I don't know if I would end up losing fish and corals if I were to mess with taking it apart. THe scratch has algae in it and makes it look worse that it did when it first happened. Any advice? I would have to totally redo my rockwork to do this.

 

[travis89]

IMO, its not worth the effort just for that, I would just deal with it. I never completely tear my tank apart to clean, just use a powerhead and blow the rocks off really well every couple months.

 

[alix2.0]

i rip my tank apart a couple times a month, for various reasons.
how big is your tank? if its like a 20 or something go for it, but if its like a 55+ and gonna be a major project then probably not worth it. but the backs probably going to be even more scratched up.

 

[hstormont]

Do you think I would lose any fish doing this? What do I do with everything, just put it in a bucket with a pump? How do you lay out your rockwork with corals on it? Can they be out of water while I decide how to arrange them?
Is there anyway to get algae out of the scratch? THanks

 

[alix2.0]

when i do it i use these flat rubbermade bins (like the kind people keep clothes in under their beds) filled with saltwater from the tank. and i just set all the rock & coral down in there. its nice because you can see everything & the corals dont get buried. if all your doing is taking the rocks & corals out, and rotating the tank your fish will be fine. just try to be gentle when removing the rocks so you don't cause a massive ----storm.

 

[coral keeper]

I don't think its worth doing all that for a single scratch. The back will probably be more scratched up than the front.

 

[wangotango]

If the tank is acrylic there are kits out there that can buff out the scratch without you having to drain the tank. If it's glass you're not so lucky.
-Justin

 

[scrapman]

Lot of stress on the fish. Not worth it IMO.

 

[itom37]

I doubt you'd lose anything if you did it quickly. A 29 gallon wouldn't be that big of a project. Find an hour next weekend and rip it up. If you're sitting there staring at the scratch when you should be staring at your beautiful tank, you should do something about it.