Cleaning new gravel for a fish tank is essential for eliminating dust. Proper cleaning leaves you with safe and crystal-clear water. Clean gravel prevents fish from eating tiny dust particles, which can make them sick.
It’s easy to clean aquarium gravel. The most essential components are a bucket, hose, strainer, and half an hour of time.
A clean bucket keeps the gravel uncontaminated. The hose quickly and efficiently separates gravel from dust. The strainer further eliminates tiny dust particles that like to stick to gravel.
Aquarists shouldn’t forget the dechlorinator, either. New, clean gravel won’t be safe for fish if they get poisoned by the water’s chlorine.
Read below to discover how much gravel is necessary for every aquarium and how to clean it properly. At the end of the process, every aquarist should have fresh, clean substrate.
How To Clean New Aquarium Gravel For A Fish Tank
To clean aquarium gravel, we’ll need to start with the right materials:
- Hose
- 2x clean, 5-gallon buckets or other large containers*
- Rubber or plastic gloves (optional)
- Large kitchen utensil, like a spoon, for mixing (optional)
- Strainer
- Dechlorinator
- Water
- Aquarium gravel
* Designate the 5-gallon bucket for aquarium use only. Doing this protects the aquarist and the fish. Fish may sometimes carry zoonotic diseases that, while rare, can harm humans. Conversely, using old buckets with soap, oil, or other residue inside them can kill fish.
Follow these step-by-step instructions to clean new aquarium gravel:
Before working, we recommend putting on plastic or rubber gloves. They aren’t necessary, though they help keep the hands clean. They also protect against cuts from sharp gravel pieces.
- Dump the substrate into the clean bucket.
- Hobbyists may need to clean their substrate in batches. The bucket should be at most half full with gravel.
- Hook the hose up to the desired faucet — we recommend using an outdoor hose attached to the side of the house.
- Always clean the gravel outside. It won’t harm the lawn in the long run.
Don’t clean gravel in a sink or bathtub, as the dust particles can accumulate and clog the drains.
- It’s helpful to have a hose attachment that sprays high-pressure water. Cleaning goes faster when using one of these.
- Turn the water on and fill up the bucket so that the water completely covers the gravel.
- Begin mixing the gravel in the water using a hand or large utensil.
Mixing the gravel in the water separates the tiny dust particles from the rest of the gravel. Notice that the water becomes dark and foggy.
- Allow the water to keep running while continuously mixing the gravel. The water eventually reaches the top of the bucket and overflows onto the ground.
- Keep mixing the gravel until the water runs clear — this signals that all the dust is all gone.
- Shut off the water and dump as much from the bucket as possible. Place the strainer at the lip of the bucket to catch any gravel that tries to flow out of the bucket.
- Getting all the water out of the bucket won’t be possible — do your best.
The gravel is clean at this point, though it still has a significant amount of dust. Continue rinsing the gravel with a strainer to get rid of as much dust as possible. Follow the steps below:
- Scoop small amounts of gravel into the strainer.
- Using the hose, rinse the gravel in the strainer to filter out small particles that may have been missed.
- Place the rinsed gravel into the second bucket once the water runs clear.
The gravel is now clean, though it needs dechlorinating. A dechlorinator is necessary for any water that contains chlorine or chloramine.
Use a dechlorinator if unsure — it’s better to be safe than sorry.
Follow the steps below to make the gravel safe:
- The gravel in the second bucket should now be clean. Fill the bucket with the clean gravel full of water.
- Add the dechlorinator to the bucket. Follow the directions — they give instructions on how much to use.
- Mix the water and gravel around, ensuring the dechlorinator is thoroughly mixed.
- Allow the bucket of gravel to sit for about half an hour for the water to dechlorinate fully.
- Dump out the water and add the newly cleaned gravel to the tank.
- The cleaning is all done.
Removing all the dust from the gravel is impossible — get as much as you can. After adding the new gravel, the tank may appear cloudy for a day or two.
The bit of dust that remains settles to the bottom of the tank with the gravel and is hardly noticeable.
Extra Tips
Always wash new aquarium gravel, even if the gravel is marketed as “pre-washed.” It’s impossible to know how well the manufacturer cleaned the gravel. Pre-washed gravel often contains dust particles and other debris.
Most hobbyists add gravel to the tank before adding the water. The tank still needs to go through the nitrogen cycle in these cases.
Allow the tank to cycle for about four to six weeks. Any leftover dust has already settled to the bottom of the aquarium by the time cycling is done.
The aquarium should no longer be cloudy at this point.
Why It’s Important To Wash New Aquarium Gravel
It’s important to wash new aquarium gravel because it helps keep the tank clean.
Dust from new gravel is one of the main reasons clean tanks appear dirty. The dust eventually settles to the bottom of the aquarium with the gravel, where it’s difficult to spot.
Every time the aquarist cleans the tank or the fish digs around. The dust reappears, making the water cloudy again.
Filters help remove gravel dust to some extent, though they can never get it all.
How Much Gravel You Need For An Aquarium
The general rule is to have one to two pounds of gravel for every gallon of water.
For example, a 50-gallon aquarium should have 50-100 pounds of gravel. Having this amount of gravel results in a 1.5-3 in (3.8-7.6 cm) thick layer of substrate.
FAQs
What If I Forgot To Rinse New Gravel Before Adding It To The Fish Tank?
Forgetting to clean the gravel before adding it to the tank is not the end of the world.
There are ways to clean the gravel inside the aquarium. It’s harder than cleaning the gravel before adding it to the tank.
The easiest way to get rid of dust inside an aquarium is to use a gravel vacuum.
Using a hand, stir up the gravel so that dust particles float upwards. Use the gravel vacuum to pull the dusty water out of the tank and dispose of it.
Aquarists can also sift through the gravel with the vacuum and suck up dust particles.
Will Unwashed Gravel Kill My Fish?
The dust from unwashed natural gravel is unlikely to kill fish. Dust from artificially-colored gravel might be lethal.
Forgetting to rinse new natural gravel is unideal, though it’s not likely to cause serious harm. It is likely to make the tank look dirtier than it really is.
Dust from artificially-colored gravel may cause water discoloration. It may also be poisonous if ingested by fish.
Artificially-colored gravel is often the cheapest on the market. It isn’t always clear what kinds of chemicals manufacturers use to color the gravel.
Can You Clean Aquarium Gravel & Sand The Same Way?
Aquarists can clean aquarium sand the same way they clean gravel.
Sand is lighter than gravel. Hobbyists should watch their sand more closely as it’s more likely to overflow along with the water.
To avoid sand overflowing, try slowing down the water’s flow.
How Often Should You Clean Aquarium Gravel?
Aquarists should clean their aquarium once every one to two weeks once fish are living in the tank. Cleaning the aquarium every week or so keeps the aquarium healthy enough for the fish.
Use an aquarium vacuum to clean the gravel thoroughly. Gravel vacuums are ideal for getting dirt and waste from between small spaces.
How Do You Clean Rocks For An Aquarium?
Clean large aquarium rocks with vinegar, peroxide, or bleach. Rinsing them off like gravel is not enough.
Vinegar works well for newer rocks that don’t have any dirt or algae build-up. The vinegar kills off anything dangerous hiding inside the rocks.
Peroxide is more potent than vinegar and helps clean off most algae. It’s safer to use than bleach.
It’s best to reserve bleach for rocks with hard, stubborn algae.
