Mega Clean

[PlayDoh]

All right, I want to mega clean my main display tank as I am starting to get some bubble algae and I want to re do my rocks. What is the safest way to do this for the fish? Take them all out and put them in a smaller holding tank with a bubbler? Or leave them in there? I would think taking them out and putting them in a strange environment might be super stressful but it would also be stressful being left in there while your entire environment disappears as well. ;) Also I need to scrub the rocks but I don't want to kill all the good stuff inside. Is there a best way to clean the rocks off without killing all the good organisms living in them? (When I say clean, it will just be scrubbing them and rinsing with water.
Thoughts? and thanks!
Mark

 

[Gumbies R Us]

Do you have photos of your tank? Usually taking everything out to do a depe clean is a last resort method. Usually this done when everything is dying or struggling bad in your tank.

I would do water changes and beef up your CUC to get rid of the algae.

 

[PlayDoh]

I have placed every critter known to man inside that tank to take care of the bubble algae. My latest was 2 pothos crabs that as soon as I put them in the tank they went and hid in the cave in the rocks.
Regardless of the clean, I do want to redo the rockscape as well. And yes, I need to get my parameters under control as well.

 

[Mr. Mojo Rising]

I just did this myself, my rocks became infested with bubble and algae and aptaisia, and I also wanted a new rock-scape. I built my rock formation, cycled it in a large plastic tote, then added a damsel for 4 months. This matures the rock enough to handle a bioload, and mature enough to fight off algae growth. I left the fish in the tank while I did this, I thought of removing them buts its too stressful - for me as much as the fish. Also cleaned all machines at the same time, and started using brightwell razor to try to kill off the last of the bubble algae in the overflow where I can't reach, and its working, the few remaining bubbles are dying, I'm so impressed with it.

Thats it in a nutshell, there are different variations of what I did, but basically you want to cycle the rocks in advance to make it as easy as possible on the system.