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Ok Im having a problem, I had pebbles when I first got my girl, her name is Donatella, I noticed she was eating them so I got rid of them, but now that I have only the shinny marble flat beads in there I can't seem to get the stuff out of the bottom, I even bought gravel vaccum but it doesn't seem to work, do any of you have any idea on how to get all of that out?

I use this battery powered gravel vac and think it does a good job of picking up stuff. Is this what you've been using?

http://www.drsfostersmith.com/product/p ... atid=12753

Generally speaking, the less stuff you have on the bottom the easier it is to keep clean. I think most people wind up with just a few river rocks and some decorations on the bottom.

Yeah I dont have really much of anything on the bottom of mine, but the one im using is the one that you completely emerge in water and then it starts taking the water out, I think I might have to buy me one of those, thanks for the tip though

Sounds like what you're using is a syphon. I think the battery powered vac is stronger and I know it's a heck of a lot easier to use.

yeah thats what it is, great Im going to go get me one, do you know if they would sell them at petstores? Or would I have to get it online?

I don't know about petstores. You might find one there. I haven't seen it at the stores I shop at.

yeah me either (I haven't seen it in stores) and I have been keeping my eye out for a more powerful vacuum. My tank is on the floor so a regular syphon won't work(water won't flow up). I just got done doing a quick cleaning in my tank and I have to bail water out by hand and use a fish net to skim the water. Really annoying. I only have a 20 long so I can't imagine how annoying that would be in an even bigger tank. I will definatly check out the one at drsfostersmith.com, because I have used that company for bird supplies before and like them (the only place I can reliably get my favorite brand pellets for both parrots and parakeets!!)

trust me its even more annoying with a bigger tank! thats what i have to use on my fourty five armed with only a fish net and a five gallon bucket. it takes two hours for a full clean to remove, rinse and refill! and i need to upgrade Rolo;s tank soon becasue she's getting too big for it ( i know i talk about it ALL the time but i just don;t have the spare money untill after school ends for the summer) i think i'm sticking with my stock tank idea becasue it has a drain then i can just set the five gallon underneath it instead of constantly scooping it out. though i wish i could find a clear tank with a plug! lol that would be awesome!

Dein211, have I got good news for you! Here's a device that will save your life:

http://www.bigalsonline.com/StoreCatalo ... 0&offset=0

Most of the people on here use Pythons to drain and refill their big tanks. When I'm draining Spot's tank, I use it like a syphon with a really long hose and let the water drain out the back door into the yard. When refilling the tank, I attach the Python to the kitchen sink and just turn on the water. It's ever so simple.

It's possible to drain the water into the sink with a Python but that didn't work as well for me as letting it drain outside. You might try it both ways and see what works for you.

I like your plan to get a stock tank. If you had a Python you wouldn't need one with a plug and that would increase your options manyfold.