[HOME] HOW TO CARE FOR AUSTRALIAN FRESHWATER TORTOISES
Page 9 LIVING QUARTERS (continued)
Vacuuming the Tank
Small amounts of waste matter or uneaten food may often accumulate at the bottom of the tank, particularly in between rocks. These may be removed without having to clean out the whole tank, by "vacuuming" the tank.

You will need a piece of clear plastic tubing, one to one and a half metres long (depending on the size of the tank to be cleaned), and one centimetre in diameter. This tubing is readily available in aquarium shops. You will also need a bucket and possibly something to stand the bucket on.

Completely submerge the plastic tubing in the tank water. It must fill with water. You can see whether there are any air bubbles in it; wiggle the tubing until they escape.

Leaving one end under water, put your thumb firmly over the other end, allowing no air into the tube. Take this closed end out of the water and lower it into the bucket, making sure that the open end is still in the water.   The bucket must be at a lower level than the tank, so that when you release your thumb the tank water is sucked through the tube and down into the bucket.

The tank end of the tube will now suck in the dirt with the water. It is surprising how strong this vacuum can be. It can attract quite large pieces of gravel if you are not careful : these block the tubing and prevent the passage of dirty water. So keep the vacuum away from the gravel : stir up the dirt a little with your hand as you hold the tube, and it will float upwards to be vacuumed away into the bucket.

To stop vacuuming, merely lift the tank end of the tubing up and out of the water, and let the last of the water remaining in the tube run into the bucket.

Of course this process lowers the water level.   Replace the dirty water you have taken out with clean water of the same temperature as the water in the tank, and conditioned with a little salt and calcium.

Algae on tank sides.
If green fuzzy algae begin to grow on the glass sides of the tank, it is easily removed by using a scouring pad, not steel wool. Don't use the same one that's used for washing up! Keep a clean new one especially for the purpose. Make sure it's not contaminated with detergent.
NOTE: Algae is not harmful to tortoises. However, its presence might indicate that it's time to clean the tank.

Sea-turtle