best way to clean cheatoe

o0jmadr0x0o · 11/24/2009, 09:49 PM

every time i trim down my cheatoe a gang of detritus pours out of it. it is in a 50g fuge, so there is a lot of cheatoe. is there a good way for my to pull out the whole mass of it and get all the crap out without killing all the microfauna in it?

Dzel · 11/24/2009, 09:51 PM

I just tumble mine with a power head and it doesn't get anything in it

o0jmadr0x0o · 11/24/2009, 10:41 PM

i have a maxijet 1200 with the mod and a sieo 820 pointing right at it. i think if anything this just pushes more deitrus into the cheatoe

Frogmanx82 · 11/25/2009, 12:37 AM

Wash it in a bucket of rodi water. Mine doesn't seem any worse off for a quick freshwater dip and you can kill off some unwanted pests. Comes out very clean.

Alternately, you could wash it in tank water from a water changes.

1904 · 11/25/2009, 12:41 AM

anyone think it is better to leave it dirty as not to kill off any helpful bacteria/?
I like the look of clean chato but if its bad to rinse it.

ludnix · 11/25/2009, 02:15 AM

The bacteria in there would be pretty negligible, you might worry about other animals like stomatellas, stars, pods and worms living it, but even those are not going to have a big impact by losing them.

I leave mine alone and it manages to stay clean on it's own. I'm not entirely sure why, but I seem to have a higher turn over rate in my sump than most people. there is a huge amount of pods and worms running through as well which I imagine help devour any detritus.

11/24/2009, 09:49 PM	#1
o0jmadr0x0o Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: bergen county NJ Posts: 318	best way to clean cheatoe every time i trim down my cheatoe a gang of detritus pours out of it. it is in a 50g fuge, so there is a lot of cheatoe. is there a good way for my to pull out the whole mass of it and get all the crap out without killing all the microfauna in it? __________________ 75g mixed Current Tank Info: 75g

11/24/2009, 10:41 PM	#3
o0jmadr0x0o Registered Member Join Date: Mar 2006 Location: bergen county NJ Posts: 318	i have a maxijet 1200 with the mod and a sieo 820 pointing right at it. i think if anything this just pushes more deitrus into the cheatoe __________________ 75g mixed Current Tank Info: 75g

11/25/2009, 12:37 AM	#4
Frogmanx82 Registered Member Join Date: Jul 2009 Location: Charlotte, NC Posts: 1,515	Wash it in a bucket of rodi water. Mine doesn't seem any worse off for a quick freshwater dip and you can kill off some unwanted pests. Comes out very clean. Alternately, you could wash it in tank water from a water changes. __________________ Exodus 8:2 Check my homepage for tank pics and details. Current Tank Info: 90 gallon, 2x maxspect R420R LED, 4 Ocellaris Clowns, Yellow Eye Kole Tang, Flame Angel, Foxface Rabbitfish, Banggai Cardinals, Azure Damsel, rock flower anemone, cleaner shrimp, serpent star

11/25/2009, 12:41 AM	#5
1904 Registered Member Join Date: Nov 2008 Location: caifornia san diego Posts: 59	been wondering about this anyone think it is better to leave it dirty as not to kill off any helpful bacteria/? I like the look of clean chato but if its bad to rinse it.

11/25/2009, 02:15 AM	#6
ludnix Registered Member Join Date: May 2007 Location: California Posts: 3,031	The bacteria in there would be pretty negligible, you might worry about other animals like stomatellas, stars, pods and worms living it, but even those are not going to have a big impact by losing them. I leave mine alone and it manages to stay clean on it's own. I'm not entirely sure why, but I seem to have a higher turn over rate in my sump than most people. there is a huge amount of pods and worms running through as well which I imagine help devour any detritus. __________________ -Eric Sutter Current Tank Info: 14g Biocube

11/24/2009, 09:51 PM	#2
Dzel Moved On Join Date: Apr 2009 Posts: 69	I just tumble mine with a power head and it doesn't get anything in it