One thing I almost never see being talked about on frog forums, groups, pages, you name it, is proper tank cleaning procedure! We elders in the keeping hobby constantly talk about the need to clean your tank and decor weekly but how do you actually go about doing so? Well, there are quite a few ways you can! So for this week, we are gonna dive into the fun topic of chores (woohoo). I’ll try not to bore you but I feel like this is not a common topic discussed in the community so I hope it helps a bit.
𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐨𝐟𝐭𝐞𝐧 𝐬𝐡𝐨𝐮𝐥𝐝 𝐈 𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐦𝐲 𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐤?
Depending on how many frogs you have, how big your tank is, and how messy your tank gets during the week when you need to clean will vary. For instance, our 100gal WTF community tank gets a deep clean every week because of how messy our babies are. My schedule is a spot clean on Tuesdays, basically just picking up small bits of poop and cleaning any super messy decor. Then on Thursdays, I do a full deep clean where I remove the frogs, wipe down the walls, clean all the decor, and change the cloths on the bottom of the tank. For my smaller tanks, I can get away with deep cleaning every other week. Water bowls are rinsed and refilled or changed every other day for all of the frogs. You will pick up a schedule as you get into the groove, the important thing is to make sure cleanings are happening and kept up.
𝐃𝐞𝐭𝐞𝐫𝐠𝐞𝐧𝐭:
Something I like to use is a store-bought pet detergent cleaner called Wipe Out One by Zoomed. It’s a reptile-safe glass cleaner that I’ve been using for a very long time. I like that it deals with hard water stains, is it perfect at removing them? Nope, but it beats taking a razor blade to them (yes, that’s seriously the best way to remove them). It takes care of bacteria and for someone like me who is paranoid about making sure the tank is very clean I like the added security it gives me about the cleanliness of my glass. There are other brands that you’ll see in stores but this is the brand I picked up and have enjoyed since I first began. I recommend getting yourself a separate spray bottle to put the solution in because the tiny sprayer on the in-store bottles will destroy your fingers trying to spray all over the glass! What I like to do is remove everything from the tank, spray down the walls with the Wipe Out then let that sit for ten minutes. I then go in with water and a paper towel to remove the solution, it’s green so you’ll know you’ve got it all off when there's no more green!
𝐖𝐡𝐢𝐭𝐞 𝐯𝐢𝐧𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐫:
Another solution I have heard works great is white vinegar! From what I understand it’s about the same process as the detergent and it’s a more “natural” option if chemicals worry you around your frogs. Pop it in a spray bottle, spray down your tank walls, let it sit, then remove it with some water. I have also heard that vinegar helps with hard water stains but that is untested on my part.
𝐂𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐚 𝐧𝐞𝐰 𝐭𝐚𝐧𝐤:
If you are upgrading your frogs to or putting a new frog into a pre-used tank, a deep clean is in order. I like to take Dawn Dish Soap and give the used tank a good scrub down. I used to do this outside with a hose, but if you are like me now and do not have that ability, you can use a detachable showerhead to get the job done. I just add soap to the tank walls, give it a good scrub with a sponge, and rinse it down. I’ll rinse it a couple of times dumping the excess water down the drain until the water is sud-free. Then I’ll take a cloth and wipe the tank dry and set it up however I need!
𝐇𝐨𝐰 𝐜𝐚𝐧 𝐈 𝐜𝐥𝐞𝐚𝐧 𝐝𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐫?
For my decor, I have a bin set aside that I use just for soaking the decor pieces. I’ll fill it with hot water and some Dawn, if it can clean oil-covered ducks it can clean poop-covered frog hides! Add everything other than wooden pieces, this works for ceramic, plastic, fake plants, and any made for water decor. I’ll let those soak in the water while I clean the tank and that just allows all the nasty stuff to soften up. After I’m done with the tank I’ll take a designated frog sponge and scrub down the decor pieces and give them a rinse so the soap is no more. Let them dry or dry them off yourself and you’re ready to place them back in the tank!
𝐌𝐲 𝐫𝐞𝐜𝐨𝐦𝐦𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧𝐬:
Something I think every frog owner should have in their cleaning tool belt is a scraper! You can use a credit card but they aren't as durable and paint can chip off. Treat yourself to a plastic scraper, you will thank me when you’re easily removing stuck shed and poop from your glass. For dirt-covered tanks a sand sifter is an awesome purchase as well, I use mine to scoop up poop while I’m spot cleaning.
You don’t have to pick up frog poop with your bare hands and you keep more dirt in your tank! Years ago, I bought the Cold Life Tank Cleaning Kit from Petco. It comes with a scraper, a scrubber, a sponge, a sifter, and a few more items. I still use most of the items to date, it was a great self-gift
A trick for hard water stains or shmutz on the outside of your tank that I have found to work is to use a teeny bit of Windex. Only ever use this on the outside glass of the tank and NEVER inside or places your frogs frequently touch. Get yourself a wet cloth or paper towel, add a teeny drop of Windex (if you have an organic glass cleaner that would be a slightly safer option), then you can go in and gently wipe down the outside glass. Wipe down the wet glass with a dry towel and allow the tank to sit for 10-15 minutes before placing your frog(s) inside. Again, never ever use this on the inside of your tank, this is only for the outside if needed. You should not be doing this every time you deep clean, once a month at most.
𝐃𝐨𝐧'𝐭:
Never. EVER. Use any cleaning solutions meant for home cleaning on your tank or decor. You can easily harm your frog this way especially if the solution includes harsh chemicals like bleach.
Never use bleach on your tank unless it's extremely diluted. If you are needing to use bleach, as in it was vet recommended after a disease outbreak, you must water it down and leave the tank to ventilate for at least 24 hours before placing your frog back in it.
Do not use the same sponge you use for washing dishes to clean your decor, you don’t want food residue on your decor or frog poop on your clean dishes!