Changed water, stuff floating in tank?

[Zandy94]

Yes hello it's me again. I'm still getting used to all of this so I apoligise for the question spam over the past couple of weeks.

So I changed Lars' water just now, and it kicked up some sand and some bits like feathers (he's kept in my room so the filter must have sucked some from the air, I have a feather pillow case or it was attached to my arm when moving things around), blood worm shells (got these out) and other bits and bobs like floating white/brown parts. My filter doesn't seem to be sucking them up all too quickly, but after a few hours they're gone but I'm worried they're embedding in the sand instead of the filter clearing them. So I'm just wondering if this is a hazard or anything?

 

[keiko]

You'll get all sorts of debris at the bottom of the tank - pieces from plants, stuff flying in, food scraps etc. Filter might get some of it, but mostly you'll just have to siphon it out when doing water changes. If there's a lot of it, it can affect the water quality, but cleaning it out with weekly water changes will keep it under control.

 

[auntiejude]

Sounds like you could use a hand held gravel cleaner - either battery powered or air pump. Easy enough to get hold of at a LFS.

 

[Cacique]

I also think a gravel cleaner like Auntiejude said would work great. I think a gravel vac of the right size for your tank should work.