Mulm....?

[Wrench]

I've heard that some is good for the tank, but how much is too much and how do I tell between it and fish waste when I'm gravel vac-ing the tank? I like to get all of the junk out of the gravel but don't want to pull out any of the mulm if I'm not supposed to. Thx.

 

[djlen]

I don't gravel vac any of my tanks unless I've done a heavy pruning with a lot of plant movement where the substrate gets a bit stirred up. It's just not necessary unless you over feed or have messy fish.
The plants draw nutrients from the mulm and, at least in my tanks, there's never much of a buildup. It seems to break down and get drawn into the substrate under normal circumstances.
If you do feel the need to vacuum, just lightly do the surface without disturbing the substrate.

Len

 

[Wrench]

Ok thanks. It's just hard to get out of the habbit. This is my first planted tank. I'll lightly do the surface to get rid of the Pleco Sausages