I have a few larger aquariums in my maintenance business that are either too far from a sink to do a water change with my vacuum hose or stretching the hose out will cause a trip hazard, especially in retirement centers.
One way to overcome this is to obtain equipment for long distance water changes. This includes:
- Small flatbed cart
- Rubbermaid 30 gallon trashcan
- Appropriately sized basic aquarium vacuum or battery powered vacuum
- Water pump (Ex. Danner Pond Mag 9 – has longer electric cord)
- 1 ¼” sump pump hose and fittings to attach to the pump (See High Volume Water Change Article)
- Clamp
Simply place the trash can on the cart and vacuum the tank into it. Once the tank has been vacuumed, you can use the pump and hose to finish filling the trash can. Once it is full, either take it outside to dump it out or take it to a restroom and pump the water into the toilet. Use the clamp to hold the hose into place if needed. Repeat until the desired amount of water has been removed.
To refill, attach your vacuum hose or another small hose to a sink to fill the trash can, adjusting the temperature to match the tank. Bring this back to the tank and use the water pump to refill. Add chlorine remover and you’re done!
