Cleaning tank

[Aurelie]

Hey,

the water in my three gallon tank is finally ready (got it checked at the fish shop). However there appears to be a lot of dirt and grime over the gravel and white scum around the heater! I dont know whether i should attempt to clean anything because it might change the water chemistry, yet i am getting my fish later on this week and dont want to pop him in a dirty tank! Is it ok to take the gravel out and clean it or would that kill all the bacteria? I dont have a filter for the tank so what is the best method for spring cleaning in the future without sacraficing my fish?

[Grassguy]

Go ahead and change the water, when you do that Vac the gravel. That should clean it just fine.

[TKOS]

As long as the bacteria has food and is kept wet, changing the water isn't a bad thing at all.