Cleaning Gravel

[infinity+1]

Anyone on here know a good way to clean gravel?

I already had it on a sieve and ran water through it until it ran clear but it was making my water very cloudy so i took it out


heres a pic with the gravel in


and now with it out



FarAway said this in another tread and i think he might be right

You may have gotten extremely fine gravel, in which some pieces of the rock weren't heavy enough to sink to the bottom.

Would there be some way of getting rid of these lighter pieces of gravel, right now all the gravel is sitting in a bucket

 

[jpappy789]

Water changes. Should clear it up in a day or two. If you have no fish and have not cycled it may be best to turn off the filter so the fine particles do not damage any of the parts. Otherwise, a prefilter would work to keep those pieces out.

 

[theredchaser]

Just put filter floss over your filter intake and should clear up overnight. A lot of gravel has dust that suspends in the water.

 

[kj5kb]

Got access to a wheelbarrow and a garden hose? They are great for cleaning gravel in. Rinse, agitate, dump the water, repeat til water is clear.

You can do the same with a small amount at a time in a bucket, but IMHO the wheelbarrow works way better.

 

[jm1212]

a bucket and a utility sink works well.

 

[infinity+1]

thanks will try some gravel in a bucket and putting it in the bath

 

[MarkInNC]

Kitchen Sink?

I washed my 50# of gravel, actually rinsed it, at the kitchen sink using a strainer. It took a little while but it seemed to work well.

Sounds like now that you have it in the tank and set up the post suggesting a pre filter would filter the dust out.

 

[bitbot]

Even when it's well-rinsed, it might take a few hours or a day before the water clears.

 

[norfolkboy]

I use the bucket method, stand under a running tap (sorry! faucet) and agitate the gravel with your hand, when the water is cloudy tip it off being careful not to lose the gravel, just repeat until the water is clear. the wheelbarrow method is better if you have a lot to clean. my tank is always clear after filling.

 

[coach_z]

i like to use a strainer and a large pot of water. i put the gravel in the strainer, put the strainer and gravel in the pot and shake the strainer, i then take it all out and have pretty well rinsed rocks.

everyone always adds water to rocks, but rocks are hard to move. i prefer adding rocks to water because water is pretty easy to manage

btw. your tank didnt look overly cloudy...nothing that two nights of filtering and a few water changes couldnt fix