Full aquarium change

Question
I have a 40 gallon tank with about 10 fish.  I am thinking about adding an under gravel filtration to help with getting rid of algae.  I am also considering tearing down my tank and scrubbing the rock and side walls of the tank to also rid the algae.  Is this a good idea?  I know it will stress my fish out.  If there is an easier way to get rid of the algae with out having to tear down the tank let me know.  We have 2 algae eater and a pleco.  Plus an assortment of other fish.  Let me know of any ideas to get rid of algae off of rocks.  Also how would I get my under gravel filtration in if I do not tear down the tank?   Thank you for your help.  Water changes occur about every 2 weeks with 5 gallons out.  I have a bio filter.

Answer
Hi Andrew;

A full aquarium change is very stressful to the fish and destroys the biological balance of the tank. Even if the fish survive the initial full change-out and refill, they can become very stressed and die as a result of the tank going through the break-in period as the system tries to stabilize again. It can take several weeks. I don't think it's all necessary anyway. There are other sensible methods for controlling algae that are far less drastic. It just takes patience and a little work.

I've never heard of adding an undergravel filter to help with algae. In my opinion it just doesn't make sense. I have nothing against using UG, it's just that there are much better filters to use and adding a UG to an already established tank is just far too disruptive. Is there a new school of thought about this that I don't know about yet?  Let me know...

Anyway, algae thrives on fish waste. It's basically natural fertilizer for it. Water changes once a week, gravel vacuuming, avoiding overcrowding, and avoiding overfeeding are all things to examine that affect algae growth. Also, lighting hours effect algae growth. If you could tell me more about your system and the fish I could help you work your way through this and help with the algae problem. I need to know;

What kind of fish do you have? How big are they?
What is the water temperature?
What is the nitrate reading on your tank water? Ask your fish store to test it for you and tell you the actual reading. (We need nitrAte, not nitrIte, they are different)
What kind of food do you feed? How often?
How long does it take for the fish to eat all the food you put in?
How long do you leave the tank lights on every day?
Is the tank near a window?

Let me know as much as you can and we can go from there...

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins