1. Purchasing fish that feed off of algae is a good plan to take care of an algae problem in your aquarium. You could also try cutting back the amount of lighting in the aquarium or get an algae treatment chemical to take care of any algae problems.
2. It is not a good idea to wash your filter media with regular tap water. The tap water can kill the beneficial bacteria that is built up in the filter. Use distilled water to clean out your filter and its components.
3. You should be sure to rinse out all of the materials you are going to be placing in the aquarium with water. Do not use soap or detergents, soap can cause toxic results for the fish in your aquarium. Just rinse the equipment with distilled water.