Cleaning pebbles in fish tank bad or good?

on first buying pebbles i boil them,they are rotten and i find this the best way to clean them,then rinse several times in cold water before putting it tank,in an established set up,i find a gravel cleaner to be sufficient,you just syphon the water up and kinda hoover the gravel,easy,gl cleaners,such as sponges or magnets work wonders,but i would suggest a filter of some kind as otherwise the water pollutes rather rapidly and will end up suffocating your fish.