Filter Changing/cleaning

[homerhotspur]

I have had the original filter cartridge running for about 4 months now. The water is still flowing well. It does look a bit of a mess though and I am very tempted to change for a new cartridge which the instructions say should be done every month. I realise this is, however, not recommended and have done the cleaning in tank water thing a couple of times. The problem is , last time I did this, I had a Nitrite spike which has taken a couple of weeks to settle down with more regular water changes.

The question is , when should I change the cartridge.(this consists of 1 green and 1 white sponge foams). Presumably, there must come a time when it is beneficial to do so?

 

[lordofthesea]

It is a good idea to change it every so often but not nearly as much as you have been told. The nitrite spike is due to there being no filter bacteria to break it down and can be fatal to fish. the best idea is to clean both in a bucket of water you have taken from the tank during a water change. this keeps it clean but also does not harm the bacteria. NEVER wash the filter in tap water as the same nitrite and ammonia spikes will happen all too often. change the media every six months or so if you feel you need to but only change one at a time. I have had the same media in my filters for 3 years and the washing in tank water is all that is really necessary to maintain efficient filtration.

Hope this helps!

 

[OldMan47]

The typical answer is to replace filter media when it will no longer stay intact when you rinse it in tank water. If flows are good, the build up of solids on your filter is not enough yet to warrant even rinsing it out in tank water. The rinse we are talking about is not a thorough scrubbing, it is only taking the sponge and swishing it around to get the worst of the dirt off the surface. I will usually give the media a squeeze to get the worst of the buildup out of the interior of the sponges. A thorough enough cleaning, even in tank water, may remove more of the bacterial film than is desirable and could have led to the nitrite spike.

 

[mark.w.jones]

The green sponge is probably a nitrate removing sponge whilst the other one is probably normal. The nitrate removing sponges are impregnated with something to remove excess nitrate from the water but this deteriorates over time hence the company saying they need regular replacement. They do if you want them to continue removing nitrate. However, excess nitrate is usually not an issue especially in a heavily planted tank so most people remove this sponge and replace it with a regular one. What filter do you have? Is it possible to replace just the sponges or is there a whole clip in cartridge to remove and replace? It is a very bad idea to replace all your sponge in one go as you lose a big load of bacteria in one hit and ideally should replace no more than about a third at a time.

 

[homerhotspur]

The green sponge is probably a nitrate removing sponge whilst the other one is probably normal. The nitrate removing sponges are impregnated with something to remove excess nitrate from the water but this deteriorates over time hence the company saying they need regular replacement. They do if you want them to continue removing nitrate. However, excess nitrate is usually not an issue especially in a heavily planted tank so most people remove this sponge and replace it with a regular one. What filter do you have? Is it possible to replace just the sponges or is there a whole clip in cartridge to remove and replace? It is a very bad idea to replace all your sponge in one go as you lose a big load of bacteria in one hit and ideally should replace no more than about a third at a time.


It is a Tetratec easycrystal cartridge and I think the Green and white filters are joined together. The idea is that they can easily be replaced in one action. Not sure if I can easily separate them. Will have to open one of the packs to check.

 

[mark.w.jones]

If they have to be replaced all in one go I would advise you leave them as long as possible before doing so, until they are falling apart. Then squeeze as much of the gunk fom your old sponge into the new one before replacing it as you can.