Clear Water Problem

[proton]

Hi Everyone, when my eheim 2026 started leaking I got the Eheim Ecco 300, now I have a clear water problem. The problem I have is that the water is always "milky" very very small particles of "something" are always floating around the tank. I wash the filter every week so is the filter not filtering these small particles of "stuff" in the take? Anyone have any ideas what is causing this?

 

[KirkyArcher]

For some very strange reason Eheim seem to promote having various stages of bacterial filtration (though they describe it more as mechanical) in the system prior to decent mechanical media, the Ecco 300 diagram shows a single coarse sponge ring at the top of the filter inlet then it's various "Mech pro noodles both plastic and ceramic" in the bottom trays these are very limited at clearing particulate waste, even Eheim Fix is very coarse media, buy some medium foam matting from your LFS cut it to shape and put it in the bottom tray with a Eheim synth (filter floss/wool) layer on top of that in the same tray (I'd throw away the mech pro stuff to be honest) fill remaining trays with decent sintered glass biological media and if you feel the need a further synth (filter floss/wool) layer on top of the top tray just before the water will exit the filter. With this set up you can easily go 4-6 weeks without the need to clean your filter, sometimes over cleaning will not only remove good bacteria levels it will open up the flow as the open pores of the clean media will allow particles through until they get bunged up and restrict their path through the media and only then the process of cleaning will be wringing out of the sponges and floss.
and ontop of all that your 300 has a lower turnover of water per hour to the tune of 200 litres/hour less

 

[fluttermoth]

How are you washing the filter, exactly? What media do you have in there?

 

[proton]

On most occasions I wash it with the exiting water of the tank, and once a month I will clean it in the sink with a spare brush (the impellor) and then place water conditioner in the filter when I do that with a water change.
 
I have the standard media in there and one floss cleaner in the top basket. But I will definately try KirkyArcher's suggestion.

 

[dave840f1]

When you say you clean it in the sink what water are you using. Not direct out of the tap I hope as this will kill off all the bacteria.

 

[ech0o]

Yea what I am hearing is you keep rinsing your bacteria off of the pad once a month with tap water?

 

[proton]

Yes, about once a month. Most times I just clean the filter that way and don't do a water change. Yes I know I wash off all the bacteria and have been doing this for many years now without any deaths.

 

[fluttermoth]

You've been very lucky then, if you're washing all the media, and not just the floss part.

If you are washing all the media, then your cloudy water is most likely a bacterial bloom caused by an excess of nutrients that would usually be used up by the filter bacteria.

 

[proton]

You've been very lucky then, if you're washing all the media, and not just the floss part.

If you are washing all the media, then your cloudy water is most likely a bacterial bloom caused by an excess of nutrients that would usually be used up by the filter bacteria.

 
I never used to have this problem till I changed the filter (from eheim pro 2 2026 to ehime ecco pro 300). So I assumed it was the filter but still wanted to ask the forum.

 

[dave840f1]

You should wash your filter in water from your aquarium.DO NOT put water straight from tap into your filter only use water from aquarium.