Don't Understand How My Filter Works.

[mark.w.jones]

Have just bought a viaAqua VA - 380 tank as my first ever tropical tank. The instructions that came with it were absolute rubbish though. Might as well have been in German and had no pictures or anything. The filter system is all in the hood. Was hoping some one might tell me what it all does and how to maintain it. Below the spray bar is a layer of black quite coarse sponge. Underneath this is a plastic tray with lots of black gritty stuff in it and cotton wool stuff over the top. (Is this a carbon filter?) Below this is another thin layer of a cotton wool type material. Finally in the bottom is lots of short, 2cm, tubes, like hula hoops made of stone. Any Advice please?

 

[SirMinion]

Yep the black grit is indeed carbon which filters the water chemically, the wool is the mechanical filer for removing large particles and the coarse sponge and the 'stone' (ceramic) tubes are where all the lovely biological filtration goes on when it becomes colonised with beneficial bacteria.

Maintainance is simple; rinse the wool once a week in water taken from the tank and replace it when if becomes too filthy or tatty.
Rinse the tubes & sponge in tankwater once a month or when they are clogged with slime do not be too thorough as this slime is the good bacteria and you need to leave enough to keep the cycle running.

The carbon will also need replacing about once a month but can be left out altogether.

 

[mark.w.jones]

Yep the black grit is indeed carbon which filters the water chemically, the wool is the mechanical filer for removing large particles and the coarse sponge and the 'stone' (ceramic) tubes are where all the lovely biological filtration goes on when it becomes colonised with beneficial bacteria.

Maintainance is simple; rinse the wool once a week in water taken from the tank and replace it when if becomes too filthy or tatty.
Rinse the tubes & sponge in tankwater once a month or when they are clogged with slime do not be too thorough as this slime is the good bacteria and you need to leave enough to keep the cycle running.

The carbon will also need replacing about once a month but can be left out altogether.

Thanks. Even my book about how to keep tropical fish didn't give that detailed advice. Off to try my hand at fishless cycling, just waiting for my master test kit to turn up.