External Filter Broken! How To Keep Media And Tank Ok? Urgent Help

[philb]

my external filter has packed up!

Its been messing around for a few months! I have a half old and half new media in there, its not been working since i replaced the old media about a month ago?

Is the the media in this filter going to have no bacteria nd goodies etc like it should?

Ive also had an internal running for a day with new media in?

What is my best option?

Replace external with new media
Replace external with some old and new
Replace external with new media and some form internal filter?
or just running the external if i can fix it, and leave the internal to bacteria-up just incase the external breaks again! So i have some media colonised in case i require a new external filter!

Its just hard to say whether the external filter has been running or not over the last month or so, as the flow has been neglible. So i dont know what to do in order to bacteria-up my media and keep the fish happy!

PLEASE HELP!!

 

[DarkEntity]

Im confused, you say its been messing around, then you say its not been working, which is it? If its not been working at all for a month then the bacteria in the media will be dead. The internal has only been running a day with new media then that will have a little bacteria not a lot.

 

[philb]

Well its been running really slow, and then stopped as it was clogged! So unclogged and was running very slow for around a month! Now ive just found that theres a clogged pipe, so pup on new pipes and attachments and it seems to be running ok, not quite good as new, but on the way!

So should this media still be ok in the filter, is been in tank water and had a small flow through it?

Cheers

 

[WILDER]

If the filter not been running most of the benefical bacteria could of died off.
I would still add the old sponges to the new one.

 

[Spooky76]

If your external filter has a higher throughput than the internal, put all your media in your external as it will cope easier, then put new media in your internal and leave that running also.

You might be lucky though.

Just to note I have an external eheim 2234 which does get clogged / slowed down easily. Everyweek I remove ALL the pipes and run the small brush thing through them. Even when they dont look clogged up it being alot of crud out. It only cost about £4 and makes the filter run alot quicker.

Maybe add that to your weekly maintenance