Ok so I'm half way through a fish in cycle. 0 ammonia, nitrite over 5ppm, nitrate 80 ppm. So I'm almost there it's just my filter is clogged. I've tried rinsing it and it's still clogged. It's not flowing correctly. If I change the filter is the cycle kaput? What to do??
Filter Trouble Mid Cycle
- Thread starter G-skrilla
- Start date
What kind of filter is it? The important part is to keep the bio media from that filter. Would you be upgrading or anything? If not you can buy the same filter and instead of using the stuff that comes with it, use the media from your old filter and you should be good.
It's a topfin 20. It is a 3 stage filtration in one cartridge. I would have to dissect it to get to the bio filter in the center of the cartridge.???
It's a topfin 20. It is a 3 stage filtration in one cartridge. I would have to dissect it to get to the bio filter in the center of the cartridge.???
The stuff in the center is not the bio filter, that's just activated carbon (the "chemical" stage). You take the whole entire old cartridge and stick that in the new filter, if you buy the same brand and size that is. The "biological" part of the cartridge is pretty much the entire thing, bacteria aren't very picky about where they live on the cartridge.
Well I'm staying with the same filter I just need a cartridge that's not clogged so water doesn't continue to spill out of the filter. You know, more than what's supposed to be returned to the tank. I guess I should take my cartridge that is clogged and try to clean it out but there us going to come a point when I need to replace it. How do I maintain the bio filter. Should I take peices of the clogged Cartridge and put them in the new one?
Oooooh the actual pad is clogged, not the filter. Sorry, I read your post wrong, I thought the machine itself clogged not the cartridge insert. Yeah I used to have that Top Fin filter when I first started keeping fish. To be honest when I had it I would just throw out the whole cartridge thing and replace it with new. I know now that that isn't good to do, but I also have a new, better filter that doesn't clog up and make the inserts useless like the Top Fin ones do. But when I threw away the whole pad nothing bad happened, I'm guessing there was enough bacteria living on other places in the filter to recolonize the new cartridge.
If I remember correctly, the top fin filters have a small sponge that sits in front of the disposable cartridge, right? You might be able to throw away the old cartridge without too much damage if you have that sponge.
[sub]... and if you're ever looking into a new filter, look at the Aquaclear, you can actually clean it[/sub]
If I remember correctly, the top fin filters have a small sponge that sits in front of the disposable cartridge, right? You might be able to throw away the old cartridge without too much damage if you have that sponge.
[sub]... and if you're ever looking into a new filter, look at the Aquaclear, you can actually clean it[/sub]
Yeah I didn't explain that to good. Sorry. But yeah so you think I can chunk it. I need to get a sponge I don't have one. Just the cartridge. I'm gonna see about getting something like those Bio-Chem stars?
Hmm I'm not sure if you should throw the whole entire thing out. Maybe try to cut a piece of the pad off and float/stuff/cram it in in the filter box somewhere along with the new filter cartridge.
The stars would be OK as long as you have another filter pad in there too, since they'd let particles flow right past them instead of being filtered out.
The stars would be OK as long as you have another filter pad in there too, since they'd let particles flow right past them instead of being filtered out.
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