How Long Will It Take

[evilchild]

just a quick question, my tank is up and running and i'm going to run new filter on the running tank for my new setup, but how long will it take to develop all the good bacteria. i can understand that the longer you leave it the more you will acquire within the filter, but just as a rough gide? (don't want to leave in there for a day or so then swap it over and the filters not got enough bacteria to keep the fish alive?)

 

[WILDER]

To give it a quick start squeeze some benfical bacteria off your mature sponges onto the new ones, but make sure they are wet first in tank water.

 

[Ava_Banana]

No, a day won't be long enough......

...yes it is difficult to put a time on it...it depends on a number of factors....but if it was me...I'd leave it for a week or so.


Alternatively....is there any media you can take out of the filter on the "old" tank and put it in the new filter (maybe half of it).

good luck

 

[evilchild]

i can't do that two different filters one's an external and the other is an internal, but i will run the the new external filter for at least a week, to play safe.

think i may set that filter up this weekend, will the fish notice when it get's taken off the old tank? the water will be a bit stiller and a bit dirtyer i think?

 

[Ava_Banana]

No, it shouldn't make a lot of difference (aside from the decrease in flow) as long as the tank is properly filtered already.....and it isn't for too long (weeks and weeks).

The tank will reach an equillibrium, the beneficial bacteria in the filter will feed off the waste available to it. When you add the new filter, bacteria will begin to develop in the new filter. If you left it in there a long, long time, potentially there would be enough "waste" product to support half as much bacteria in each filter....then when you remove one in a month or so you might get a little mini-cycle.

Nothing to worry about though really. Get it on there as soon as possible to begin populating it with the good stuff.