Am I Killing Bacteria

[jamesmacc]

hi, been doing the same routine for 6 months and all parameters are fine. i cleaned one of my external filters today and the ceramic rings were still very white so i thought i would post up how i change my water and make sure i am not killing bacteria. first i switch everything off and turn the filter taps to shut. then i put the hose in the tank and connect it to my tap, i then send a quick burst of 25 degree water down the hose into the tank and disconnect the tap end to start the siphon. i then drain 50% and clean the substrate. i then mix the water in my sink to 25 degrees and then fill the tank with it via hose, i add one cap full of prime as i start filling and then a cap full as i finish. i then switch on the powerhead to circulate the prime dechloranator. then leave it 5 mins and switch on the filters.
is this ok?

 

[CezzaXV]

Sounds absolutely fine, assuming you're dosing the right amount of Prime (you're dosing enough for a 400L tank). Overdosing is fine.

The dirt you find in filters isnt necessarily the bacteria, it can be the remains of sucked up leaves, fish poop etc. If all your parameters are good and stable then your bacteria is fine.

 

[mattlee]

using the sink as a water storage even only briefly can be a risk if its used for other things. it may have traces of bleach or other chemicals ec from washing up etc
apart from that it sounds fine

 

[Primous]

I'm always confused as to why people clean their filter? I mean sure, if the flow is reduced and the pipes need to be flushed with water or there is a heavy debris in the filter then removing that is obviously necessary. But still, I don't understand why people just routinely clean their filters? That's where the bacs live. Leave them undisturbed and they'll serve you without a hiccup. All that brown stuff covering the media is aquarium bac goodness.

I cleaned my filter tubing once last year because of reduced flow (London limescale) and changed the floss. But other than that I left the filter pretty much as is. I have heard too many stories of people causing spikes in A&N by cleaning so I guess that's why I'm against it.

Just my two pence...

 

[mattlee]

a build up of fish waste, dead leaves and uneaten food that gets sucked into your filter will just sit there and eventually get broken down. while it is in there and being broken down it will increase the nitrate level in the tank. its practically the same as leaving it on the substrate as the filters are connected to the tank making one system. so saying not to clean filters is like saying not to clean the substrate in a way....

too often and you will possibly get caught out with a spike but once every few months is fine

 

[jamesmacc]

using the sink as a water storage even only briefly can be a risk if its used for other things. it may have traces of bleach or other chemicals ec from washing up etc
apart from that it sounds fine

sorry mate shoudl have axplained better.i use the tap in the sink the get the water to exactly 25 degrees and then i connect a hose to the tap. at no point does any water from the sink actualy go into pipe, it comes straight from the temperate matched tap

 

[elmo666]

hmmm, read this one with interest. Your cleaning regime sounds fine, the reason your media is relatively clean is because of attention to detail. As for leaving a filter well alone, well fine for the maturing process, but after that whats the point?? Excessive dirt can only break down into nitrate, too much nitrate stresses fish and can lead to algael issues. It makes perfect sense to give to filter a quick rinse with each water change and keep that nitrate to a minimum.........keep up the good work.

 

[Primous]

hmmm, read this one with interest. Your cleaning regime sounds fine, the reason your media is relatively clean is because of attention to detail. As for leaving a filter well alone, well fine for the maturing process, but after that whats the point?? Excessive dirt can only break down into nitrate, too much nitrate stresses fish and can lead to algael issues. It makes perfect sense to give to filter a quick rinse with each water change and keep that nitrate to a minimum.........keep up the good work.

Completely disagree.

You can control nitrate in a variety of ways and cleaning the filter as little to do with it imo. I've had 0ppm nitrates for over a year without touching my eheim using plants and soil but thats another thread...

 

[ian]

And again n03 doesn't cause algae. I clean mine when flow is reduced, that is it.

 

[elmo666]

if you take the time to read my post I didn't suggest cleaning the filter lowered the no3, but removing unwanted detrius from where ever it collects certainly does help prevent it building up in the first place. Excessive nitrates do encourage algael growth, that is without quedtion. As for waiting for a drop in flow rate before carrying out filter maintainance, well that is like waiting for your car to sieze before changing the oil filter, but each to their I guess. Mine is only an opinion ofcourse, but I do believe in regular tank management and the removal of unwanted waste.

 

[ian]

No, n03 doesn't cause algae growth, ammonia and light cause algae growth. This is a very old way of thinking. Many of us even dose our planted tank with N03 and P04 with any algae growth.

 

[elmo666]

Hi alanho, not wanting to get off post on this one and don't want to appear to be dis-agreeing with you, ad in essence am not. All I am trying to say that in a well balanced tank algae will not generally have a chance to get a foot hold. Excessive lighting, too many nutrients and so on and it will. Nitrate is the end result of the nitrogen cycle and if levels are excessive this encourages algael growth. My preference is to remove as much waste as I can through regular cleaning to keep nitrate levels as low as possible. I take on board your comments and don't disagree with you, just prefer a different approach.

 

[Primous]

@Ianho we're going to have to agree to disagree. In what I've read and from my understanding nitrate is a key ingredient to algae but this isn't the thread to debate that. Though I going to add that like you said, nitrates being an ingredient of certain algae types is "old thinking" and very established science. Nitrates "Not" being an ingredient of algae is "new thinking" and in all honesty i've only seen that type of thinking on a couple of sites but always being championed by those who agree with Tom Barr. Much respect regardless...

@elmo If your tank is set up nitrates shouldn't be a factor regardless of buildup. I check mine before every water change and get oppm. But I do agree with nitrates adding to certain types of algae. Welcome to the site by the way...

EDIT

@elmo you can disagree with people lol respectful debate can be healthy when it comes to this hobby imo

 

[elmo666]

Hi, and thanks for your welcome. I don't have any problems with nitrate or algae thankfully. I posted on the "killing bacteria" topic to put my voice behind planned regular maintainance and how I favour removing detrious long before if is present in liquid form. I also feel that if my fliter is regulary rinsed the flow is at is peak and as such so is it's efficiency. Maybe it's a trate of my personality.....am a tidy freak lol. Anyhows, enough of that. Look forward to many chats with you, alanho and many more!

 

[ian]

You don't need to be a scientist to know that algae is caused by light and ammonia. This is fact...i learnt this in GCSE science. Agreed nitrate will help feed algae, as will 50 or so other nutrients in your tank. Algae isn't made of N03 as you state (ingredients). You need to do some more research on the matter Prime, Tom Barr or not, the planted community as a whole will dose N03 and P04 to some point. Why does Tropica the main plant cultivator to Europe sell aquatic plant food with N03 and P04 in?? Because our plants need them.

dosed with N03


guppy by Ian Holdich, on Flickr

dosed with N03


snap shot by Ian Holdich, on Flickr

dosed with N03


Full tank by Ian Holdich, on Flickr

I could go on...but i see no algae lol