Best practices for cleaning an Eheim 2215..?

[Zero2005]

hello all, I am new to the board and have filter maintanence questions. I am running an eheim 2215 in a 55 gallon low light planted tank, mainly Anubias variations with others such as Cryptocoryne, ect.

My question is how often do you replace the media/pads in your eheim? Also, how does this effect the bio filtration? Should you use tap water to clean out the filter, or aquarium water?

Sorry for all the questions, but I have a lot to learn...

thanks for any replies,
zero

 

[Tolak]

Welcome Zero! Don't be sorry for the questions, we all were beginners at one time. Stick around TFF, you'll learn a lot.

It depends on the stocking rate, as well as what type of fish you have. All my tanks are well stocked to overstocked, and filtered accordingly. Some people feel comfortable cleaning canisters monthly, I've found on well stocked tanks with multiple filters I can go for 4-6 months between cleanings.

To clean my Eheims, I rinse the media & baskets in tank water, the case & hoses go in the utility sink & get cleaned with tap water. The coarse pads seem to last forever, the fine ones you can rinse until they seem to get plugged up, then replace. They usually last for 3 or 4 rinses. If you change a fine pad let the old one float in the tank for a week, this helps to prevent a mini cycle. The rest of the media lasts forever, which is good because Eheim media is expensive. If you rinse the media in tap water, the chlorine & chloramine will kill your bacteria. If you have a private well you don't have to worry about this.

Tolak

 

[Zero2005]

Thanks for the great advice... I will definately be a regular ready of this board.

zero

 

[freddyk]

Hey Zero

The classic has two media's - biological and mechanical. I suggest cleaning out the mechanical media every month - the filter might be able to handle 3, 6, or more months of going uncleaned, but don't forget that waste in the filter is still waste in your aquarium water. Why not get it out, once it's in one convenient place. Plus, regular maintenance of the impeller assembly will help the filter to a long and silent life.

I find it much more effective to rinse the foam and sponge under a tap (the bio-media is in there for a reason). The bio-media only has to be rinsed 2 or 3 times per year, and this you'll want to do in aquarium water to preserve the bacteria. The media pads can be rinsed several times, but when they start looking worn out replace them, they aren't working as well anymore. I've found the finer white pads need to be replaced quite a bit more often then the blue ones.