Cleaning of Filters

[femmeartist51]

Hi, I am having this discussion with my husband. He says to change the filters or to wash them out. I heard you should never clean the filters, maybe just swish them in some old tank water. Our filters are getting very dirty, so I figured I would ask this question. Would we completely ruin our cycling if we did change the filters or wash them out? Can I change the media but leave the sleeves the media goes into along. Also if one doesn't clean the filters, then you are cycling all that dirt through the tank and maybe that is why with all these water changes we still have 40 in the nitrates level. Could this be the cause, dirty filters? The tube that the water travels up to the filter is also dirty looking. I use to clean the filters alot, and found that was wrong to do. So what do you all think. Thanks Lynda

 

[Tolak]

It would help if you posted the tank size, frequency & amount of water changes, results of water tests, fish in the tank, and type of filter you have.

Cleaning filters is necessary. Cleaning or replacing filter media the wrong way is bad. For cleaning, most people swish or squeeze the filter media in a bucket of tank water. If you clean the filter media in chlorinated water you will kill off the bacteria needed to keep your tank cycled.

Really dirty filter media shouldn't raise your nitrates, but it will raise ammo & nitrites due to improper filter flow. If the tank is heavily stocked with messy fish you have to do large water changes a few times a week even with the best of filtration. Messy fish require more filter maintainance as well. In a heavily stocked tank this may mean weekly filter cleaning.

If you replace media do not replace all of it at once, as this will cause cycling problems. Replace half, & let the media you took out float or sit in the tank. This will help transfer the bacteria from the old media to the new.

I don't replace media unless it is impedeing the water flow after a good cleaning, I have some media that is a few years old, still works fine. Most all of my tanks are heavily to overstocked, and filtered accordingly.

For the plastic tubes, hoses, & cases I clean them in the sink with tap water, a good blast from the hose does wonders.

If you find that you need to clean the filter more than once a week, you probably need more filtration, a larger tank, or less fish.

Tolak

 

[pseud]

What Tolak said.

Also, the nitrate level regardless of water changes could be accounted for by high nitrates in your tap water. Test it.

 

[Tolak]

Man, I always forget about the nitrates in the water thing since it is so rare around here. Thanks!

Tolak

 

[IMCL85]

I clean up my filter once every 2 weeks or so. You have to clean up the stuff it suck in. Just remember to use the water from ur tank to wash the sponge to avoid major losses of benefit bacteria.

 

[femmeartist51]

Thanks everyone for the info.
We did use the water from the tank to clean the filters. We just swished them around in water from the tank.

We have a 55 gallon, with too many fish (when they get larger).
2 blood parrots
1 gourami
1 angel both these two fish are left over from originals in this tank
1 oscar who is still very small
2 small jack dempsey
1 pleco who has to find a new home.

 

[boxman]

Every tank I've ever owned I've always cleaned the filter at least once a month in dirty old tank water (and I put any additional filter foam in alongside any old stuff that needs to be thrown out for a month to transfer over the good bacteria).

Just don't clean it under the tap and definately don't use fairy!!!

 

[Tolak]

That's a lot of fish for a 55, many of which are incompatable with each other.

Between the lot of them, the angel & gourami will probably be the first to get torn up. If the oscar were larger, it may make it for a while with the dempseys, being smaller it will probably be the next to go. The parrots will be the last if they are larger, you will be left with 2 dempseys, unless they are both the same sex. If they are it will be 1 dempsey.

A full grown oscar needs 55 gallons by itself. Usually dempseys are pretty aggressive, though sometimes you get some subdued ones. If yours are more mellow, you may end up with the oscar causing the mayhem, being left with a couple stressed dempseys & an oscar, which is still an overstocked tank.

I hope you plan on getting an additional tank or two. The fish load is the cause of your filter problems. You didn't state what kind of filter you were using, I would be using a combination of large hob & large canister filters in that situation.

Tolak

 

[femmeartist51]

I know that is alot of fish for a 55 gallon tank. But as I mentioned they are very small. I know they will grow, that is why we are getting a larger tank.

In regards to them not getting along. The angel is in there with those other fish and growing nicely. The two jack dempsey are very small and do not seem to be aggressive, if they get aggressive I can give them to the pet store. The Oscar is very small and is afraid of the blood parrots and doesn't bother anyone. I know they get larger. I just like him and when he gets too large the pet store will take him from me. Unless I keep the 55 gallon just for him when we get the larger tank. There has been no fighting or attacking anyone in the tank, unless you say the blood parrot chases everyone away when she thinks it's time to eat and she wants her special place.

Gave away one fish and already knowing I have to get rid of the pleco. I do know that these will grow as I mentioned before, but we are looking into a larger tank.Thanks for the input though. Oh if you go to the pet store, like petsmart. They have these color coded cards which tell you which ones go together. The oscar, blood parrots and jack dempsey according to them are ok. The other fish in my tank are tropical and do not go with each other. So far they seem okay with each other. But again thanks Lynda

 

[Lucky Cheater]

My fish are real dirty..My filters clog up every 4-5 days..annoying. Good advice, this was one of my main questions coming on here, good to see its already been answered and that there are some very knowledgable individuals on here.




-Cheater-

 

[Tolak]

Do yourself a big favor & do not listen to chain petstores advice. Petco, Petsmart, Walmart, & others generally give out some of the strangest advice ever heard. Find a smaller independently owned shop, they are much better.

Those are all tropical fish, every one of them. The oscar, dempseys, angel & parrots are new world cichlids. The plec is a new world catfish, the gourami is an Asian labyrinth breather. They are all fresh water fish that require temps in the mid to upper 70's, which makes them tropical.

Tolak

 

[femmeartist51]

My fish are real dirty..My filters clog up every 4-5 days..annoying. Good advice, this was one of my main questions coming on here, good to see its already been answered and that there are some very knowledgable individuals on here.



Hi, yep I needed info on this subject. That is why I posted it. Pet stores say change your filters alot. Well that didn't make sense to me as bacteria is good for the tank and bacteria is on the filter material. I was changing the filters once a month and found that was wrong. I have dirty fish also. Glad for sites like these. I was forever causing my tank to cycle.

 

[femmeartist51]

Do yourself a big favor & do not listen to chain petstores advice. Petco, Petsmart, Walmart, & others generally give out some of the strangest advice ever heard. Find a smaller independently owned shop, they are much better.

Hi Tolak
Thanks for the info. I try not to listen to them at all. Even our small pet store, local one doesn't know much. She never heard of Prime nor Cycle. I traded her some test kits for my channel cat. She is going to put it in her tank. I told her good luck. I was just going by their little signs that petsmart had by their tanks. They did have some strange groupings. In the Parrot Cichlid site they mentioned some good fish mates with blood parrots. Most of them where other cichlids. Also one ladies son put her blood parrots in her other tank which had oscars in it and the oscars where killed by the blood parrots. Still looking for a larger tank. May just keep the oscar in the 55 gallon.

The angel and gourami where left over from when we first started the tank as the pleco was also left over. Right now the fish are just staring at me, all of them looking at me almost saying ok feed me. They are always hungry. Thanks for the info. Lynda