Do I Need To Clean My Filter?

[maisy12345]

Hi ,I started off with a 28l tank ,didn`t cycle after three months,so transferred fish over to 110l tank and put old media in front of new media in new filter,after nearly a couple of months,still hasn`t cycled ,but wonder if it`d be safe to clean or not,just going to squeeze in tank water ,and if so ,do i clean both old and new or just old?

 

[micko]

Are you saying you are doing a fish in cycle and its been 5 months between two tanks and you haven't managed to cycle one?

 

[maisy12345]

Yes ,really annoyed at it as well

 

[myrtle]

How do you know it isn't cycled? What test kit are you using and what readings do you get when you test?

 

[maisy12345]

Hi ,i`m using an api liquid test kit ,went through high nitrite and nitrate readings a few days ago ,and had to change water every 6 hours ,but now nitrite is 0 and my ammonia is going up to 0.50 every few days.

 

[myrtle]

You do use dechlorinator? It sounds like when you did the water change something has caused the tank to start cyclig again. I'm no expert on that though so regarding that it may be worthwhile starting a topic in the 'New Tanks' section to find out why this is happening as there has to be a reason. As to the filter, unless you see the flow drop I wouldn't bother cleaning it yet.

 

[maisy12345]

Thanks fot that ,i do use dechlorinator and stress+ ,so don`t know whats happening ,i wonder if it`s because i`m using both,as they both break the chlromine bond ,so i don`t know.?

 

[Vin Swords]

love to find out why...

 

[Caprichoso]

Yes ,really annoyed at it as well

maisy12345, are you overstocked? How many fish do you have in your tank? What type of filter do you have? The reason I'm asking is if you have too many fish and not enough filtration then the bio-load is always going to be too high and the bacteria and plants will not be able to keep up with it, hence ammonia and nitrite issues. There of coarse can be other things wrong but it's the first thing I would look at. It's "ok" to be overstocked BUT you have to have really good filtration, not over feed, do big water changes consistently, gravel vac and/or have lots of plants. The other thing that may have happened is that when you switched to the new tank, the old filter media was compromised in some way and died off, leaving you with little/no beneficial bacteria to start the new media off. Also, when you went to the bigger tank did you suddenly add a bunch of fish? If you did, your old filter media would have no way of keeping up with the increased bio-load from fish poop. As far as cleaning the media, only clean it in the beginning by giving a quick rinse with tank water and ONLY if it's really dirty and is clogging the filter and restricting the water flow.

Good luck

 

[StandbySetting]

You're not replacing media are you? a 3 month cycle is very rare, also, what is your pH?

 

[maisy12345]

Hi all, thanks for your help ,i`ve got 3 bronze corries ,3 albino corries,2 pitbull plecos,2 dwarf gourami[1m,1f]6 bloodfin tetra ,8 glowlight tetra and shrimp,ph is 6.8 at the moment .

 

[sted]

Wow all that in a 28 l tank?

 

[coldcazzie]

Maisy, I'm sorry to be rude, but what exactly do you expect?

You started out with a few fish, and were advised (repeatedly, by a variety of members) not to add any more until your tank cycled. Since then you have tripled your stock. And you're wondering why you're still cycling?

Why ask for advise if you're just going to ignore it?

My advise would be not to clean the filter until your cycle is finished, unless it is blocking flow, but not really sure why I'm bothering because you're clearly going to do what you want regardless of what the general consensus advise is.

 

[maisy12345]

Coldcazzie,My life is not the same now and i fully repent on my decision not to listen to your advice.I know that many sleepness nights lay ahead and it will be in these episodes that your words of wisdom will echo through my mind,please forgive me and have pity on my soul.

 

[Caprichoso]

Coldcazzie,My life is not the same now and i fully repent on my decision not to listen to your advice.I know that many sleepness nights lay ahead and it will be in these episodes that your words of wisdom will echo through my mind,please forgive me and have pity on my soul.

No need to feel bad about it. Sometimes it's hard to listen to the truth but obviously you know what's wrong here. My advice would be to get rid of some fish. Like I said in my previous post and from what the OP says, you have tripled your stock so your filter media can't keep up. You have to get rid of some fish or do exactly what I said; over filter, big water changes, lots of plants, gravel vac, or all your fish are going to perish. You are damaging your fish every time they are exposed to ammonia and nitrites. I know you probably love all your fish but to be fair, it's not right to keep them in the tank if you can't handle it.

Good luck to you