Filter Media Change

[dcarmor927]

Hey all, i just changed my filter pads in my filter and a lot of the bacteria on the sponges broke free and is now free floating in the tank...is this a problem? i hope that the it will just get sucked back into the filter and seed in the new pad...please clarify for me...Thanks in advance!

 

[Corleone]

I get this sometimes, never causes me a problem, though most of it does seem to settle in the tank rather than get sucked back into the filter.

Edit: Did you actually remove the pad with the bacterial growth on it, or a replaceable media like carbon? You should never remove all of the mature biological media from the filter, as even with the bit that falls off, you'd be facing a fresh cycle in short order.

 

[dcarmor927]

Thanks, my water is almost back to normal now...I thought my cycle would get all messed up from it, I'll keep a closer eye on the water stats just in case, Thanks again!