Juwel Filter Sponges

[moggy]

is it nessary to change the carbon & nitrate sponge in the juwel filter as often as every 8 weeks i find this quite expensive could i use a juwel fine or course sponge to replace nitrate and carbon sponge and only change about every 6 months i change the top poly filter wool weekly but i use garden pond filter wool cut up to 10mm square a lot cheaper then buying the juwel ones thanks for any replies

 

[raptorrex]

is it nessary to change the carbon & nitrate sponge in the juwel filter as often as every 8 weeks i find this quite expensive could i use a juwel fine or course sponge to replace nitrate and carbon sponge and only change about every 6 months i change the top poly filter wool weekly but i use garden pond filter wool cut up to 10mm square a lot cheaper then buying the juwel ones thanks for any replies

short answer is NO!
i would dump the carbon sponges and replace them with bio sponges. just rinse the sponges out in old tank water, done with care filter sponges can last for years. i would also suggest you do the sponges in rotation. thus avoiding the loss of too much bio matter! i did change the white floss section every week. the rest were done on a weekly rotation.