Newbie Alert! Advice required please!

[Essjay]

CF40 - Ciano

ciano.pt

According to the instructions there is supposed to be a foam (sponge) block at the bottom, on top of that a green edged Bio-Bact cartridge, and on top of that a blue edged Water Clear cartridge. The Water Clear cartridge is the one with carbon
.
Do you not have the green edged Bio-Bact cartridge? If you do, you have two places for the bcateria, the Bio-Bact cartridge and the foam, which most of us call sponge.

The instructions say to change the Water Clear (carbon) cartridge every 30 days; the foam (sponge) every 90 days and the Bio-Bact cartridge every 140 days. This is typical of instructions as they want your money. Sponges (foam) should only be replaced when it starts to fall apart after several years.
They don't say what's inside the Bio-Bact cartridge but the name implies it is designed to be a home to the filter bacteria.

Sponges (foams) should be washed by squeezing them in old tank water taken out during a water change. The Bio-Bact cartridge can be cleaned in old tank water by squeezing if it is soft or by swooshing it round if it is rigid.



You can just leave the blue edged carbon cartridge there if you want. Carbon is used to remove things from the water, usually medication after treatment has finished, or the brown colour that often leaches out of wood. Other organic chemicals will be removed as well. These things all stick to the surface of the carbon (they adsorb rather than absorb), and eventually there is no room left for anything else. This why filter manufacturers tell you to change carbon regularly.
Decades ago, carbon was used a lot. Water changes were not done regularly as they are now and the water turned yellow. carbon removed the yellow. But it is cheap to make and if you have to replace it, it's a nice money earner for the manufacturer.
We now know that carbon isn't necessary but filter manufacturers still insist that it is and most of them include it as one of the media.

If you just leave the cartridge there, it will quickly become full and stop adsorbing things and be just a home for the bacteria. However, if the filter also has a sponge and a green topped cartridge as the instructions say, you can take it out now and replace it with another foam (sponge).

 

[Neon1977]

CF40 - Ciano

ciano.pt

According to the instructions there is supposed to be a foam (sponge) block at the bottom, on top of that a green edged Bio-Bact cartridge, and on top of that a blue edged Water Clear cartridge. The Water Clear cartridge is the one with carbon
.
Do you not have the green edged Bio-Bact cartridge? If you do, you have two places for the bcateria, the Bio-Bact cartridge and the foam, which most of us call sponge.

The instructions say to change the Water Clear (carbon) cartridge every 30 days; the foam (sponge) every 90 days and the Bio-Bact cartridge every 140 days. This is typical of instructions as they want your money. Sponges (foam) should only be replaced when it starts to fall apart after several years.
They don't say what's inside the Bio-Bact cartridge but the name implies it is designed to be a home to the filter bacteria.

Sponges (foams) should be washed by squeezing them in old tank water taken out during a water change. The Bio-Bact cartridge can be cleaned in old tank water by squeezing if it is soft or by swooshing it round if it is rigid.



You can just leave the blue edged carbon cartridge there if you want. Carbon is used to remove things from the water, usually medication after treatment has finished, or the brown colour that often leaches out of wood. Other organic chemicals will be removed as well. These things all stick to the surface of the carbon (they adsorb rather than absorb), and eventually there is no room left for anything else. This why filter manufacturers tell you to change carbon regularly.
Decades ago, carbon was used a lot. Water changes were not done regularly as they are now and the water turned yellow. carbon removed the yellow. But it is cheap to make and if you have to replace it, it's a nice money earner for the manufacturer.
We now know that carbon isn't necessary but filter manufacturers still insist that it is and most of them include it as one of the media.

If you just leave the cartridge there, it will quickly become full and stop adsorbing things and be just a home for the bacteria. However, if the filter also has a sponge and a green topped cartridge as the instructions say, you can take it out now and replace it with another foam (sponge).

Thanks so much for all that detail! And I know about the black foam (sponge) I wasn’t planning on replacing that whatsoever until it was falling apart! I have no bio cartridge in there no as this didn’t come with my filter! Ya have to pay for that separately! I just have the black foam at the bottom and the clear water cartridge at the top that’s it! Do you think it would still be ok to take it out completely without the bio cartridge in there?? And it not mess my cycle up?

 

[Neon1977]

Thanks so much for all that detail! And I know about the black foam (sponge) I wasn’t planning on replacing that whatsoever until it was falling apart! I have no bio cartridge in there no as this didn’t come with my filter! Ya have to pay for that separately! I just have the black foam at the bottom and the clear water cartridge at the top that’s it! Do you think it would still be ok to take it out completely without the bio cartridge in there?? And it not mess my cycle up?

I’m cautious about getting live plants with that carbon in there based on what people have told me but if it’s a choice of getting live plants or messing my cycle up I’d rather not get the plants! But the problem I now have is based on the instructions Iv got to take that cartridge out this week anyway!!

 

[utahfish]

I’m cautious about getting live plants with that carbon in there based on what people have told me but if it’s a choice of getting live plants or messing my cycle up I’d rather not get the plants! But the problem I now have is based on the instructions Iv got to take that cartridge out this week anyway!!

Live plants actually help cycle a tank as the provide surface for beneficial bacteria and help in the nitrogen cycle as they absorb ammonium and nitrates. If you dont want to open up the carbon cartridge just take it out and dont use it. The majority of your beneficial bacteria is on the sponge.

 

[Retired Viking]

I do what is called a silent/planted cycle on my tanks. The plants will take over your filters bacteria cycle and that bacteria becomes not important dealing with ammonia. Many plants will absorb the ammonia as food so there is little to none nitrate of nitrite to deal with too. It become a natural cycle where the fish provide the ammonia and CO2 for the plants and the plants provide oxygen and improve the quality of the water for the fish. If you add enough of floating fast growth plants you will not need to worry. I never had an ammonia reading above 0 in my well planted tanks. The filters end up removing particles from the water and keeping the water clear.

 

[Neon1977]

Thank you so much to both of ya! Iv had enough and decided I’m chucking the cartridge! Lol As soon as iv been the LFS tomorrow, purchased plants and another bit of sponge to pop in where the cartridge is, it’s coming out!! Bloody thing!! Lol Can’t wait now to grown my little Neon jungle ready for my cherry shrimp hopefully in a couple of weeks! thanks so much everyone you have been stars as per!