Should I replace my filter?

[VulcanNinja]

I've read conflicting advice on this because of the bacteria thing. I've had a whisper filter in my 10 gal for about 4 months now. I haven't replaced the filter, but just rinsed it in old tank water. It's worked pretty well, but now it's starting to overflow a bit. What should I do?

 

[konrad05]

Well, you should buy a new sponge, just don't throw out the old one, let it hang in the tank for a bit (I know, this is the downside to hang on back filters, unless they have a gravel compartment) HTH

 

[spAcE mOnkEy]

i have old whisper filters, they dont have any bio thing that keeps bacteria. they have the sponge for the carbon to go in and then when its dirty, i throw the cartrigdge out replacing it with a new one. ive heard that whisper filters have came out with a new bio thing that you might have to rinse in water. i am getting rid of most of my whispers and converting to aqua clear filters. i like them better. i have heard that whisper filters are good for smaller tanks though. if i havent replaced my whisper filter in a while, it starts to over flow like you said. if i put a new cartridge in,it doesnt over flow. if it keeps flowing, there may be something cloged in the filter or the motor. maybe you should rinse it again. my method may be the wrong way to do it too. but it hasnt affected my tanks in any way and seem healthy

 

[teacherspet]

I have converted to filters that use the bio wheel. In addition, they have 2 slots for the filter media, and I rotate changing them every 3-4 weeks so there is always one with biological filtration and the bio wheel. It seems to keep things more stable. Try keeping the old one in the tank for a little while before removing as mentioned previously.

 

[Tolak]

I've got some sort of wisperesque filter that takes the media that slides into the slots. I cut some aqua clear sponges to size and put that in there once the media that came with it got clogged. Works much better, takes it quite a while before the water flow starts to slow down.

Tolak

 

[VulcanNinja]

When you say hang the old filter in the tank...for how long??