So, I noticed last night that both of my external filters were running so slow that there was hardly any surface movement - well as it was 9.30pm I wasn't going to start messing about with it then but vowed to sort it out first thing this morning.
Firstly, I'd only cleaned one filter (filter 2) just over a week ago and so I knew it couldn't be needing doing again so soon so I grabbed my torch and started checking hoses .... and inwardly groaned. Both sets of pipes were so badly blocked that there was no wonder I have a slow flow on both.
I HATE this job ... it's the job that stresses me out. It's the job that makes me wish I'd never started fish keeping!
I decided I'd do the easy filter first (filter 1) - I took both pipes out of the tank, into a bucket and into the kitchen. Both pipes were full of lovely brown gunk. I un-fastened the pipes one by one - ha ... I've learned to do them one at a time! It's not the first time I've got them back to front, got them all back in the tank and hooked back up to the filter only to find it won't run cos I've got the inlet pipe on the outlet block!
I'm lucky in one sense as the handles on my kitchen cupboard allows me to pass the pipe behind it and it hold it in place while I run some water and a brush through it and into a bucket on the floor. That's the easy part.
Meanwhile, no matter how carefully I undo stop valves there's water all over the floor which I find is a wonderful slip hazzard, not to mention a sock soaker. There's brown gunk going everywhere and I'm losing my temper ... I did say I HATE this job!
Today though I made it even harder for myself. When I was trying to connect filter 1 back up I decided to trim a little more off the hoses. The thinking was - less kinks behind the tank means less chance of having to do this job again in a hurry. Well ... anyone who's trimmed hoses know's how blooming awkward it is. The freshly cut hose refuse to go back onto the valves don't they ... and so out comes the boiling water to soften them. There was me on my hands and knee's on the floor with everything back in the cupboard and a jug of boiling water balanced on the top of the filter wondering why I had the bright idea to shorten the hoses after I'd put the pipes back in the tank and got them into the cupboard. Meanwhile it's heating up in the flat, sweat is dripping off my nose, I'm up to my elbows in fish poo and brown gunk and I'm getting more stressed by the minute .... I feel a scream brewing
I decided I may aswell give filter 1 a brief clean while I'm here and also change my phosphate remover. I got my phosphate remover ready in it's little media bag, I open the filter and give the sponges a swish, took out the old phosphate remover bag, cleaned my impellar and distribution plate of all the gunk and put the filter back together, got it primed and running ... turns around and there's the new phosphate remover bag still sat there .... I'd forgotten to put it in
grr
So on to filter 2 and this one is not so easy ... in fact it makes me want to scream and throw it out of the window ... why? Because filter 2 has got a hydor external heater attached and (as if it's not hard enough) the pipes for the hydor are larger than the filter pipes and so it's cobbled together with a plastic joint that my lfs did for me. It virtually impossible to get my pipe cleaning brush past the joint. I end up banging it on the side of the sink for ages trying to force it through ... all the time ranting at myself like a demented banshee.
At least when it came to shortening the filter pipes on this one I did it before hooking it back to the tank! By now I'm on a roll - or at least I think ...
... even though I'd run a cleaning brush through each pipe twice, held them up to the light to see they were free of gunk, and got my brush inside the connectors aswell, run everything under the hot tap, scrubbed and cleaned and got everything gleaming when I get filter 2 primed and running it fills the tank with bits of brown gunk!! Where the heck did that comes from .... so I swallowed down scream number .... 100? and got on with a water change to clear it. I needed doing but all in one morning? That wasn't part of the plan
So now .... that bag of phosphate remover is still sitting there ... better switch off filter 1 again and put it in. I'll regret it I don't. So, in it goes to the, now full of water, filter ... I put the lid back on, it won't seal and it's spilling over. Now there's not just water all over the floor but all over me too. I look like I've entered a wet t-shirt competition and lost. I also look like I've wet myself. I eventually get it to seal and get it connected back up and switched on ... it won't start. It's just gurgling away to itself. I figure it's just air and ignore it ... it's running now but it's fizzing to itself and probably will for the next hour.
And so now, I'm sat looking at the kitchen from my sofa ... there's brown gunk on the cupboard doors, and I know the sink is full of it too. Let's not mention the floor... I've just about cooled down - in temperature and in my mood too and I'm wondering where the energy is coming from to go and clean the kitchen!
I'm trying to see the funny side to this mornings antics and I thought I'd give you all a laugh at my expense too!
But before I go ... I'll ask you all...
What's the job you love to hate?
Firstly, I'd only cleaned one filter (filter 2) just over a week ago and so I knew it couldn't be needing doing again so soon so I grabbed my torch and started checking hoses .... and inwardly groaned. Both sets of pipes were so badly blocked that there was no wonder I have a slow flow on both.
I HATE this job ... it's the job that stresses me out. It's the job that makes me wish I'd never started fish keeping!
I decided I'd do the easy filter first (filter 1) - I took both pipes out of the tank, into a bucket and into the kitchen. Both pipes were full of lovely brown gunk. I un-fastened the pipes one by one - ha ... I've learned to do them one at a time! It's not the first time I've got them back to front, got them all back in the tank and hooked back up to the filter only to find it won't run cos I've got the inlet pipe on the outlet block!
I'm lucky in one sense as the handles on my kitchen cupboard allows me to pass the pipe behind it and it hold it in place while I run some water and a brush through it and into a bucket on the floor. That's the easy part.
Meanwhile, no matter how carefully I undo stop valves there's water all over the floor which I find is a wonderful slip hazzard, not to mention a sock soaker. There's brown gunk going everywhere and I'm losing my temper ... I did say I HATE this job!
Today though I made it even harder for myself. When I was trying to connect filter 1 back up I decided to trim a little more off the hoses. The thinking was - less kinks behind the tank means less chance of having to do this job again in a hurry. Well ... anyone who's trimmed hoses know's how blooming awkward it is. The freshly cut hose refuse to go back onto the valves don't they ... and so out comes the boiling water to soften them. There was me on my hands and knee's on the floor with everything back in the cupboard and a jug of boiling water balanced on the top of the filter wondering why I had the bright idea to shorten the hoses after I'd put the pipes back in the tank and got them into the cupboard. Meanwhile it's heating up in the flat, sweat is dripping off my nose, I'm up to my elbows in fish poo and brown gunk and I'm getting more stressed by the minute .... I feel a scream brewing
I decided I may aswell give filter 1 a brief clean while I'm here and also change my phosphate remover. I got my phosphate remover ready in it's little media bag, I open the filter and give the sponges a swish, took out the old phosphate remover bag, cleaned my impellar and distribution plate of all the gunk and put the filter back together, got it primed and running ... turns around and there's the new phosphate remover bag still sat there .... I'd forgotten to put it in
So on to filter 2 and this one is not so easy ... in fact it makes me want to scream and throw it out of the window ... why? Because filter 2 has got a hydor external heater attached and (as if it's not hard enough) the pipes for the hydor are larger than the filter pipes and so it's cobbled together with a plastic joint that my lfs did for me. It virtually impossible to get my pipe cleaning brush past the joint. I end up banging it on the side of the sink for ages trying to force it through ... all the time ranting at myself like a demented banshee.
At least when it came to shortening the filter pipes on this one I did it before hooking it back to the tank! By now I'm on a roll - or at least I think ...
... even though I'd run a cleaning brush through each pipe twice, held them up to the light to see they were free of gunk, and got my brush inside the connectors aswell, run everything under the hot tap, scrubbed and cleaned and got everything gleaming when I get filter 2 primed and running it fills the tank with bits of brown gunk!! Where the heck did that comes from .... so I swallowed down scream number .... 100? and got on with a water change to clear it. I needed doing but all in one morning? That wasn't part of the plan
So now .... that bag of phosphate remover is still sitting there ... better switch off filter 1 again and put it in. I'll regret it I don't. So, in it goes to the, now full of water, filter ... I put the lid back on, it won't seal and it's spilling over. Now there's not just water all over the floor but all over me too. I look like I've entered a wet t-shirt competition and lost. I also look like I've wet myself. I eventually get it to seal and get it connected back up and switched on ... it won't start. It's just gurgling away to itself. I figure it's just air and ignore it ... it's running now but it's fizzing to itself and probably will for the next hour.
And so now, I'm sat looking at the kitchen from my sofa ... there's brown gunk on the cupboard doors, and I know the sink is full of it too. Let's not mention the floor... I've just about cooled down - in temperature and in my mood too and I'm wondering where the energy is coming from to go and clean the kitchen!
I'm trying to see the funny side to this mornings antics and I thought I'd give you all a laugh at my expense too!
But before I go ... I'll ask you all...
What's the job you love to hate?
