I do weekly water changes on my 240g tank I have a fx4 and fx6 on the tank .I looks like last week when I did the weekly water change I for got to switch the fx6 back on so today went to switch it off it was already off so I presume all of the bacteria must have died off .So I took some seeded media from the fx4 and put in fx6 and some of the fx6 media into the fx4 . The fish have been fine and didnt see any signs of distress but will feed lightly for a couple of weeks.
could have been a tank wipe out
- Thread starter bathawk
- Start date
Honestly, it's not really that big of a deal. Once your tank is cycled you've got a huge population of bacteria and they will populate other areas if one of your filter dies very quickly. They can double their number in less than a day in ideal conditions, a few days in less than ideal. Last week? Your tank has probably recycled already.
yes I saw on fb a guy lost all of his bichirs after his filter failed I think it was a day before he noticed I dont know his tank size but for me I am sure all of the bacteria in my fx6 would have died as the filter was off for 7 days the fx4 managed to filter the tank and keep the water crystal clear aswell concidering I have 10 silver dollars 2 bush fish and a large bumble bee catfish.
All your tanks surfaces are covered, (decor, glass, and plants) in beneficial bacterial biofilm, so as long as the tank is not that overcrowded and there is circulation from other pumps, (or other sources of dissolved oxygen and gas exchange) the temporary shut down of 1 canister or even total power outage for a couple days, should not be fatal.
Overcrowded, bare bottom, no decor tanks with no extra form of circulation could however: be an issue.
I must admit though, I never shut down filtration during water changes, or any other time, (except during pump maintenance periods).
In fact when adding replacement water (after a water change), new water is always added to my sumps first for mixing,, just in case there is some temp, or chemical parameter anomaly, as opposed to directly to the main tank.
When in Wisconsin I worried more about gas super saturation causing gas bubble embolism in fish during winter, when trapped gases super saturated in the distribution system suddenly were released, if new water went straight to the tank, as opposed to a sump where the mixing mitigated their severity.
Overcrowded, bare bottom, no decor tanks with no extra form of circulation could however: be an issue.
I must admit though, I never shut down filtration during water changes, or any other time, (except during pump maintenance periods).
In fact when adding replacement water (after a water change), new water is always added to my sumps first for mixing,, just in case there is some temp, or chemical parameter anomaly, as opposed to directly to the main tank.
When in Wisconsin I worried more about gas super saturation causing gas bubble embolism in fish during winter, when trapped gases super saturated in the distribution system suddenly were released, if new water went straight to the tank, as opposed to a sump where the mixing mitigated their severity.
ok I see, in the uk there are rumors that there may be 3-4 hour power shut downs this winter so I have purchased some battery powered air pumps that i can put either in the tanks or place in the filter's until power is resumed. They can run for 26 hours before needing the battery to be recharged so may come in handy.
Power outages are common here on the island where I live (but lots of sun) so.....
I am considering the now available solar pond/fountain pumps, especially those with a separate panel that can be placed in a more sun lit area .
I had cheap one on a pond in the US 10 years ago, that had wimpy flow, but.....in a pinch it would at least add surface agitation for minimal gas exchange here for extended outages.
It's not a bad idea to consider that filters in general are a luxury item in aquariums, rather than a necessity. Fish can be kept successfully with no filtration whatsoever; once upon a time, that's the only way they could be kept. Filtration/aeration and all the other tech goodies we take for granted today are simply workarounds which spread out the intervals between water changes, and which also allow us to keep more fish in a given body of water.
The problem that frequently occurs is that once a tank is crowded with fish to the extent that a filter/aerator is required to keep them alive, the aquarium is then at the mercy of the gadgetry and any interruption spells disaster. Personally, I have an airstone in every tank I own, powered by a central air pump that feeds all my tanks through a manifold system. Some of my tanks are filtered entirely by air-powered filters like sponges and Mattens; others use sumps and water pumps, but still have backup aeration in them as well.
And my tanks are very sparsely-populated by today's standards. Not one of them would suffer an oxygen-related die-off if the power were interrupted for an extended period. I certainly wouldn't like it, but having tank "wiped-out" isn't a worry. Your tank, with "only" one power filter running it, would probably be fine on a permanent basis, depending upon your stocking levels and maintenance regimen. My main concern would be if the other filter were allowed to sit for a long period...much longer than just a week...which would allow it to develop anaerobic or anoxic conditions. Switching it back on then might flood the tank with toxic compounds; but again, this takes more time than just a few days.
The problem that frequently occurs is that once a tank is crowded with fish to the extent that a filter/aerator is required to keep them alive, the aquarium is then at the mercy of the gadgetry and any interruption spells disaster. Personally, I have an airstone in every tank I own, powered by a central air pump that feeds all my tanks through a manifold system. Some of my tanks are filtered entirely by air-powered filters like sponges and Mattens; others use sumps and water pumps, but still have backup aeration in them as well.
And my tanks are very sparsely-populated by today's standards. Not one of them would suffer an oxygen-related die-off if the power were interrupted for an extended period. I certainly wouldn't like it, but having tank "wiped-out" isn't a worry. Your tank, with "only" one power filter running it, would probably be fine on a permanent basis, depending upon your stocking levels and maintenance regimen. My main concern would be if the other filter were allowed to sit for a long period...much longer than just a week...which would allow it to develop anaerobic or anoxic conditions. Switching it back on then might flood the tank with toxic compounds; but again, this takes more time than just a few days.