Just wondering.I have a Magnum HOB.When I clean it I leave some of the carbon in and don't 100% clean all the gunk from the filter pad.Reason being, I want to leave a seed for bacteria.But if I'm cleaning it(and rinsing new carbon) with tap water, is the chlorine killing the remaining bacteria?
Filter Maintenance
- Thread starter cburkhart78
- Start date
cburkhart78;612621; said:
Imaculately cleaning your filter isn't necessary unless the tank was sick.
After cleaning tho, if you can run 1/2 a gallon of water out of it into a container to get rid of the junk that didn't get cleaned out, rather than sending it back into the tank.
Yes, the chlorine / chloramine is detrimental to the bacteria... Due like sqratch said, 'cept i think he ment W/C water won't kill the bacteria.
Question...Are you using the carbon for anything special? (removing chemicals, smells, 'cause it came with the filter, 'cause it works for you?)
Dr Joe
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While I don't use carbon when I do W/C I clean the filter with tank water as chlorine and chloramines will kill or harm your befneficial bacteria. That is what they are designed to do. I just rince the filter material and put it back. Also All of my tanks have atleast 2 filters so I clean 1 each week leaving the other alone that way i have a good colony of bacteria intact and the cleaned filter should reseed in a few days (before the next W/C). Insufficient amounts of bacteria can cause an amonia spike or your tank to cycle itself over again stressing your fish not good for more water quality sensitive fish.
just stagger your cleaning, don't remove all carbon at once, and rinse everything in tank waterThanks for the feedback everyone!I'm gonna use tank water to rinse everything as suggested.
To be honest. I use carbon because there's a place to put it in the filter.I don't have any other reason.I have some driftwood but it's been in water long enough that it doesn't put out much tannin.I don't have any special needs fish so there's no reason to use any kind of pH buffer.Usually, I'll use ammo-carb but my pleco is the only problem deficator(ban me) that I have.
If someone has a better suggestion of something to use in place of the carbon I'm all ears.
Thanks again.
To be honest. I use carbon because there's a place to put it in the filter.I don't have any other reason.I have some driftwood but it's been in water long enough that it doesn't put out much tannin.I don't have any special needs fish so there's no reason to use any kind of pH buffer.Usually, I'll use ammo-carb but my pleco is the only problem deficator(ban me) that I have.
If someone has a better suggestion of something to use in place of the carbon I'm all ears.
Thanks again.
Ammo-Carb is terrible. Zeolite gets exhausted faster than carbon and can make your tank go through a mini cycle. Also, if you forget that you have it in and go to medicate with salt, you will have an ammonia spike.
Switch to purigen.
Switch to purigen.
when i stopped using carbon, i just added more biomedia into my canisters and ac's.
with my emps i just added lotsa cut to fit mech.
with regular w/c and acceptable bioload, haven't noticed a difference at all. cept no hith
with my emps i just added lotsa cut to fit mech.
with regular w/c and acceptable bioload, haven't noticed a difference at all. cept no hith