Internal filter changeover

[esoxlucius]

Hopefully even though it will be very disruptive to the whole tanks ecology it won’t cause a full crash or restart the whole cycle.

I doubt it'll cause a full blown crash, and I doubt the transition will be flawless either. You'll probably get a mini blip which will correct itself quite quickly.

If you squeeze all that gunk out and let your new filter suck it in, and then, for good measure throw the old battered sponge in your tank too, just so you're not wasting those bacteria which are actually attached to the sponge, and not just the crud within it, then I think you'd be in with a good shout.

And don't feed for a day or two, the last thing you need is a continued production of ammonia with a slightly decreased number in BB.

Be sure to post some pics when it's all settled down.

 

[Ogertron3000]

Thanks again for the good advice, will get this all done over the long weekend.
Will post some pics and let you know how it goes.

 

[Iwhoopedbatman]

I made a little diy water polisher with a small water pump and a water bottle. Just stuff in fresh filter floss/quilt batting and turn it on for a couple hours. If I leave it running for more than a couple hours, you can already see the batting turning dark with bacteria. Bacteria spreads fast is an established tank, especially where there is current.

 

[fishdance]

What's wrong with keeping both filters permanently running? Even without a sponge, the older filter provides water circulation and oxygenation. You could fill it with some gravel if you want mechanical filtration without buying a new sponge.

 

[Ogertron3000]

What's wrong with keeping both filters permanently running? Even without a sponge, the older filter provides water circulation and oxygenation. You could fill it with some gravel if you want mechanical filtration without buying a new sponge.

mths old one is a big bulk square shaped box. It looks ugly and takes up a lot of space. Also the holes where the suction cups attach are brokenso it sort of floats around in the corner and has a few scorch marks where it’s been in contact with the heater.
The new one is a triangular slim line thing that has a slot for the heater so it’s nice and neat and will be unobtrusive in the scape.
Its just time for the old one to go after so long, nothing lasts forever but this filter did a good job to last so long.

 

[Ogertron3000]

Well I finally got it done a week later than planned. I didn’t think an extra week of getting the new filter seeded wouldn’t do any harm and Easter was busier than expected with family stuff.
This morning I drained the whole tank except for a tiny bit, scraped all the black beard algae off the wood and rocks and finally tossed the old filter.
It didn’t come up too bad. It’s still cloudy and it’s not the best pic but gives the vibe of what I want as going for. Basically a riverbank/submerged tree stump sort of thing.
The fish seem happy so I will test the water a bit this week and post a better pic and nice it clears up properly.
Thanks again for the help.

 

[Ogertron3000]

Here it is a few days after the rescape with the water cleared up a bit more.
I’m pretty happy with the way it’s turned out so far.
The new filter seems to be working well and it’s nice and discreet tucked away in the back corner.

 

[Ogertron3000]

Here’s the big acara enjoying the new set up.