Sponge replacement - yes or no

[Winnie]

In another thread, Orion Girl mentioned changing her sponges a couple of times a year.
If you are reading this, O.G., do you do this because you figure they've just gotten so full of brown crud that you can't keep rinsing them out, or what?
(I've never changed my sponges - 2 per each AC filter - just the carbons)
What do other folks do?

[Cloud-9]

I never changed the sponge on my Aquaclears back when I used power filters. I only rinsed them in a bucket full of tank water during the water change. I did live in an area with soft water back then. I don't know how long they would last in hard water.


The sponges on my sponge filters (Tetra) get hard and less-squeezable over time. But their pores are much smaller than the sponge blocks on the Aquaclears. That may have something to do with it. The water flow slows down quite a bit. I replace these every year or so. I cannot find the tetra sponges around here so I decided to get new sponge filters (hydrosponge).

[VoodooChild]

Ditto on one Cloud9 said, only I let the tank drain and use the siphon hose to push the water throught the sponge, so it get the hard to reach middle. I bet I haven't changed my sponges in a year.

[wetmanNY]

I have two pairs of Badis ruber in a densely planted 10 gal. with a h.o.t. Whisper filter with a sponge prefilter on the intake tube. Your post reminded me to remove the sponge, still with its intake tube, and squeeze it out thoughly in some tank water. Water flow picked up, so it was time. Some squeezings went to the blackworm tray, the rest to houseplants.

After a couple of years my spongestill isn't ragged-- I don't wring and twist it, though. My water is extra soft, but I don't see what could permanently precipitate onto it, even in hard water.

[SpiritualSniper]

i have an AC300 and an AC200, both of which i've never changed the sponges. i rinse them regularly, but have had them for a couple years and they still seem fine....

[Rometiklan]

I have had some of my AquaClears for years, and some of them still contain the original sponges. I use two sponges in all my ACs. If a sponge gets ragged, which isn't often, I just use it as a prefilter someplace, like on another AC. Sponges are cheap enough that changing them is no big deal, but unless I have to, I might as well keep them until they are no longer performing adequately. I don't wring the living crap (literally) out of them whenever I do a water change. I just squeeze it a few times in used aquarium water, and they are good to go another week.