cleaning foam sponges in aquaclears...

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wigglejaggles

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Oct 26, 2003
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north tonawanda, ny
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Hey Now all,

I have been running my tank for close to six months, and maybe about once a month I gently squeeze the sponges in old tank water before putting back in, but my sponges always look dirty, and I guess I am always afraid to handle the sponges because I am afraid that even by rinsing them in old tank water I might kill off too much good bacteria.
I read a thread about how Orion girl rinses her sponges every week! and if too much dirt gets into the sponges you could have problems...

So I know this question may sound stupid but...

how do I properly rinse the sponge in old tank water without harming the bacteria? Just a few gentle squeezes enough? Can I scrape the bottom with an algae scrub brush?

ok thanks!

take care,
jared
 
I use 2 sponges and rinse them weekly as well. One, I twist and squeeze and swish in several changes of treated water until it is clean. The second I squeeze out but not quite so thoroughly and then rotate their position in the filter. Once attached to a surface, bacteria adhere quite firmly, you will not significantly hurt their population by cleaning the sponge well (or by gravel vacuuming for that matter). As well, your sponges are not the only place in the tank the bacteria are living.
 
I do pretty much what Kvetti mentions as well. Too much gunk on the sponge will not allow water to flow through the whole sponge, but just on the surface, therefore eliminating a lot of the bacteria from a fresh water and food source.
 
I tend to keep spares, and each week I replace one while leaving the other in. then I wash the spare very thouroughly, and set it out to dry until next week. If the sponges are your only biofiltration, this may or may not work depending on fish load. As far as washing them it doesn't hurt to be rough on them other than sponge wear, there is a huge amount of surface area, and a huge amount of bacteria. if you wash in tank or treated water, you shouldn't have any problems.
 
My dad and I have been using Aquaclears for nearly 10 years ago and still use the sponges that shipped with it. I use three sponges in mine. I thouroughly squeeze out the bottom two sponges in aquarium water, place the uncleaned third sponge in the bottom of the stack and reinsert the caddy into the filter.
 
I do exactly the same thing as QCPPG said. I also cut up one sponge and stuffed it around the siphon tube in the impeller chamber... they never get dirty so I assume they arne't doing any mech. filtration but I figure it probably helps with the biofiltration.
 
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