I have had an aquaclear 70 HOB on a 40long for two years now. It's run like a dream and done very well at keeping the water crystal clear. Lately, the inner gray carriage where the foam, charcoal, and ammonia remover are placed, keeps riding up and pushing the lid of the filter up. Any idea why this is happening and what to do about it?
Aquaclear HOB
- Thread starter Neptunius
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You just need to rinse out the media better, especially the sponge(s). I don't use carbon (charcoal) or ammonia remover...do you mean the ceramic "bio-bits"? Carbon only lasts a couple weeks at most, then it's just a place for beneficial bacteria to grow. Not that that's bad, but needs to be rinsed too, or will clog up.
I prefer to use 2 (with bio-bits) or even 3 sponges (without bits) in my ACs. I also like 2 filters on most tanks so I can clean the heck out of them without disrupting the beneficial bacteria too much at a time.
I prefer to use 2 (with bio-bits) or even 3 sponges (without bits) in my ACs. I also like 2 filters on most tanks so I can clean the heck out of them without disrupting the beneficial bacteria too much at a time.
I mean the standard bags with the white pellets that are sold for aquaclear filters. Is there something better I should be using?
I have toyed with the idea of two filters, but then someone made the argument that the second filter is not doing much besides re-filtering the water put out by the first filter if they're placed near each other on the back of the tank. Thoughts?
I like to be able to really clean 1 of 2 filters under running tap water without worrying about BB recovery time. I tend to clean 1 of 2 filter media every 2 or 3 weeks. But I also use sponge prefilters to keep a lot of gunk out of my filters. I usually rinse 1 or both prefilters during weekly water changes. The BB only break down ammonia to nitrite to nitrate, water changes are needed to keep nitrate under 20ppm optimally.
Beneficial bacteria don't just live on the filter media but on all tank surfaces (décor, substrate, walls etc). So if you do like I do with 2 filters you can only lose at very most about 40% or way less of BB. Bacteria "should" almost double in 24 hours in an otherwise healthy tank.
There really are different kinds of filtration happening: mechanical (pieces of poo or leaf debris),; biological (turning ammonia to nitrite to nitrate then removed with water changes) & chemical...I rarely use carbon or other "stuff" (resins, polyfilter, etc). except to remove meds or anything. I rely mostly on water changes, weekly or so... or more often if I think there are other issues.
It's really about finding a balance between fish load, feeding, water changes & filter cleaning. Large amounts of fish numbers &/or heavy feeding = a need for more, larger water changes & maybe more frequent filter cleaning.
BTW, those bio-bits just have more surface area, they do nothing other than allow more places for BB to grow, they are not ammonia removers per se. Good but not needed really, sponges have quite a lot of surfaces too.
Beneficial bacteria don't just live on the filter media but on all tank surfaces (décor, substrate, walls etc). So if you do like I do with 2 filters you can only lose at very most about 40% or way less of BB. Bacteria "should" almost double in 24 hours in an otherwise healthy tank.
There really are different kinds of filtration happening: mechanical (pieces of poo or leaf debris),; biological (turning ammonia to nitrite to nitrate then removed with water changes) & chemical...I rarely use carbon or other "stuff" (resins, polyfilter, etc). except to remove meds or anything. I rely mostly on water changes, weekly or so... or more often if I think there are other issues.
It's really about finding a balance between fish load, feeding, water changes & filter cleaning. Large amounts of fish numbers &/or heavy feeding = a need for more, larger water changes & maybe more frequent filter cleaning.
BTW, those bio-bits just have more surface area, they do nothing other than allow more places for BB to grow, they are not ammonia removers per se. Good but not needed really, sponges have quite a lot of surfaces too.
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Thanks for the insights fishorama. So if I were to have 2 HOB filters. What media would you recommend putting in each?
Yep. This is a tell-tale sign that you need to squeeze/clean the heck out of your sponge media, or just replace it. I've pretty much run every name and store brand HOB at this point, including the new Seachem Tidal and I always prefer AC in terms of HOBs.
I personally wouldn't sweat the bio media thing too much for an AquaClear. The sponge itself is one heck of a bio media block and by design, HOBs are more of a mechanical filter anyway.
I personally wouldn't sweat the bio media thing too much for an AquaClear. The sponge itself is one heck of a bio media block and by design, HOBs are more of a mechanical filter anyway.
Biomedia(matured) is handy to have around for seeding new filters and cycling new tanks. I usually clean aggressively or replace my mechanical media when dirty. I don't worry about pontentially killing off bacteria while doing so. Hence the use of biomedia.
I use 2 (with bio-bits or floss) or 3 sponges in my AC filters. But like I said I run 2 on most tanks. I'm lazy, lol, & as others have said, it's nice to be able to "steal" a sponge or other media to set up a new tank, it's an addictive hobby. But since you've been here a while you should know that!
BTW, I'm a former MA resident
, have you checked out Uncle Ned's &/or Tropic Isle? Those were my go to LFS but I lived in Westborough.
BTW, I'm a former MA resident
, have you checked out Uncle Ned's &/or Tropic Isle? Those were my go to LFS but I lived in Westborough.I use 2 (with bio-bits or floss) or 3 sponges in my AC filters. But like I said I run 2 on most tanks. I'm lazy, lol, & as others have said, it's nice to be able to "steal" a sponge or other media to set up a new tank, it's an addictive hobby. But since you've been here a while you should know that!
BTW, I'm a former MA resident
I have been on here awhile and keeping fish a while, but I guess I've been lazy when it comes to filters and keeping them more effectively. I've just been stocking them as the box suggests. I'm going to go with the recommendation of two HOBs. I'm thinking one just with the foam and the other with a block of foam and two packs of bio bits. would that work?
Tropic Isle is one of my go to places for fish and plants but not for supplies since they're wicked overpriced. The staff is very knowledgeable and helpful. I've never been to Uncle Ned's. I live in Braintree though so the other place I go is Lovely Pets in Quincy, just like Tropic Isle they have great fish and plants and an awesome staff, but their prices for fish food etc are pretty steep.