HELP! major filter issue!

Kep the airpump and an air stone running, float the filter media in the tank. Do you know what specific brand filter you have..Whisper, Aqua Clear, Penguin...?
 
With enough water changes, I imagine it could go on for quite some time before you start losing fish, so I wouldn't panic.

You say that when you had it apart the impeller worked; You mean that you disassembled the unit, and when plugging the motor in stand-alone it spins? If so my suggestion is to step-by-step build it, checking to see if the impeller will spin when power is applied as you install each and every part. Eventually you'll narrow that down.

With the unit plugged in and the impeller *not* turning, does the motor get hot? If it's working(but just jammed) it should be quite warm.

Where did you buy the filter from, and when(how long ago)?
 
when i plugged it in the whole filter was assembled. it was spinning. it isn't working when it's in the water. i don't know if the impeller is still going but all i know is that it's not sucking water up and nothing is coming out.

i bought the filter over a year ago from my LFS.
 
ok, i got it working. i did a 10% water change and i will do the same for the mext 5 or 6 days. do you think that will be enough to keep my mini-cycle to a minimum? is there anything else i can do without spending money?
 
check your water params and do water changes as needed
 
go light on the feeding...
 
Monitor your water parameters for a couple weeks .........:)
 
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