Time 2 Change Filter?

ok i was just using cycle to try to build up a bacteria colony and because it said it reduces nitrite and amonia, which i was assuming where my problem with fish behavior since i couldnt test it.if you really think it wont help any i will not use the easy balance/nitraban. can i continue to use that brand of dechlor if i cant find the one you suggested? because so far i have not seen it...
 
Do you have a heater and thermometer? Rapid changes in temp and PH can be fatal to fish. Doing large water changes can cause rapid fluctuations in both of these, better to stick to once a week and 20% or so. 50% is okay, but the more water you change the bigger the risk you run of stressing your fish.
 
yes i have both a thermometer and heater wich i keep at 76-78. and i try to get the water temperature as close as possible when doing a wc.i just wish i could get my filter to work the way it did when i first bought it.. i cleaned it out but it still doesnt suck very hard so its not doing a very good job of filtering or aerating wich is part of the reason i do wc's so often
 
Marxman187 said:
i was told in the past that my fish where having problems because i did a water change and put a new filter in wich killed the bacteria colony.so since then i have been shaking the filter out in a 5 gallon bucket of the tank water like i was told to.It has been about to months since the last time i changed it and do to the slight overstocking is building up a good amount of slime.My question is when do i change it to a new filter and how do i do it without killing the bacteria?
Click to expand...
Usually all filters have a black "aerobic sponge" in front of the disposable filter packs.
All you do is lightly rinse the aerobic sponge under running tap water that is close to the temperature of your tank water. Rinse the new filter also. Put them back in your filter and pour fresh treated water back in. The bacteria on the sponge is enough to keep the tank in check.

I would highly recommend "API Aquarium Pharmaceuticals" tap water conditioner.
It is highly consentrated at one drop per gallon of water.

Also get some aquarium salt at your lfs if you don't already have it. Use one level tablespoon per five gallons of water. It keeps freshwater fish healthy. Only use when changing water, salt does not evaporate.

Your water changes seem way too frequent IMO. The water treatment you use may not work so well and this may be irritating your fish.

I would recommend every 14 to 21 days if you have adequate filtration and low fish density. Live plants are a big plus for water condition.
 
I would recommend against EVER rinsing your filter media in tap water. To do so is guaranteeing bacteria loss due to chlorine/chloramine poisoning. Maybe for some folks this is an acceptable regime, I think that the more people in the hobby you talk to, the more would recommend that you rinse in tank water only. Salt is unnecessary in fresh water aquaria. The benefit is often small and the damage done to certain fish make it unwarranted. I know this flies in the face of advice rendered, but it is what I've learned and lived by for the past decade.
 
AfroCichlid said:
I would recommend against EVER rinsing your filter media in tap water. To do so is guaranteeing bacteria loss due to chlorine/chloramine poisoning. Maybe for some folks this is an acceptable regime, I think that the more people in the hobby you talk to, the more would recommend that you rinse in tank water only. Salt is unnecessary in fresh water aquaria. The benefit is often small and the damage done to certain fish make it unwarranted. I know this flies in the face of advice rendered, but it is what I've learned and lived by for the past decade.
Click to expand...
This has never caused a problem. the chlorine content is not enough to affect this.
Theoretically one would think this would kill all good bacteria. But it doesn't. It might kill a small amount of bad bacteria wich is a good thing.
I'm not saying not to use tank water. In fact you can use fresh clean treated water also. Wich is the cleanest way to rinse.

I lightly rinse. I do not fully clean the sponge.
As for your other comments...you need to follow natures lead and learn about natural salinity.
Show me a lake or stream with living fish that has absolutely no salinity whatsoever!
Because of this fact you may already have enough salinity in your water supply. A simple test can determine. Where I live the local water supply is soft so it needs a little supplementing.

I don't give scientifically unproven advise on this site. Nor do I pass on clouded opinions based on idea and rumor.

The people posting on here want and need good advise without sorting through a bunch of theoretical babble.

I did not just hear this from someone else...I actually fully researched this and from what I learned I strongly believe what I am writing.
I am not trying to attack anyone...just trying to educate.
 
Last edited:
This is more of a debate at this point. Without knowing the specific tap water content of Marxman's area, it's possible that his tapwater contains enough chlorine and chloramines, to cause serious damage to a bacteria colony.
The same of his salinity. Without knowing this specifically, it's better in my opinion to recommend not adding salt, unless for therapeutic reasons. Salt is not needed in freshwater aquariums, and can indeed cause irritation to certain fish, notably scaleless fish like corydoras.
Salt can be good for treatment purposes, notably nitrite poisoning, increasing slime coat, and can be effective against certain parasites. It's often recommended in conjunction with raising the temp of the tank to fight off an outbreak of Ich. The same effect can be had using a product like Slime Coat.
We have different opinions on this matter obviously, as I'm sure other members here do as well. Perhaps I shouldn't have been so quick to suggest most others would agree with my advice, and I'm glad you posted your experience without malice.
 
Marxman187, post your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate levels when you acquire your test kits.

Out of curiousity, what size tank do you have and how many fish are in it and what is their general size?

One simple way to ensure the biological filtration will remain fully functional is redundant filtration (or 'overfiltration').

While generally it's highly recommended not to wash filter media in tap water, the overall effects of washing or rinsing filter media in chlorinated or chloramine-treated water depends on variables (primarily the amount of bacteria contained in the rinsed media and amount of bacteria contained elsewhere in the tank, total surface area of tank, substrate and decorations, level of chlorine/chloramine as well as exposure time).

These variables (as well as the ability for the bacteria in the tank to instantly compensate for the wiped out bacteria) will vary from tank to tank and instance to instance.
 
kay-bee said:
Marxman187, post your ammonia, nitrite and nitrate levels when you acquire your test kits.

Out of curiousity, what size tank do you have and how many fish are in it and what is their general size?

One simple way to ensure the biological filtration will remain fully functional is redundant filtration (or 'overfiltration').

While generally it's highly recommended not to wash filter media in tap water, the overall effects of washing or rinsing filter media in chlorinated or chloramine-treated water depends on variables (primarily the amount of bacteria contained in the rinsed media and amount of bacteria contained elsewhere in the tank, total surface area of tank, substrate and decorations, level of chlorine/chloramine as well as exposure time).

These variables (as well as the ability for the bacteria in the tank to instantly compensate for the wiped out bacteria) will vary from tank to tank and instance to instance.
Click to expand...




right now i have my 3 inch jack dempsey in a temporary home with 2 giant danios a gaurami and a pleco in a 29 gallon.this friday i will begin cycling his new home ( a 55 gallon) he will be the only one in there.i will definatly post my levels this weekend, and i hope that somone can help me with an accurate step by step guide to starting a tank from scratch,since it will be my first time.i have a product called cycle that supposedly will reduce cylce time drasticly, any comments on this product or past experiences on how to get a tank cylced asap would be greatly appreciated. thanks ac!
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
AquariaCentral.com
Top Bottom