Whisper 3i Internal Filter - need option for biological filtration.

webcricket

webcricket

(So chill.) No wonder it's freezing
Mar 22, 2006
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Syracuse, NY
I'm setting up a 2 gallon tank for a betta. I purchased a Whisper 3i filter, however, it has no biological filtration and I'm afraid that every time the media gets changed the tank will mini-cycle.

There is a little room in front of the filter media to put something to house bacteria, but I need some suggestions of what to use and where I might find what I should use. Plain old sponge seems like it would clog the filter since it has such a low output anyway. I need rods of something more solid but porous...just don't know what.
 
doesn't it use the bio bags?

the bio bag itself is a biological filter..usually you can empty the carbon out and add something there..possibly even crushed ceramic from the ceramic rings..or a bit of filter foam can be used in place of the biobag.
 
personally i would say get a bigger tank. 5-10gal at least with a proper filter, gravel and heater. The gravel and filter will store the bacteria you need. Therefore creating a longer living, happier fish and a happier you.
 
Well right now he is still sitting in a breeder net in my 10 gallon as the 2 gallon needs to cycle before I just dump him in willy nilly. I got him thinking he looked docile enough to be a community tank betta and then after a few days he started eating fins. :(

I'm going to run the 3i on my 20 gallon for a couple of weeks and hopefully get it seeded before setting up the 2 gallon. I had success doing this when I set up my 10 gallon. I just want to get something in there for the bacteria to live on so I'm not throwing out all the bacteria every time I change media.

star_rider, unfortunately this size whisper doesn't use the bio bags - it uses a premade cartridge type of media that gets replaced completely when you change it.

jwddboy, I am aware that bettas need heaters and the same care as any other tropical fish which is why I'm asking the question about the filter. The tank will have a small heater just as soon as I can find one that fits. As far as the tank size, I have no room for anything larger at the moment, and let's face it, bringing him back to the pet store to live in a cup of water isn't a solution.
 
I abandoned the cartridge and cut my own floss from sheet floss (Big Al's). You can rip that in half so it's 1/2 thickness. Then I wrap it around the black thingy with a thin sponge on the inside of 1 side of the floss.

Another idea, how about a sponge, say the thickness of a fluval sponge (3/4 inch??). It would take some piddly doing, but cut down the middle with an exacto blade, so that you can slip the black thingy into it. Sort of what people do for sponge coverings for AquaClear intake tubes in fry tanks.
 
your substrate should house enough bacteria to keep you from mini-cycling when you change your filter media. another option would be to get a nylon and stick some of the AC filter bio-media in it and stick it in a corner of the tank behind a plant or something.

key point to make though is that your bacteris don't just live in your filter. they live on anything porous in your tank so as long as you don't change the filter cartridge and take out all your gravel at the same time you should be fine
 
I guess for right now I won't worry about it too much. I'll get the tank cycled and once the betta is in his new home, I'll just have to keep a close watch on the parameters when I change out the media for the first time. If I get an ammonia spike at that point I'll try some of the suggestions here.
 
I have a Whisper 3i I am planning on using in a small betta tank at some point. The carbon cartridges it uses are ok (bacteria will grow on the carbon and on the lining), but what I plan to do it mature a piece of sponge (probably some fluval scraps from what I use in my Bio-Wheel) and stick it in there. I'll rinse it out periodically when I do changes. This will take the maintenance cost of the tank down to next to nothing.
 
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