Cleaning the filter

[Saspotato]

I just had a quick question (probably been asked before but couldn't find a thread on it) but how often should you clean an internal filter?

I have done mine once in the last five months as it still seems to be working fine and I have had no ammonia issues but am now wondering if this is not frequent enough?

 

[Kaysie]

For my axolotl tank, I have a large canister filter, and I clean my filter pads about once a month, and dismantle and clean the whole filter (impeller, etc) once every 3 months or so. For the smaller turtle tank, I have an internal filter, and I dismantle and clean that one completely once a month. Cleaning the gunk keeps the motor and moving parts moving more freely, and eases up wear and tear.

 

[MRIGUY]

It depends a lot on your feeding schedule and the load in your tank. I clean my filters e/o month under normal load. If I notice that the mechanical portion (sponge) is overly dirty I will increase that tank to monthly or re-evaluate my feeding etc.

If you are not seeing steady nitrates then you are cleaning frequently enough as a general rule.

 

[Jennewt]

How often to clean the filter is one of those things where there isn't an answer that fits every situation. The answer is somewhere between every week and every 6 months. It depends on the size of the filter and tank, the number and size of the animals, whether or not any debris is removed by other means, the types of food used, whether there are live plants, etc, etc. You want to change/clean the filter pads BEFORE they begin to get clogged, but you can only determine this by opening the filter periodically and looking at it.

 

[catherinepet1]

How often to clean the filter is one of those things where there isn't an answer that fits every situation. The answer is somewhere between every week and every 6 months. It depends on the size of the filter and tank, the number and size of the animals, whether or not any debris is removed by other means, the types of food used, whether there are live plants, etc, etc. You want to change/clean the filter pads BEFORE they begin to get clogged, but you can only determine this by opening the filter periodically and looking at it.

Hi,
As above,
Well i tend to have a very close look at water/temp/and filter every week,This is done every sunday morning.
I tend to change my filter pads every second week,if not bad i wash them in tank water,if really cloged i change them,it really does depend on food etc.
I am really trying to use live floating plants, so they do absorb a heap of gunk.
As i have only 2 axies in a 6ft tank it is very rare i do more than a 20% water change daily,i manily do this as i have a fan going across there tank on a 24 hour timer,so we do loose water as such from it.
We all must think of temp tank ,when we are doing this,my tank is never over 16 ,so my 2 babies never seam to to stress at a higher level water change.
I have 9 babies on the go but they are fine to.
well i must say if i didnt get these babies as a gift ,eg my first two,(hagrid and serious)i wouldnt of have these things.
I do love them /but are hard work.
Catherine.

 

[Saspotato]

Have just done my second filter clean and things didn't look too bad. I have a lot of floating plants, one 20cm axie and a few baby guppies in the tank (2ft). The filter is an Eheim pickup 2010.

As I am pretty rigorous with spot cleans I think I will probably aim to clean it every 2 months... so a bit more frequently just in case. So thanks for your advice~

 

[Lisa]

I clean my internal one every two months. Thats one axie, in a 45cm long tank, with plants.

 

[oceanblue]

Filters need cleaning to allow the flow of water through them to continue. Part of the art is not to over clean them and thus destroy the biological system. If you have been really thorough with the cleaning check the tank is not thrown into a new cycle of ammonia and nitrite spikes as a biological filter re-establishes. Lots of floating plants can act as a filter substitute. I run one of my tanks with dense plants, mainly watercress, and no filtration. It is murky but tests OK for ammonia and nitrite.

 

[dancas]

oceanblue,

just a question.. how do you grow watercress in your tank?????? and is it your garden variety?

 

[oceanblue]

Yes. The watercress was bought as a bag at the local supermarket and I threw it in. It does grow locally in streams here. It grows long roots and semi floats. Botanically it is Nasturtium officinale, not the sprouting seeds growing in peat sometimes sold as cress. I'm not sure of availability in Australia. It grows far better in the axolotl tanks than others, possibly because the axolotls create the fertilizer, or possibly because I artificially harden the water. I chop off the top of shoots when they are getting too close to the lights. I'll try and post a photo in the next day or two, however this tank style is distinctly cranky!