Aquariums: I see on my water filter that it says to change a cartridge monthly, how important is that?
Im not sure how much its effecting the performance of the filter
Posted by Key_Ad7740
17 Comments
5minuteff on
change it pretty much never. Just swish it around in old tank water to clean it and re use it.
Free_Divide195 on
Never change the filter – it’s where much of the beneficial bacteria live. The ‘replacement schedule’ is just a sales ploy to get you to buy more products.
Instead, you can take the filter media out, get a bowl of tank water, and gently clean it in the water. Then, dispose of the dirty water and put the filter back. Do not wash it in untreated water, as chlorine will disrupt the bacteria in the media.
itsloachingtime on
Absolutely bullshit. In fact, you’d be harming your aquarium if you changed it every month. They say this because they want to sell you more filters. When the flow is reduced, just rinse/scrub it in old tank water during a water change. Change it when it’s falling apart.
jonjeff108 on
I always replace the cartridge with sponges or filter floss I cut myself. Then just rinse if its ever needed in old tank water of treated water.
comradecaptainplanet on
As the others have said, dont change the filter! Best you can do is actually replace the ones that come with most back overhang types with a same size slice of 30 ppi foam, and let that colonize with bacteria. You want it to be brown. The gooey-filmy stuff is a biological filter, all the lil micro-organisms help keep your water parameters safe. The more established your bio filters (they also live under your substrate) the less likely you are to have deadly ammonia/nitrate spikes.
The filter companies say this because its how they make money. Not a great business model to say “buy this filter one time for ~$45-75 & never buy anything ever again” compared to “buy a replacement every single month.”
Particular_Fox_9604 on
That “replace once a month” is just a cash grab from big aquarium.
Admirable_Meet4536 on
Important for the filter manufacturers wallets, that’s about it. As far as i know you shouldn’t clean them really at all unless they get genuinely clogged
Unique-Rub-5100 on
Very Important!!!
To the manufacturers bottom line…
😉
Open-Ad-6959 on
Not super duper important. Checking the water parameters is though.
Are you new to the hobby? When I was new, I used to change the cartridges for HOB filters religiously. Eventually I stopped doing that, and later I got a submersible filter with sponges. And just recently I added bio balls, ceramic rings, and other porous materials to it.
But again, the water parameters are the most important thing to check. 🙂
sortof_here on
The people commenting are doing so without really knowing how the marineland biowheel filters are designed.
As your filter instructions will state, you do not replace the biowheel unless it is damaged. This is where your beneficial bacteria is intended to be kept rather than it colonizing coarse sponge or ceramic media.
The cartridges are filter floss and carbon. If you want the benefits the carbon can provide it should be replaced monthly to bimonthly. Filter floss should be replaced when flow is impacted or if you start seeing nitrates increase specifically because of how much organics it is holding(likely to hit flow issues first). Both of these could likely be replaced more economically by using carbon infused sheets and filter floss sheets that you can cut to fit.
The reason why people are saying “don’t replace” is because they think the filter is encouraging you to replace its sponge and media. This is a common attempt at making money that other manufacturers pull at the detriment of their customers.
MoistShellder on
Its important for the company that also sells filters
hosea_they_heysus on
Maybe once or twice a year? If it gets clogged that is
AAActive64 on
of course it says that so they can make $$,, But naaa if it ever becoems blocked then rinse it
AvocadoOk749 on
I always replace those cheap filters with a combo of as many types of filter media as possible. Use reg sponge, ceramic balls or similar & floss. If there is room I’ll do another source of media like small lava rock or the little plastic balls with sponge in them. Any media i use that could cause issues with the impeller I put in small mesh bags with plastic zippers. Those replacement filters are just a money suck and imo more harmful than beneficial.
Edit to add, like others have said just rinse in a bucket of tank water. I don’t touch my filters unless they stop flowing freely. Which is pretty rarely.
Oculis_Deorum on
Get rid of the cartridge altogether and put some crushed lava rock in there with a foam block at the bottom.
Sank63 on
Vital for Penguin
slade51 on
Change the filter media when it falls apart or after you’ve medicated for some infection. Change the impeller when it breaks or gets abnormally loud.
If you use charcoal, you’ll need to change that periodically, maybe every 2 months.
Filters are like computer printers, the real money is in the replacement cartridges.
17 Comments
change it pretty much never. Just swish it around in old tank water to clean it and re use it.
Never change the filter – it’s where much of the beneficial bacteria live. The ‘replacement schedule’ is just a sales ploy to get you to buy more products.
Instead, you can take the filter media out, get a bowl of tank water, and gently clean it in the water. Then, dispose of the dirty water and put the filter back. Do not wash it in untreated water, as chlorine will disrupt the bacteria in the media.
Absolutely bullshit. In fact, you’d be harming your aquarium if you changed it every month. They say this because they want to sell you more filters. When the flow is reduced, just rinse/scrub it in old tank water during a water change. Change it when it’s falling apart.
I always replace the cartridge with sponges or filter floss I cut myself. Then just rinse if its ever needed in old tank water of treated water.
As the others have said, dont change the filter! Best you can do is actually replace the ones that come with most back overhang types with a same size slice of 30 ppi foam, and let that colonize with bacteria. You want it to be brown. The gooey-filmy stuff is a biological filter, all the lil micro-organisms help keep your water parameters safe. The more established your bio filters (they also live under your substrate) the less likely you are to have deadly ammonia/nitrate spikes.
The filter companies say this because its how they make money. Not a great business model to say “buy this filter one time for ~$45-75 & never buy anything ever again” compared to “buy a replacement every single month.”
That “replace once a month” is just a cash grab from big aquarium.
Important for the filter manufacturers wallets, that’s about it. As far as i know you shouldn’t clean them really at all unless they get genuinely clogged
Very Important!!!
To the manufacturers bottom line…
😉
Not super duper important. Checking the water parameters is though.
Are you new to the hobby? When I was new, I used to change the cartridges for HOB filters religiously. Eventually I stopped doing that, and later I got a submersible filter with sponges. And just recently I added bio balls, ceramic rings, and other porous materials to it.
But again, the water parameters are the most important thing to check. 🙂
The people commenting are doing so without really knowing how the marineland biowheel filters are designed.
As your filter instructions will state, you do not replace the biowheel unless it is damaged. This is where your beneficial bacteria is intended to be kept rather than it colonizing coarse sponge or ceramic media.
The cartridges are filter floss and carbon. If you want the benefits the carbon can provide it should be replaced monthly to bimonthly. Filter floss should be replaced when flow is impacted or if you start seeing nitrates increase specifically because of how much organics it is holding(likely to hit flow issues first). Both of these could likely be replaced more economically by using carbon infused sheets and filter floss sheets that you can cut to fit.
The reason why people are saying “don’t replace” is because they think the filter is encouraging you to replace its sponge and media. This is a common attempt at making money that other manufacturers pull at the detriment of their customers.
Its important for the company that also sells filters
Maybe once or twice a year? If it gets clogged that is
of course it says that so they can make $$,, But naaa if it ever becoems blocked then rinse it
I always replace those cheap filters with a combo of as many types of filter media as possible. Use reg sponge, ceramic balls or similar & floss. If there is room I’ll do another source of media like small lava rock or the little plastic balls with sponge in them. Any media i use that could cause issues with the impeller I put in small mesh bags with plastic zippers. Those replacement filters are just a money suck and imo more harmful than beneficial.
Edit to add, like others have said just rinse in a bucket of tank water. I don’t touch my filters unless they stop flowing freely. Which is pretty rarely.
Get rid of the cartridge altogether and put some crushed lava rock in there with a foam block at the bottom.
Vital for Penguin
Change the filter media when it falls apart or after you’ve medicated for some infection. Change the impeller when it breaks or gets abnormally loud.
If you use charcoal, you’ll need to change that periodically, maybe every 2 months.
Filters are like computer printers, the real money is in the replacement cartridges.