Newby question... Cleaning Filters.

[jimmy_c]

Tank has been running since Aug 1st. Looking good. JBJ 45 rimless. It has two "filter chambers" one on either side. In each chamber has 3 sections, top is a course sponge, 2nd is ceramic tubes, 3rd is a packet of charcoal.

Am I suppose to....

1) Rinse the sponge out one a week... ? It gets pretty nasty

2) ceramic tubes... what do I do with these??

3) Charcoal... I rinsed that in in tap water. (Hope that was the right think to do??)

 

Follow up queastion: Skimmers. Suggestions needed.

How is the Aqua-C brand, Hydor Koralia Nano. I like the Innvoative Marine... but its $$$

 

Again thx all!!

[jolee0722]

You should rinse the sponges every week or every other week maximum. I'm guessing the charcoal is carbon. If so, then you have to replace that every month. Some people replace it every 3 weeks but depending on your water quality a month is viable. The ceramic tubes shouldn't be washed. They are there to hold beneficial bacteria that filter your water. You can shake them above a sink to dislodge debris if you want to but don't rinse them. I'm not sure if this will fit, but the new cadlights elite pls-50 pipeless skimmer is a very good skimmer and is priced at $134.99.

[Nano sapiens]

Mechanical filtering sponges trap food and detrital particles that break down into an assortment of subtances/nutrients. Ideally, you'd want to remove these from the system frequently. Daily would be best, but at the very least once a week.

 

I used to use ceramic rings 20 years ago. They perform the same function as live sand/live rock in that they harbor nitrifying and denitrifying bacteria. I used to keep them in an old stocking so that I could lift them all out and clean them easily. To clean, I used to gently bob the stocking up and down in a container of clean salt water to remove detritus. Most of the bacteria will stick to the rings, so no worries there.

 

I don't use skimmers, so can't help you there...

[jimmy_c]

Thanks all. Yeah what I thought Clean the sponge and don't touch the ceramic tubes.

I think I may replace the charcoal with chemi-pure. Suppose to help with phosphates and other metals.

 

Still researching skimmer.... suggestions welcome...

[Egginis]

Thanks all. Yeah what I thought Clean the sponge and don't touch the ceramic tubes.

I think I may replace the charcoal with chemi-pure. Suppose to help with phosphates and other metals.

 

Still researching skimmer.... suggestions welcome...

 

Just got the IM Ghost skimmer on Thursday. It started working well from day one and was producing some good skimmate. It is a bit noisy for my taste but my Fusion is in the bedroom so I prefer it to be a little quieter. The build quality is nice and you can either place it straight into your back chamber or use magnets to hold it to the side of your filtration reservoir. (Magnets not included) Keep in mind I have only been running it 3'days.

[Mstefa1]

Tank has been running since Aug 1st. Looking good. JBJ 45 rimless. It has two "filter chambers" one on either side. In each chamber has 3 sections, top is a course sponge, 2nd is ceramic tubes, 3rd is a packet of charcoal.

Am I suppose to....

1) Rinse the sponge out one a week... ? It gets pretty nasty

2) ceramic tubes... what do I do with these??

3) Charcoal... I rinsed that in in tap water. (Hope that was the right think to do??)

 

Follow up queastion: Skimmers. Suggestions needed.

How is the Aqua-C brand, Hydor Koralia Nano. I like the Innvoative Marine... but its $$$

 

Again thx all!!

 

Toss the sponge, it won't be cleaned properly by rinsing it off. You should be using floss or the blue/white filter pad. It's pretty cheap and should be changed no less than weekly. Stop at Petco if you want to get it locally.

 

Toss the ceramic. As previously mentioned, your liverock & sand will harbor the beneficial bacterial and the ceramics rings are not required.

 

Carbon should be rinsed in RODI water to remove the dust, then replaced every 2-4 weeks. It's recommended to use less and change it more frequently than to use more and change it less often. Too much carbon could possibility absorb beneficial minerals from the water column.

 

Chemipure or Chemipure Elite (which contains GFO for phosphates) is fine for smaller tanks but not worth it for larger tanks because it's not cost effective. If you want to remove phosphate, use GFO in a reactor or something like phosguard in a media bag.

 

I want to note that you should never be rinsing anything in tap water. In fact, you shouldn't be using tap water at all. RODI or distilled is the way to go however since you mentioned that your tank is 45 gallons you buy your own RODI system (as most do).

 

A skimmer is necessary if you want to keep water changes down as most do with larger tanks. For smaller tanks, simply changing 10% of the water every week is usually sufficient. If you have room in the rear chamber then go for it. Don't skimp on your skimmer. Buy the best one you can afford. If this was a nano tank, I'd suggest skipping the skimmer and just performing standard water changes.

 

It's a nice tank, good luck with it!