[nemosmom]

I must have a different sort of filter than everyone else, as mine is just a plastic sleeve filled with charcoal bits and no sponge or paper. So I removed the charcoal and just put the plastic sleeve back. Did this disrupt the cycle? I notice on the filter box it says you can buy either the paper version called a water clarifier or upgrade to the charcoal version for my filter but it can't use both. Then there's an extra biological add-on filter for an additional price not included with the filter, called stage 3, which I don't have. :doh11:

devilduck, on 08 November 2009 - 10:55 AM, said:

Did you throw away the entire gunky sponge or just the black carbon granules/black carbon sponge inside? Only the black bit is the carbon bit that needs removing, the rest is filled with beneficial bacteria and removing it removes your cycle, you can wash the non-carbon bits in tank water to get rid of the gunk (mine are always full of algae bits) and put them back in the filter.

[devilduck]

Hmm I've never heard of that...I just fill the plastic sleeves for mine with bits of rock and sponge. You might want to try getting some sponge to put in the empty plastic sleeve, I just get any random filter media rather than necessarily getting a matching one for my filter, I end up squishing more in anyway.

[nemosmom]

devilduck, on 08 November 2009 - 10:55 AM, said:

Did you throw away the entire gunky sponge or just the black carbon granules/black carbon sponge inside? Only the black bit is the carbon bit that needs removing, the rest is filled with beneficial bacteria and removing it removes your cycle, you can wash the non-carbon bits in tank water to get rid of the gunk (mine are always full of algae bits) and put them back in the filter.

I just realized after searching online for filter parts that this whole time I've been missing a piece of filter--the sponge part! I bought my tank and filter used and replaced the charcoal never realizing there was a sponge sleeve missing. So when everyone was telling me to wash the sponge part I was confused. I found out mmm sells them, and will pick one up tomorrow, but does this mean my tank will have to recycle again? What will I need to do after adding the sponge to help my tank? :doh11:

[nemosmom]

devilduck, on 08 November 2009 - 12:28 PM, said:

Hmm I've never heard of that...I just fill the plastic sleeves for mine with bits of rock and sponge. You might want to try getting some sponge to put in the empty plastic sleeve, I just get any random filter media rather than necessarily getting a matching one for my filter, I end up squishing more in anyway.

Thanks for your help, I just posted and didn't see this response, sorry! I discovered my filter was supposed to have a sleeve of sponge that slips over the canister. :doh11:

[devilduck]

If you have gravel it's likely that you've got a lot of bacteria in there as I'm not sure how much would grow on the carbon in the first place. You'll probably get a cycle bump, keep an eye on it but it does sound like you'll have a lot of water changes in the near future! Keep on top of it and it hopefully won't be long before your fishies are sorted and you can enjoy them again. Remember to add meds for how much you remove with water changes! (if you remove 50% of the water add back in 50% of the meds that you initially added to keep it at the same level - CHECK this with someone else though as I'm not meds expert!!!) Good luck!

:testkit:

This post has been edited by devilduck: 08 November 2009 - 01:32 PM

[nemosmom]

Strange, some of this conversation isn't appearing? I went back to check one of the help responses and it disappeared!

[devilduck]

Is there any chance it's on page 1? or page 2 if you're looking at page 1...

Unfortunately I can't see missing responses :D

[nemosmom]

O.k. I have another question!

:help1 I feel like I'm in over my head sometimes!

Is there any difference between stones/gravel in the bottom of the canister filter for a biological element as compared to those ceramic pieces selling for $20/box? And how much of it would I use in ratio to the charcoal bits to go in the same area? I was thinking of putting the charcoal in one of those nylon bags, to make cleanup easier. But if I put a sponge in there too, is that too much bio stuff? I was also going to put a sponge sleeve around the outside. What would work better, a sponge on the outside, or on the inside of a canister filter? I've seen some filter models sold in both designs and wondered what you guys have better luck with?

I really want to get this all situated so I can just relax and enjoy my fish! Looking at my tank :donthit: is stressful and expensive instead of enjoyable right now, I know it's from inexperience though! I still have a bottom-sitter in my tank who's depending on me to get it right!

[nemosmom]

devilduck, on 09 November 2009 - 12:55 PM, said:

Is there any chance it's on page 1? or page 2 if you're looking at page 1...

Unfortunately I can't see missing responses :D

:pan I didn't see the page 1 - 2 option at the bottom without my glasses
sorry about that!

[devilduck]

I think the only difference between the pebbles/gravel and ceramic tubes is the surface area for potential bacteria to grow on, personally I have gravel because I'm a student and therefore a cheapskate :D You can NEVER have too much biostuff. I'm not a filter expert but I can show you what I have, I literally squash gravel into all the spaces and squish the sponge down to make more room. Apologies for the gunk, this filter is due a clean out!

http://i621.photobuc...corders/034.jpg
http://i621.photobuc...corders/036.jpg

When I got it this filter just had the green sponge in it and there was carbon in the sponge which i replaced with gravel.

Hope this helps! Maybe other people could post pics of what they've done with their filters? As I've said, I'm no expert but mine seems to work fine! I have three sponge/gravel filters because I started too small and haven't yet been able afford one big HOB one (maybe for xmas???) to get to the required flow-through

[Maceo]

Honestly ceramic rings (they actually look like hollow tubes) are going to be your best bet for adding biological filtration to your filter. They allow for way more crevices and surface area for beneficial bacteria to adhere to than gravel and also they can be boiled if need be in case of disease or something. In my opinion gravel just isn't a good long term home for beneficial bacteria. The ceramic rings are expensive but last forever and can be used to seed other tanks in the future.

There also is NOT any need for you to use charcoal in your filter unless you are specifically trying to remove meds from your tank. The beneficial bacteria are your filtering agents not the charcoal which really only stays active for a short time.

[devilduck]

The 'gravel' I use is actually meant for filters, rather than being the stuff you put on the bottom of the tank, it's very matte and rough rather than being tumbled and smooth, this probably gives it more surface area though it may not be as good as the tubes/rings. I also don't see any reason why you couldn't boil it if you wanted to :)

[nemosmom]

devilduck, on 09 November 2009 - 11:15 PM, said:

The 'gravel' I use is actually meant for filters, rather than being the stuff you put on the bottom of the tank, it's very matte and rough rather than being tumbled and smooth, this probably gives it more surface area though it may not be as good as the tubes/rings. I also don't see any reason why you couldn't boil it if you wanted to :)

Thank you guys for all your advice, :flowers I think I'm getting the hang of this. I love all the ideas for biological materials. Especially anything that saves money! I'm a stay-home mom with a toddler and only started this hobby because I got a great deal on a huge used tank w/filter.

I'm still doing prazipro and water changes every other day, and my fish so far are acting o.k. Do you think I should continue the treatment an extra 5 days because I had the carbon in during the first couple days?

So should I use carbon just after the prazipro treatment is done to get rid of any remaining chemicals or no?

I was also wondering if I covered my gravel with bigger rocks to avoid choking hazards, now that my large fish's mouth is getting bigger, would it breed too much bacteria to leave the little stones underneath? Would I have to move the big rocks every week and syphon the gravel underneath or could I just clean the top layer? (I was thinking of getting river rock) I don't want to unknowingly breed disease.

Sorry again for all the questions!

This post has been edited by nemosmom: 11 November 2009 - 05:29 PM

[vickielm]

http://www.kokosgoldfish.invisionzone.com/forum/public/style_images/master/snapback.png

[nemosmom]

Hi,
I appreciate all the support and help so far, thank you!

I will be done with the prazi treatment soon but noticed the past 2 days that Marlin is freefloating a lot in the tank, for about a minute, and then will let out a huge yawn and shake or "flash" for a couple seconds. Does this mean he has gotten the flukes in his gills if the treatment isn't working? Or should I try something else? This is what Nemo was doing before he died. But when you go near the tank he perks up. All the other fish are acting o.k.

[Maceo]

Hi Nemosmom, since you're treating your fish now and are over the initial emergency I moved this to Diagnosis and Discussion.