How often do you clean the filter, rinse and/or replace the media? I have the AquaClear 50 (200 gph) on my 20 gallon, for reference.

Well you want the good bacteria to build up so compeltely 'cleaning' the filter is a bad idea (I used to do this in my younger days, scrub the whole thing with a tooth brush and throw out all the media at once )

In my Aquaclear 50, I usually change the carbon once every 3 weeks or so, and I'll rinse the sponge with distilled water (not tap water) if it's really grimey, and I'll replace it when it looks like it's beyond cleaning. I never do anything with the biomedia as it houses most of the bacteria.

Hope this helps!

Chrissy

I do not use the carbon at all. Its a waste of space and has to be replaced too often. The only time its really needed would be to suck meds out of the water after treatment.
About once a month Ill rinse out my sponges in a bucket of tank water. I have never replaced the pellets and maybe the sponges once. I will only replace the sponge if it is falling apart. I make sure I have another one already seeded and ready to replace it with.

Thanks for the info! Let's just say..I wasn't doing everything right!

I have one sponge and 2 of those bio ring packets. I rinse my sponge about every month in tank water. i dont touch the bio rings.