Transferring sponge filter from saltwater to fresh

[Bryanm70]

My brine shrimp growout tank has failed me about four times and now that my electric blue is holding, I need to convert that 10 gallon saltwater to a freshwater tank to house a couple juveniles so they don't eat the fry that are about to hatch. I was wondering If I use the same water from my cichlid tank and squeeze the saltwater out of the sponge filter, would it still contain the beneficial bacteria so the tank doesn't crash or would I need to transfer one of my filters from my established freshwater tanks to the 10 gallon to get it jumpstarted first?

 

[Terrance]

SW bacteria is different from FW bacteria. You will have to take one of the filters from your established FW tank.

Rinse the sponge filter really well. It doesn't matter if you use tap or water from your cichlid tank to rinse because the SW bacteria will die either way. I wouldn't trust that sponge after being in a SW tank though.