how do you maintain a corner, carbon filter?

[cappieBridget]

I saw someones fry/breeding tank on here and read their article on how they did it and did one myself I put in a corner carbon filter (triangle shaped with the cotton and black and white rock mixture) I never saw these things before but did it for my fry so I don't have to worry about them getting sucked away, lol. How often do you clean or change the media in the filter and any advice would be awesome thanx!

 

[malkore]

activated carbon is only 'activated' for 7 days on average, so ideally it'd be changed at your weekly water change. that's when bag'd carbon for other active filters would be replaced.

 

[cappieBridget]

how 'bout the floss/cottony stuff?

 

[tropicfishman]

just rinse it well, rub your fingers over it to remove any build up, once it gets really really really bad, replace it, but on the safe side for your fry I would do it every 2 weeks, which isn't bad since there pretty cheap

 

[BillD]

It would be replaced when dirty. However, if i read this correctly, you are talking about a common box filter that we rarely see any more. Fry can get trapped inside, so it is best to use them without the lids. Our local guppy master used box filters, with stones instead of carbon and no lids over the floss so that the fry could swim in and out of the filter and graze the floss, which will contain some minute organisms. Personally, I think the sponge filters such as the Hydro line by ATI are much easier to use and maintain.

 

[cappieBridget]

How do people use sponges to cover the filter intake? I read people talking about this, but don't know how to do it, what to use, etc.. I have an extra filter to do this to. It's a whisper 2-10 gallon internal HOB filter.

 

[BillD]

If you take an Aquaclear foam insert, you can slit it or cut an X in it (lengthwise) from one end, part way through, and slip it over the intake of the filter.

 

[Lonewolfblue]

How do people use sponges to cover the filter intake? I read people talking about this, but don't know how to do it, what to use, etc.. I have an extra filter to do this to. It's a whisper 2-10 gallon internal HOB filter.

Here's Felix the Pleco just hanging around, lol.

For a sponge, just use scissors to cut a hole into the sponge big enough to cover the intake. Here's the picture of the one I made for my 75G. Then after you have it so it's a snug fit, then you can trim the sponge to the size and shape you want.

 

[TomK2]

that was probably my webpage you saw the $2 corner filter for the breeding tank. Ya know, I did have a fry or two get caught in the box, and had to release them, all was well after releasing them. It seemed to happen a few weeks after birth, when they get more curious? I didn't use carbon, I used porous biomedia taken from my canister filter, sadwiched between two layers of filter floss, also taken in part from the canister. Never thought of taking the top off once the filter floss assumed its shape... a great idea! You really only need the top on till the top layer of floss "learns" to stay in place.

An equally viable method would be an airstone driven sponge filter. When not in use, the sponge can go over your main tanks intake or run on the airstone in the corner of your main tank, so that it is colonized when the breeding tank is put into service.

Or keep a sponge over the intake of your main tank's filter, then put it on your breeding tanks HOB intake when needed. And you could also seed the HOB with colonized biomedia, and the combination of the colonized sponge and colonized biomedia would most assuredly keep aammonia and nitrite in check.

I forget where I got them, but I think BrianNY posted a link that had the intake sponges. Each sponge came with adapters so that it could be made to fit just about any filter or situation.

Yes, the sponge filters seem to have replaced the corner filters, even at the LFS's. But, the corner filters sure are cheap, and they do work. You actually can get some amazing flow through them with a good airstone, but perhaps you might want to dial it down a bit for fry. And you can have a very neat and clean main tank (because you don't have sponges in it) yet get a fully colonized corner filter up and running in minutes from stuff in your established canister filter. And you can run a corner filter with almost any level of water that is over its top, in case lowering the water level is needed to induce spawning. Hey, its low tech and nostalgic, what's not to like?

 

[TomK2]

A-ha! I found them. Hydro sponge pre-filter sponges? scroll down on the link to see the intake adapted ones.

http://www.jehmco.com/PRODUCTS_/FILTRATION/Hydro-Sponge_Filters/hydro-sponge_filters.html

 

[cappieBridget]

Tom2K- yep, it was you! I thought that was a great idea I'm still adding to my fry tank and mommy is preggo again so I'm going to get one of those dividers for the fry tank to let her birth in there instead of the dreaded breeder net box, lol.
http://www.tetra-fish.com/catalog/product.aspx?id=565 This is the one I'd like to put in so I could put some foam media in front of the intake but what would be safe to secure it? I have extra hose, maybe cut that long enough to tie around the top and bottom? Will the suction from the intake hold the foam on there maybe? They couldn't get hurt because there isn't a propeller, but it wouldn't be good for me to forget to check for fry in the filter either, lol. Maybe I can clean up the internal canister filter and exchange it for a HOB box filter. So many choices!! What would be my best bet? I did put lots of gravel from my 20 gallon into the 10 gallon and even some in the corner filter.

Lone- great pleco pic! Mine looks like yours but only about 1.5 inches big. How big do they get?

 

[TomK2]

I have never used one of the internal canister filters.

I did convert my QT and breeding tank over to an aquaclear mini (aquaclear 20?). I bought the hydro sponge filter to slip on the intakes end for when fry are expected. The sponge is currently on my goldie tanks intake, so it will be well colonized when needed. The other great thing about the aquaclear is that you can put the porous media into your main tanks canister or other filter, then take it out when the tank is put to use for a ready to go biofilter. And the final thing that's great about the aquaclear mini is that it cost about fourteen bucks online.

Yep, one can play around with a 10 gal tank on the cheap, so don't be afraid to try different things.

 

[cappieBridget]

Yeah, I love it! If you need to you can do it fairly cheap and with 4 children, I'm lucky to have a hobby, LMAO!!!