Canister cleaning?

[Bbush]

Should I really do the recommend upkeep on my canister or just let the bad boy do its thang?

 

[Cynic]

Personally I only clean them when I notice my nitrates aren't responding as well to water changes as usual

 

[Bbush]

Cool. I just had an epic fail trying to clean mine up this weekend, and I'm thinking I won't mess with it again unless I have to. Thanks for the tip.

 

[Mumma.of.two]

Yeah, I only clean mine when I notice water quality going down hill or the flows being restricted. Best way to clean them IMO is to move the whole thing to the bath tub before you open it then use buckets of tank water to rinse the media. That way if you spill anything it's really easy to clean up.

 

[George9]

It's a real pain. I do it when flow gets bad, usually it's disgusting with a capital dirty then lol.

 

[Bbush]

I forgot to remove the intake on mine and pumped about 5 gallons into the living room floor before I knew what happened. Then I washed part of my impeller down the drain!

 

[Mumma.of.two]

It's tricky the first few times but you'll get a routine going soon. I use to have to clean mine in the backyard because I made so much mess lol. Can you get a replacement part or is it still working for you?

 

[Bbush]

Still working w slight rattle. Marineland was super cool. Said they would send me a whole new impeller free!

 

[Mudfrog]

Mine gets cleaned every other month I guess. But like most has said that's usually when the flow starts to get restricted. My HOB filters get cleaned every other week.

 

[BillD]

Before you put off cleaning your cannister consider this. Anything in the cannister is still in the tank. Is your intent to filter the water or store all the debris out of sight?

 

[LyndaB]

A canister is still just a filter and requires cleaning in order to get the best performance, keep conditions safe for your fish and last you long enough to more than pay for itself.

I do the tub thing about once per month. It's not any harder than cleaning a HOB filter, it just takes a little longer due to the amount of stuff you can fit in it. I can't imagine letting my canister go without regular maintenance.

 

[Bbush]

Good point. I hear different things on this. I have a new tank and so I was just leaving it alone so it could cycle. I suppose the key is to use tank water. What about replacing the floss and carbon every 3 weeks?

 

[blert]

I clean all three of mine once a month (all on the same day). Does not take very long. Use durable filter material that you can rinse and reuse. Ditch the carbon, it's a waste of money and not needed unless you are removing meds or tannins. Replace it with more bio or some cheap floss that you can toss and replace every month.

 

[LyndaB]

Good point. I hear different things on this. I have a new tank and so I was just leaving it alone so it could cycle. I suppose the key is to use tank water. What about replacing the floss and carbon every 3 weeks?

Carbon needs to be changed out every month, if you choose to use it. Many don't. It's not necessary.

I replace all other components, with the exception of ceramic biomedia, only when it's falling apart in my hands. You want to hang onto it for as long as humanly possible. Rinsing in tank water every water change helps you achieve a long life on your filter media.

 

[mohican]

Before you put off cleaning your cannister consider this. Anything in the cannister is still in the tank. Is your intent to filter the water or store all the debris out of sight?

Best statement I heard in a long while!!
I clean both of mine around a month. The flow slows down so I need to at least rinse and/or replace the pads if nothing else. The longer you wait, the longer (and harder) it takes to clean it. You can clean the filter and keep biological at the same time. Toothbrush works well in tight corners too.

 

[Bbush]

That is what was confusing me. Cleaning w tank water vs. replacing entirely. I see said the blind man. Thanks all. Very informative. My tank has been up since march 19th. When my new impeller arrives I will clean that sucker!

 

[LyndaB]

That is what was confusing me. Cleaning w tank water vs. replacing entirely.

Tank water = dechlorinated cycled water = safe beneficial bacteria

Tap water = chlorinated uncycled water = dead beneficial bacteria