I purchased a used 55 gallon tank and a used Eheim 2028 filter. The tank is filled with water and gravel, no fish or plants. I am considering adding bleach in a ration of 20:1 (water/bleach) and let the filter run for a couple of days in order to disinfect the system. My question is: would doing this ruin the Substratpro and Eheim Mech filter media? The tank is not cycled, so I am not concerned about losing any biological filtration.
I am considering doing this because originally I cleaned the tank and filter with hot water and vinegar. I actually soaked the filter baskets and hoses for 24 hours in 100% white vinegar to remove some deposits. I then added new gravel and new media to the filter. The tank was filled, I added dechlorinator to the water, and let the filter run for a day, and added five 1.5" - 2" goldfish. Prior to that, the goldfish had survived (endured?) for 7 months in a 3 gallon unfiltered plastic tank (with frequent water changes).
All five fish were dead within two days. The fish store tested the water from the 55 gallon tank and didn't find any problems. However, I've been told that while the tank and filter were cleaned with the hot water and vinegar, they were not disinfected, and that something may have come along in either the tank or the filter and killed the fish.
So I am looking at adding the bleach to the tank and running the filter for a day. I just would like to know if doing this will make the filter media unusable.
Any thoughts on this?
I am considering doing this because originally I cleaned the tank and filter with hot water and vinegar. I actually soaked the filter baskets and hoses for 24 hours in 100% white vinegar to remove some deposits. I then added new gravel and new media to the filter. The tank was filled, I added dechlorinator to the water, and let the filter run for a day, and added five 1.5" - 2" goldfish. Prior to that, the goldfish had survived (endured?) for 7 months in a 3 gallon unfiltered plastic tank (with frequent water changes).
All five fish were dead within two days. The fish store tested the water from the 55 gallon tank and didn't find any problems. However, I've been told that while the tank and filter were cleaned with the hot water and vinegar, they were not disinfected, and that something may have come along in either the tank or the filter and killed the fish.
So I am looking at adding the bleach to the tank and running the filter for a day. I just would like to know if doing this will make the filter media unusable.
Any thoughts on this?