i'm obsessing (filter advice request!)

[sweetsuvvyb]

Ok.

I'm running a Tetra whisper overhead/on the back filter (for 5-15 gall) on my 10 gallon tank, which houses (for the moment...) 2 small goldfish (total of 4 inches) and a pleco (about 1.5''). [i know this is a dirty situation...just can't be remedied until I find a new home for mister poopsalot pleco].

In my 1st tank, I had a UGF that didn't work, and was generally icky. So initially, the whisper filter was a huge improvement! But at the same time...the filter seems to get clogged way to quickly (1st filter, right about when the tank finished cycling...so I switched to a new one, but used the same frame, thinking I would retain some bacteria, but now not only am I going through the nitrite cycle again, the filter appears to be clogged again (water is running back out the intake).

Is this just indicative of my dirty fish situation (water change, water change, water change...), or will a better filter (the biowheels i keep hearing about?) remedy the situation at least partially?

Thanks so much guys....sure didn't take long for me to become slightly obssesive about this stuff!

 

[tkos]

It is surely an indication of your fish being poop machines. I use the same filter and have platys. Never have problems. It isn't the greatest filter but will get the job done. I would just suggest that you rinse the filter pad out more often. I do mine every week but you may need to rinse it out twice a week.

 

[Allivymar]

Mr Poopsalot *giggle* I like it.

I have the same prob sweets; I have a messy tank and my filters clog up pretty quick. I am usually cleaning out the filter once a week and its chock full of gunk (and this is with 2-3x a week gravel vacs too!). A bio-wheel won't make a diff; tis a biological filter and only a place for the bacteria to colonize. Its not a mechanical filter. The only diff I can think of bio-wheel vs none is when I clean my filters, I clean em in the sink with lots of running tap water. Usually a no-no, but since my bio-wheel is fully colonized (as well as the gravel, etc) , I don't have to worry bout losing bacteria. So I can really scrub the thing.

 

[sweetsuvvyb]

awesome. I'll just keep on keepin on, make a filter rinse part of the regular cleaning routine (which i'm doing 2-3 times a week right now, had only been doing a filter rinse once a week tops). And keep looking for someone who needs a lil pleco...

as always, thanks for your help!