Tropical Fish Forum
Tropical Fish Keeping Help and Advice => Fish Tanks and Equipment => Topic started by: sunshine on February 03, 2015, 05:56:44 PM
-
Hi
After my 1st partial water change with fish in my tank, the filter is working but only a teeny dribble is coming out :(
Any advice please?
from a concerned newbie ???
-
The fact that it is dribbling shows he pump is working. The usual cause of diminished water flow is blocked filter media, blocked by uneaten fish food, fish poo, bits of dead plant etc. Take the media out of the filter and have a look. If it is covered with goo, you'll need to wash it. I know you've just done a water change, but take a bit of water out of the tank and swoosh/squeeze the media in that - gently, you don't want to dislodge biofilm with all its bacteria.
While the media is out, you could try just turning the filter on for a few moments to see if the flow is OK. If it isn't, it could be debris in the impeller well. Check the filter manual for how to open the pump part to get at the impeller. Be very gentle as some filters have ceramic impeller shafts which are fragile. Use a cotton bud to clean the inside of the impeller well.
-
Thanks Sue! I'm very proud of myself - before I saw your reply, I re-checked & swished the filter media in old fish tank water (even tho I'd done it earlier) but still no success. So I found out about the impeller on google & thought I'd give that a go. It's flowing beautifully again now! PHEW!! :D
Bit worried I may have swished some of the much needed bacteria away tho - anything I can do about that?
I tested the water before I did the partial water change & ammonia & nitrite = 0, pH = 7.6.
-
Hi Sunshine, just wanted to say "well done" i'm still newbie and things going wrong panic me, im on here asking questions before ive even tried to sort it out lol. Thank goodness for google too lol. What fish have you got? :)
-
Hi Sunshine,
Sounds like you've done everything right. As you swished the filter media in old tank water, I think you'll be absolutely fine and not lost the much-needed bacteria. This is only likely if you squeezed and squeezed and squeezed the filter media. If you are concerned, then some Tetra Safestart added to the filter media might be an option - but, from what you've said, I think all will be fine.
-
Your bacteria will be safe unless you grossly overdo the cleaning. Filter media has to be cleaned regularly, the usual advice is to clean one bit at a time, but I clean the whole lot at once with no problems. The bacteria live in the biofilm which is tightly bound to surfaces including the filter media and it does take quite a lot to remove it. Your filter media will never look like new again so don't scrub it too much in an attempt to get it back to new condition
-
Phew! Thanks very much for the advice fcmf & Sue. I'm glad I just swished it instead!
Actually when I got home from work, I realised there was just a dribble again so I removed the carbon from the filter as it seemed very gunky & clogged when I did swished it around yesterday. [There's sponge, carbon & biological (?).] I wondered if it was blocking the water.
It seems to have worked - the filter is flowing freely again. I read on here somewhere that the carbon isn't necessary so I hope that's ok!
Aquamaid - I've got 8 ember tetras & they are real characters! :D
-
Carbon isn't necessary on a routine basis but it is useful in some circumstances (it removes medication once treatment has finished, and it removes the brown colour that leaches out of wood)
The worst media for clogging are those made of filter wool. This can be as the outer layer of cartridges or a pillow stuffing-like layer. It also doesn't make that good a home for the bacteria - sponges and ceramic noodles are better - but it does remove fine particles from the water. Filter wool usually has to be changed quite frequently, but as it isn't there long enough to grow many bacteria it is safe to just throw it away.
-
Thanks Sue, I'll keep that in mind. I'll just keep an eye on that filter... ???