HOB cleaning?

I have a HOB 600L p/hour for my 10G. It houses one Betta with 2 Zebra snails. I have noticed with the lower flow the water at the surface becomes a little dirty, and then when I increase the flow the dirt pushes out into the tank.

I then opened my tank to see the Carbon pad very dirty, and I want to clean this. I know I should take water out from the tank, but do I take all the dirt off the cartridge? Can I also clean the water flow area of the tank which also seems to be a bit dirty?

 

It’s a very new tank, filter is around 3 months old and newly stocked, I’ve attached a picture of the filter.

 

Yes clean all the dirt off the cartridge. Give everything a flush around in a bucket of tank water, put it back together and you should be set to go.

 

Yes clean all the dirt off the cartridge. Give everything a flush around in a bucket of tank water, put it back together and you should be set to go.

Thank you! Should I also rinse the sponge off? Will I lose any BB?

 

Rinse the sponge in tank water and you won’t reallly lose any BB

 

Rinse the sponge in tank water and you won’t reallly lose any BB

How about the pads?

 

Rinse the sponge in the bucket and you won't lose any significant amount of BB. Maybe swap out one of the cartridges for a new one.

 

Also, the carbon isn’t doing a whole lot and you would be just fine without it. I would replace it with something More beneficial Like another sponge.

 

Rinse the sponge in the bucket and you won't lose any significant amount of BB. Maybe swap out one of the cartridges for a new one.

Also, the carbon isn’t doing a whole lot and you would be just fine without it. I would replace it with something More beneficial Like another sponge.

I don’t have any extra cartridges or sponges on hand, can I get away with rinsing one carbon pad and one sponge?

 

The filter is only 3 months old and newly stocked.
If it’s the only filter in the tank I suggest you clean some this week and some more in a fortnight. Taking your time to clean these things never killed any fish.

if it was my new tank I would not even be cleaning the panels of glass at this stage.

 

Thank you! This is what I was worried about too, I didn’t want to cause a spike of anything in the tank. I’ll start with cleaning one sponge!

 

Hi all, I have a similar question. I have an Aqueon QuietFlow 10 filter on my 10-gallon tank. How often should I be cleaning and replacing the filter cartridge? I've had it up and running for about 2 months, and I've rinsed it out a few times, but never replaced it. I've noticed under the filter outflow the water seems to have some sediment or dust in it. But maybe its just really fine bubbles that I've never noticed before. Should I be replacing the cartridge any time soon? I don't want to lose my BB so I'm trying to hold out as long as possible on replacing the filter.

 

Hi nick5809,
This will come as a surprise because it contradicts the manufacturer’s recommendations?

Filter cartridge/ pads/ foam are never replaced. They can be rinsed gently or swished like a tea bag. You can rub your finger on them with care to remove solids.

After two years yes you can add a new one beside the old for a month and then toss the old. Two years or more. Actually when it’s falling apart might be 18 months ?

You ask how often to clean.
Only when the flow slows and water starts to go around the sides or over the top. Depending on the food you feed how much and how often. How many fish you have etc etc it’s impossible to say . Approximately once a fortnight or once a month.
If you have live plants dropping leaves you should remove those on a daily basis.

Short answer
not any time soon.

An old cartridge can be black/ dark brown and still work after 3 years with careful cleaning. You might put a fingernail though it in 6 months accidentally.

A foam sheet cut to size can be used instead of buying the exact model of cartridge as a replacement. Much cheaper and will last many years.