Interested in filtration videos? Check these out! Everything you need to know about sponge filters: ua-cam.com/video/yQSI-3rUsIs/v-deo.html How Much Filtration do You Really Need: ua-cam.com/video/aZZoxO6rUOI/v-deo.html Lucas Bretz Fishroom Filtration Methods: ua-cam.com/video/2PLGjz0XQR0/v-deo.html What Does Water Quality Really Mean: ua-cam.com/video/TkPwQGG1LMQ/v-deo.html The Nitrogen Cycle Fully Explained: ua-cam.com/video/dFpN4wXgmfI/v-deo.html Sponge Filter vs Hang on Back: ua-cam.com/video/TN_eagzIEyY/v-deo.html If you want to see more behind the scenes stuff, exclusive videos and support the channel consider becoming a member! ua-cam.com/channels/YVN7EN0ALL6CE4U7NpMUTA.htmljoin Also, our new shirts can be found at: www.primetimeaquatics.com/merch For the latest in the fish room check us out on Instagram primetime_aquatics
I. Love. This. I actually find it quite a pain to clean sponge filters because I assumed they needed old tank water to be cleaned in. This method would save me a lot of time, so I'm going to give it a shot. Thank you so much for making this video!
@@PrimeTimeAquatics It was awesome! I was able to more thoroughly clean the sponges since I had more water available for rinsing, and no mini-cycles or bacterial blooms resulted from it. If anything, my water is much clearer from having having all that detritus removed. Thank you so much again for sharing your sponge-washing ways!
I totally agree with you. I've always used tap water to clean my sponges, 30 years, and never had an issue, I use sponge filters, HOB and canister filters. Good video, thanks!
I've been keeping fish for 27 years and I've always just cleaned everything with tap water. I'm on a well now and have been for about 6 years but prior to that (meaning the 21 years prior) I was on municipal water which was treated with chlorine for sure and never had an issue. I've also kept both salt and freshwater and have many of the same fish for years and years. Thank you for setting the record straight.
I agree with you. I’ve been cleaning my mechanical filtration media with tap water for years without any issues. This has been done with tanks as small as 10 gallons up to 75 both planted & unplanted. After washing off the gunk, all I do is shake off any excess water & replace. All my fish thrive & don’t appear bothered by this approach. Thanks for shedding light on this non-issue that many folks out there tend to overreact on.
I have been in the hobby for 20 years always have cleaned the sponge filters with tap water. Never have had a problem. Thanks for backing us up Jason. Lol. Have a great day
Wow, I'm glad that works for you. I did that once with a hang on the back filter. I cleaned it in the sink. I immediately got an Ammonia spike and killed half my fish. I now have some sponge filters, but I always clean them in the tank water. I would never clean them in the sink. I just don't trust it. I never want to go through that again. But hey, kudos to you.
So did I so why wouldn't you just grab a bucket of your tank water and avoid the issue altogether? Some people love going against the grain and it's not very sound advice in my opinion...
Good information Jason, as long as it’s an established tank there is plenty of BB in the tank(including in the filter you’ve just rinsed) so there will be no spike. One of those ridiculous aquarium myths that has been regurgitated over and over.
GOOD EXPLANATION VIDEO :) THANK YOU FOR SHARING :) I ALSO CLEANED THE SPONGE FILTERS ( SEVERAL OF THEM ) WITH TAP-WATER FOR YEARS WITHOUT NOTICEABLE ISSUES :) AND I WILL CONTINUE DOING SO :) THANK YOU FROM ISRAEL :)
This is so helpful. I've been cleaning a mucky sponge in tank water and I know it's not getting clean enough. I have heavily planted tanks full of wood. There is absolutely no reason after watching this why I wouldn't try tap water! You provide a great representative sample!
I water change weekly, and clean my sponges in the water I pull out every other week. Seems to work well. I keep most of my tanks bare bottom and heavily stocked though. So I can't really afford losing any bacteria... But I could see the tap water not being an issue if you had substrate, decor, ect... Good video! I like to see other examples of what can work. Thanks you!
Just found this video and am so glad to see so many others through the comments who also use tap water. I have all hob filters (except for my spec V's) and all have sponge prefilters as well as sponges in the filter along with biomedia. I have used my tap water (town water) for years to clean the sponges and also to rinse the biomedia as needed without any problems. I don't usually admit it publicly - lol - but now I might. Thanks for a great video.
I also use tap water to clean my sponges and foams. But I do this primarily if Im clean half or all the filters on a given day. For the foams in my canister filters I just give them a quick rinse, hit them a few times on the side on the side of the sink and rinse them again. Until the water runs clear. For the sponge filters I do exactly as you have shown in this video. But if I’m only doing one or two filters then I will rinse them out in aquarium water. I honestly believe that while using aquarium water dose preserve more beneficial bacteria overall, that cleaning the filters as shown in this video not only gets the detritus out of the filter but eliminates the weaker beneficial bacteria thus allowing for only the strongest of the beneficial bacteria to thrive and reproduce. Thank you for the video. I hope it will help someone get an understanding on how to make their hobby easier and ultimately more enjoyable.
I agree I have done the same with all my filters over the years. Basically you're beneficial bacteria is already established in your tank in every nook and cranny. Great video appreciate the transparency. 😎👊👍
Your BB has populated the substrate and decor. No issues with a mature well established tanks. I do hit the my tanks with a little conditioner when I do this. Everything you said is sensible. Agree 100%.
I personally have done this experiment cleaning sponge filters every week with tap water and by the grace of Almighty never had any problems for my fish highly recommend this
Thanks for another concise video offering basic but helpful info. I was in the hobby over 40 years ago armed only with my Innes exotic fish book when filter media was floss and charcoal. Recently back in, there's so much more info out there that it can get overwhelming. You do a great job getting to the point. I do have one question regarding this video and I realize that your answer will obviously be "no, it is not a problem" (or you wouldn't do it). I was surprised when all the sponge filters were thrown in a bucket before being washed. That means they will be returned to different tanks than they came out of. Doesn't this run the risk of transferring a disease or parasite from one tank to another?
Good observation and it certainly could introduce parasites to other tanks. If we have brought new fish into the fishroom the quarantine sponge filters are not grouped with the rest and we are more careful in that case.
Hey I get it, but not for me. No issue with using tank water for me, and I’m uncomfortable with the constant running and waste of tap water for the same end result.
I just moved tank and I had green lookin water so I Changed some water when moving fish. But my tank is cloudy ⛅️, I changed my hang filter could I’ve cleaned too much ! So I thought 💭 I might have to clean sponge 🧽 filter? A lot of dirty water came out. So I guess just wait
This makes complete sense actually. BB is not only in the spong..gonna do this and save myself the trouble of filling a bucket a with tank water just to clean them!!
Brave video, I always thought people were a bit OCD about only using tank water to clean a sponge. At least in the situation you're talking about. Thanks for making your video
Hi Jason, what i tend to take from the whole filter/bacteria thing is that people seem to seriously underestimate just how much of the bacteriological filtering/cleaning actually goes on in the filter. Everything underwater will have bacteria actively growing on it in a mature tank and the filter sponge is a tiny percentage of the overall surface area available. Heck there's probably beneficial bacteria living on the fish!
Sharpies Models and Aquatics I recently read a cool article about a symbiotic microbe that converts ammonia from fish into N2 and it lives in the gills! Crazy
I have learned more from your knowledge of running a fish room over any one else on you Tube. I clean my sponge filters every 2 to 3 weeks using water rinsed with declorinated water with Prime for my shrimp and angel fry.
Great video Jason! I clean my sponge filters with tap water the exact same way....never had any issues. In my opinion, I would think it would be the same as replacing a sponge filter with a brand new one once it gets too old. As long as your tank is already well established, there should be plenty of BB everywhere else and there shouldn't be any issues.
I have done the exact same thing for all the sponge filters in ALL my tanks for years!! I also rinse the sponges and the bio media in my canister filters with chlorinated tap water. Again never been a problem. I do draw the line on a newly set up tank, their sponges I do not clean for at least a month or more. I feel it kills off some of the good bacteria but that's OK cause it's the NEW beneficial bacteria that you really want.
fortunately, I have untreated well water and haven't had to worry about chlorine, chloramine, or ammonia. I am able to clean (rinse) all my tank and filter media in the sink. My water tests 0% nitrate, out of the tap, as well. pardon the pun. :D All this makes water changes worry free but, I still keep some prime around, just in case. Love your videos and appreciate the simple to understand and common sense approach to aquarium keeping. Keep up the great content.
Hi Jason you are right! Funny but my friend who’s been in the hobby for 40 yrs and I were talking about this about 3 weeks ago. He breeds rare hypans and very successfully. I could be wrong, but I believe it has to do with the types of bacteria that line/ live in our pipes. Once again.... could be wrong 😊
Talk about opening a can of worms. When the video first started I thought he is going to talk about cleaning in tap water. I have wondered about this. I have been cleaning mine in tap water but treated with Na thiosulphate (I do not use commercial dechlorinator waist of money). There is something on the Seachem site about OK to wash Matric with tap water. I wash my sponges from the canister filter in tap water and the Biohome just lightly rinsed in the water in the canister body. There is a lot of myths around about fish keeping lets debunk some more like using ammonium as the nitrogen in fertilizer. Keep up the good work Jason.
VB 23 I should note that I never do both sponge filters from a tank at the same time. I rotate between all the filters on the left side of the tanks, the next time all the filters on the right side 😉👍
I use tap water to clean all my filters. I have multiple filters (internal & external canisters) in every tank and don't clean them all at once. Also, I usally keep my bio seperate from mechanical. Again, if you know what you are doing, you can break most of the "rules." Did I mention I've been doing this for over 40 years? I love videos that dispel the myths of fishkeeping.
Interesting to see your method, it's pretty well the same way I clean them, and have done so for more years than I can remember. I do however add a little warm water so that I don't shock the bacteria as I flush them down the drain. :) great videos, subbed.
I clean mine as I'm using the python on that particular tank. Using the tap water, mixed with that tank water being siphoned out into the laundry sink, the water is half or less de chlorinated due to the mixing. Temp is also moderated this way. With only 21 tanks, I can do this and save time, rather than washing them separately from water change time. (Some tanks have 2 sponges). Glad someone else finally 'came clean' (pun intended), about how they're cleaning sponges. Thanks Jason.
Thank you Jason! I have sponge filters in every tank along with a HOB, and it just doesn’t feel right to rinse them out with dirty water. I have well water so chlorine isn’t an issue for me, and I would much rather rinse them out under the tap. So many pros recommend using old aquarium water. If using tap water would be the wrong thing to do, seems like you’d have had a problem by now, especially with all those tanks. I like your way much better! What about the HOB? Old aquarium water or tap?
Deborah Jeanne I’ve had zero issues and know lots of people who have been cleaning them with tap that have had no issues either. I actually don’t clean my HOBs unless they are really bad - I do change the media and rinse out sponge in the sink, but leave the filter alone.
Prime Time Aquatics seems like I’m making a lot of unnecessary work for myself. I’ve been removing the filter from the tank, taking it apart, cleaning all the parts, etc. it’s a PIA when you have multiple tanks. You just made my life a whole lot easier!
I clean the big sponges in my aquaclear 110 in the tap water. Been doing it for years. But I use tank water for my bio media. You're brave for posting this though 😊
I look at it this way: there's no way any of us would ever expect tap water alone to disinfect our dishes, countertops, etc. so we use soaps and cleaning agents. So when it comes to sponge filters, why do we all of a sudden expect the chlorine in tap water to be so potent that it completely wipes out an entire colony of beneficial bacteria?
I have been cleaning my sponge filters in tap water for years but i have an eheim hooked and use up my sponge filters for some added filtration. Because the tanks being old and seeded with the eheim as added bacteria i feel this would never be a problem. In addition i can see on an old stocked tank due all the good stuff on walls plants and gravel with regular maintance one or twice a week this should deffinitly work .i once did this with a 10 gallon of cleaning the spong in tap water forgetting i had no alternate filtration but worked out just fine. THANK YOU for the video i m sold. e spong
I clean my sponge filters in tank water or dechlorinated tap water. If the sponge is nastier than usual, I put a waste control product in the water to help break down the gunk. Our tap water has chloramine in it, so I won't use that on my sponge filter media unless I'm taking a sponge out of service and putting it in storage. I do clean the HOB pre-filter sponges on the only two remaining HOBs under tap water. They really get gummed up.
Just wanna say that I used to have oscars in a 50 gallon tank and this was way back in the late 90's when I knew nothing about ammonia in the water we always did a lot of water changes and replaced carbon filters when needed and never had a problem with the ammonia in our tank. We did only use PH test kits and PH Up/Down adjusters. Not sure if it's because oscars are very strong and were spoiled with live goldfish often.
Once a month I remove all the sponge filters from my aquariums and wash them in the washing machine, with no detergent of course. Then give them a quick rinse, and that's it. Never had an issue. I have wood and rocks in every aquarium, and that stores enough bacteria to keep the ecosystem going.
Hi Jason, I found this video very interesting. Because of your background and level of education, I trust what you are telling me, and I am going to give it a try. In the past, I would fill up a bucket of tank water and squeeze them out, but your method is going to make my life so much easier. I hope you remember me from our meet up with Jeremy at Aquarium Adventures; I was the guy with the dog. Anyways, thanks very much for sharing. I really enjoy your videos 👍.
I always use tank water to clean my sponge filters just to cut down on my water usage. An aquarium I interned at would rinse sponge filters in the sink, but in those tanks the sponge filter was such a small part of the overall biological filtration that it wouldn’t make much difference if the bacteria in the sponge all died off lol
(Thanks Jason, for another common-sense video) Not just the filtration, but add up the total surface area that bacteria has a place to live and compare it to the surface area available in a sponge. I'm pretty sure the sponge's surface area is a small fraction of the total. In addition, regarding the chlorine concern: typical tap water just doesn't have enough concentration to cause a die-off, once you've squeezed the sponge out, It's miniscule. It's just not enough to affect the total population, nor even cause a perceptible change. And anyone who owns a chlorinated swimming pool knows you have to keep feeding it chlorine because it quickly breaks down and off-gases. If you need to fill a tank with chlorinated tap water, let it sit in the tank overnight and I guarantee the chlorine will be gone the next day (assuming the tank's not air-tight). Since I've returned to the hobby this past year after many years away, I'm continually amazed how hung up on "cycling" tanks we get. We never had to worry this much years ago and it was the same water, plants and filtration. Sure, test it periodically, make sure the temp's normal for fish. Sit back and enjoy the fish. They're amazing!
I'm learning to watch your videos to the end, and then comment. ;-) I only have a 2'x1'x1' and I use an undergravel filter, so I don't need to clean any sponges. No amonia, no nitrite & no nitrate problem ... only 10 fish, 2 honey gourami, 3 cory, 5 guppies and lots of plants. oh, and 4 nerite snails. ;-) New BIGGER tank in the works, need to save me pennies. ;-)
Tap water is not an antiseptic. That's why chlorine in tap water will not kill your bacteria. Never has since you only rinse the media for about a minute. Great that you tell folks about this. Technically sponge filters should not be squeezed more than 4 times and then possibly... possibly you have removed a bit too much bacteria according to new wet sites and fish sites. But as you said, all depends.
Hi Jason, thanks for the link. I clean my sponges in outgoing water when I do a wc every 2nd week, or just get a small bucket of tank water and clean the sponge then turf the water down the drain.
I clean my Hygger double sponge the same way on my 10 gallon Nano fish tank with never a problem. I pull them out gently and to the sink they go. Rinse well and Squish them out good, and put em' back. Some people just seem to over think things. Occam's Razor.
Awesome video, in the past I used to use tap water without issues as well. Just a quick question on the pothos. I have pothos growing out of my un-planted 125, I was under the impression that the pothos helps with nitrates, and not ammonia and nitrites? Gotta love pothos!
Never had a problem. I use some fish water during water change and squeeze the sponge much as possible. Use the dirty water for plants. Rinse in tap( not all tap is the same) and reassemble. Good to go! No deaths or sickness in over a year.
I have been trying a ziss bubble filter. Just have to clean a small sponge once a month, but I clean every week. Low maintenance. Hope they come out with one for smaller tanks.
Was cleaning with Tank water only but honestly because it's more of a hassle I would wait a month or two maybe longer. Now gonna try tap water for myself (1 have 2 per tank, maybe clean 1 per week in a tank so each one q2weeks). Thanks for the video. And destroying things I thought I knew :P lol
Reassurance is great. My brother and I kept fish long before the internet and did not have troubles and worries. Sometimes, the internet can leave you worrying about doing everything wrong. Can you please tell us your thoughts on detritus worms?
I don't worry about detritus worms - they usually the results of too much food/waste in the substrate. Gravel vacuuming can help, as well as, reducing feeding if necessary. Some fish will eat them too.
Great video, answered all my questions. This brings me to one more ...a friend of mine has a 125g with a few 5-6" Jack Dempseys, . They dont seem as relaxed as yours, they hide alot and when I walk up to his tank they bolt and remain hidden for a while, especially if the light is on...what could cause this, PH is a bit low but all other parameters are good. I have an african tank and they are as happy as yours.
I have used tap water for 20 years to rinse sponges. To assure no problems, I have more than one sponge per aquarium and only rinse one sponge at a time.
Theoretically, if you have a well cycled tank, you'll have a biofilm throughout all your surfaces which will serve as denitrifiers until your sponge repopulates. However, I always use aquarium water for that extra uff-da, as the "coffee" that results is wonderful for houseplants and orchids. Call me conservative, but I always err on the side of safety.
Hello Jason, thank you for your huge help!!, God bless you really!!. I wanted to ask you i have a 50L tank (5 guppy and 5 amano shrimps) with substrate ( Lava rocks, soil and sand) and moss on driftwood and rocks. I have a external filter JBL Cristal profi e402 model and inside the tank i have a Eheim pre-filter consisting 2 filter canisters. My question is how often should i clean both of them? Your answer means lot to me thank you.
I use the dual sponge filters, and I tried doing this where I cleaned, in tap water, all the left ones one week and then all the right ones the week after, for a few weeks, and I always got a ton of bacteria blooms doing it. I always have a bucket of a bit of water from my shrimp tank (I dont use my python for it cause ya know, shrimp babies) so I just clean them in that. Maybe I'll give the tap a try again!
Put a tight knit media bag over the end of the Python. I regularly use a Python for changing water in a tank with shrimp in it, never lost any due to being sucked up by the Python
Using a python when the tank water runs down the drain it seems easiest to just use the sink to rinse the sponge in the sink as there is no bucket of tank water in that case. I suppose it doesn't hurt to run some tank water in a bucket to clean the sponge but if you go out of the way to get a bucket for tank water then why use the python lol? Idk, I just feel like there is enough beneficial bacteria in other areas of an established tank to not have to worry about it. That said, most including myself probably will haha. No different than throwing an old filter pad away really. Excellent content as always!
Do you have any small tanks, like 5 g or 10 g? I think it might be inappropriate to recommend this method to casual hobbyists with a little tank and silk plants and no substrate (lots of betta keepers, e.g.). Also, isn’t there a danger of cross contamination - spreading disease when you randomly put filters back in different tanks? I DO think that there are lots of right ways to do things, and folks should chose what works for them and what they feel comfortable doing. Me, I’m sticking with tank water rinses.
Waters Rising We have (13) 10 gallons with mostly just substrate and no other decor without issues. I agree - do what works! I also think testing water to make sure it’s ok is important.
Most people clean the sponge filter and at the same time carry out a water change. When we see algae growth we think clean everything but this is bad for the fish and plants. Never clean the sponge filter and carry out a water change within 12 hours of each other. When we start a new tank we can buy lots of thing to get the bacteria growing but 10 litres of water from an established tank is enough to set the cycle in motion. Recently I set up 180 litre tank with 60 litres of water from my old tank. Its free and it works. Anyway as I say it doesn’t matter how you clean the sponge filter if the tank water is conditioned then that is all that matters. Plus if there is an ammonia spike then you would want to consider if the tank is over stocked, planted with the right plants etcetera. Nice video.
That's interesting that you don't have issues with ammonia by just using tap water from another tank since the microbes responsible for nitrification are usually attached to surfaces, and not typically found in the water column.
What you have got to think of is the fact that the water is already cycled. So the statement tap water is far from the quality of the water. Although good bacteria builds up on filter media etc, the good bacteria lives in the whole amount of the water and then it clings onto the filter media. When we use things like quick start and cycle to make our tap water cycle fast (I don't I only used de-chlorinator.) and to let us put fish in the tank we are doing the same thing. Already cycled tank water is the same as the quick start etc if not better and good quality tank water that is already cycled and established will do a better job of establishing a tank than any additive that we could buy from the shops, because the water has directly established in the environment that it is going to be used in.
I stopped cleaning sponge filters under the tap on advice by my Aquarium shop owner, had problems ever since with nitrites & ammonia. Back to cleaning under tap
I perform similar cleaning. I clean one at a time to avoid cross contamination. I use tap water as well, mind you I’m on a well. However I’ll say this, you could totally kill all bacteria on a sponge ( not that you are) and the tank will still have more than enough BB in it to balance.
That “big boy” tank has some awesome looking fish! I’m not sure of its name but the large cichlid (?) with long feelers or flowing sort of thin finagle towards its front underbelly is gorgeous. Dunno if you know which fish I’m talking about, or if you do, what is its name?
Hi Jason, Sorry to bother you, I just met you at the GCCA swap (purchased some panda Cory cats). I’m newer to the hobby and I watch a lot of your UA-cam vids, just have a quick question for clarification and I’m hoping you can help me out. My setups are approximately 6 months old, Upon doing water changes (50%) is it”safe” to also clean the sponge filters (1-2 per tank depending on the tank) and HOB filters all at the same time? Or is this too much cleaning? If you need more clarification please let me know. I appreciate your time and thank you!
Super random question: How can you get one of your shirts? This one looks cool! I just got my first sponge filter, looking forward to using it and thanks again!
Interesting, and yes very controversial, to be honest I’m amazed this works without causing ammonia or nitrite spikes, but if it works fine for you, then there isn’t much to say. However, I’ll carry on using tank water for cleaning filter sponges/media as it’s what I’ve always done, and my guess is different areas have varying levels of chlorine and chloramine.
I have been doing the same thing for a while and no problem. Too many other surfaces with bacteria to worry about. I would not do it right away in a new setup
Good for you because each of your tank has a thriving culture of beneficial bacteria in the sand, gravel, decors, plants, etc. These things harbor more beneficial bacteria than the sponge filter. This works best for you because you have a lot of tanks to clean and you can save a lot of time by doing this method. However, this shouldn't be done if you have a bare tank. It's very risky.
What is the advantage of using cold water? Wouldn’t it be better to use warm water? I believe that the chlorine in the cold wouldn’t kill all the bacteria, but doesn’t warm water hold less chlorine? And it would be more comfortable on your hands too.
Can you please tell me which is the white fish in the background when you are cleaning the sponge in the sink. I have the same fish and been trying to get an ID.
Interested in filtration videos? Check these out!
Everything you need to know about sponge filters: ua-cam.com/video/yQSI-3rUsIs/v-deo.html
How Much Filtration do You Really Need: ua-cam.com/video/aZZoxO6rUOI/v-deo.html
Lucas Bretz Fishroom Filtration Methods: ua-cam.com/video/2PLGjz0XQR0/v-deo.html
What Does Water Quality Really Mean: ua-cam.com/video/TkPwQGG1LMQ/v-deo.html
The Nitrogen Cycle Fully Explained: ua-cam.com/video/dFpN4wXgmfI/v-deo.html
Sponge Filter vs Hang on Back: ua-cam.com/video/TN_eagzIEyY/v-deo.html
If you want to see more behind the scenes stuff, exclusive videos and support the channel consider becoming a member! ua-cam.com/channels/YVN7EN0ALL6CE4U7NpMUTA.htmljoin
Also, our new shirts can be found at: www.primetimeaquatics.com/merch
For the latest in the fish room check us out on Instagram primetime_aquatics
I. Love. This. I actually find it quite a pain to clean sponge filters because I assumed they needed old tank water to be cleaned in. This method would save me a lot of time, so I'm going to give it a shot. Thank you so much for making this video!
I would love to hear how it works for you!
@@PrimeTimeAquatics It was awesome! I was able to more thoroughly clean the sponges since I had more water available for rinsing, and no mini-cycles or bacterial blooms resulted from it. If anything, my water is much clearer from having having all that detritus removed. Thank you so much again for sharing your sponge-washing ways!
I totally agree with you. I've always used tap water to clean my sponges, 30 years, and never had an issue, I use sponge filters, HOB and canister filters. Good video, thanks!
Thanks for sharing!!
I've been keeping fish for 27 years and I've always just cleaned everything with tap water. I'm on a well now and have been for about 6 years but prior to that (meaning the 21 years prior) I was on municipal water which was treated with chlorine for sure and never had an issue. I've also kept both salt and freshwater and have many of the same fish for years and years. Thank you for setting the record straight.
Thank you Brian - glad it worked for you as well!
Me to, although I used warm water. English tap water is freezing as it comes straight from the mains!
I agree with you. I’ve been cleaning my mechanical filtration media with tap water for years without any issues. This has been done with tanks as small as 10 gallons up to 75 both planted & unplanted. After washing off the gunk, all I do is shake off any excess water & replace. All my fish thrive & don’t appear bothered by this approach. Thanks for shedding light on this non-issue that many folks out there tend to overreact on.
I have been in the hobby for 20 years always have cleaned the sponge filters with tap water. Never have had a problem. Thanks for backing us up Jason. Lol. Have a great day
Glad to hear it works for you too!
Wow, I'm glad that works for you. I did that once with a hang on the back filter. I cleaned it in the sink. I immediately got an Ammonia spike and killed half my fish. I now have some sponge filters, but I always clean them in the tank water. I would never clean them in the sink. I just don't trust it. I never want to go through that again. But hey, kudos to you.
So did I so why wouldn't you just grab a bucket of your tank water and avoid the issue altogether? Some people love going against the grain and it's not very sound advice in my opinion...
I clean my canister filter outside with the hose, and never had a problem. So glad to hear it’s not that risky!!!
Thank you for confirming my way of cleaning sponge filters in tap water once a week!
Never had a problem !
Good information Jason, as long as it’s an established tank there is plenty of BB in the tank(including in the filter you’ve just rinsed) so there will be no spike. One of those ridiculous aquarium myths that has been regurgitated over and over.
HUKIT Thank you!
GOOD EXPLANATION VIDEO :)
THANK YOU FOR SHARING :)
I ALSO CLEANED THE SPONGE FILTERS ( SEVERAL OF THEM ) WITH TAP-WATER FOR YEARS WITHOUT NOTICEABLE ISSUES :)
AND I WILL CONTINUE DOING SO :)
THANK YOU FROM ISRAEL :)
Way too many hobbyists are scared to trust their tank and the bacteria within, great video!!
This is so helpful. I've been cleaning a mucky sponge in tank water and I know it's not getting clean enough. I have heavily planted tanks full of wood. There is absolutely no reason after watching this why I wouldn't try tap water! You provide a great representative sample!
I water change weekly, and clean my sponges in the water I pull out every other week. Seems to work well. I keep most of my tanks bare bottom and heavily stocked though. So I can't really afford losing any bacteria...
But I could see the tap water not being an issue if you had substrate, decor, ect...
Good video! I like to see other examples of what can work. Thanks you!
Thanks for watching!
Just found this video and am so glad to see so many others through the comments who also use tap water. I have all hob filters (except for my spec V's) and all have sponge prefilters as well as sponges in the filter along with biomedia. I have used my tap water (town water) for years to clean the sponges and also to rinse the biomedia as needed without any problems. I don't usually admit it publicly - lol - but now I might. Thanks for a great video.
Ya, sometimes admitting that can start a heated conversation. : -)
Hooray I clean my sponges in tap water too 😊
Have no problem with the way you clean. I personally use some tank water and I water my house and garden plants with it. They thrive.
I also use tap water to clean my sponges and foams. But I do this primarily if Im clean half or all the filters on a given day.
For the foams in my canister filters I just give them a quick rinse, hit them a few times on the side on the side of the sink and rinse them again. Until the water runs clear.
For the sponge filters I do exactly as you have shown in this video.
But if I’m only doing one or two filters then I will rinse them out in aquarium water.
I honestly believe that while using aquarium water dose preserve more beneficial bacteria overall, that cleaning the filters as shown in this video not only gets the detritus out of the filter but eliminates the weaker beneficial bacteria thus allowing for only the strongest of the beneficial bacteria to thrive and reproduce.
Thank you for the video. I hope it will help someone get an understanding on how to make their hobby easier and ultimately more enjoyable.
So glad it's working for you as well!
I agree I have done the same with all my filters over the years. Basically you're beneficial bacteria is already established in your tank in every nook and cranny. Great video appreciate the transparency. 😎👊👍
Dude, you broke the internet!!! lol
I 100% agree and I have long done the same thing.
Glad it works for you too. : -)
Your BB has populated the substrate and decor. No issues with a mature well established tanks. I do hit the my tanks with a little conditioner when I do this. Everything you said is sensible. Agree 100%.
I am lazy, take them all and throw them in the washer on the cold water rinse. Never have an issue. Good upload.
Chronicles of Chris' Fishroom. Actually
never thought about that.
Thanks for this filter video. Very helpful for me and I'm sure for everyone watching 👍🙂❗️
I personally have done this experiment cleaning sponge filters every week with tap water and by the grace of Almighty never had any problems for my fish highly recommend this
Thanks for another concise video offering basic but helpful info. I was in the hobby over 40 years ago armed only with my Innes exotic fish book when filter media was floss and charcoal. Recently back in, there's so much more info out there that it can get overwhelming. You do a great job getting to the point.
I do have one question regarding this video and I realize that your answer will obviously be "no, it is not a problem" (or you wouldn't do it). I was surprised when all the sponge filters were thrown in a bucket before being washed. That means they will be returned to different tanks than they came out of. Doesn't this run the risk of transferring a disease or parasite from one tank to another?
Good observation and it certainly could introduce parasites to other tanks. If we have brought new fish into the fishroom the quarantine sponge filters are not grouped with the rest and we are more careful in that case.
Hey I get it, but not for me. No issue with using tank water for me, and I’m uncomfortable with the constant running and waste of tap water for the same end result.
MPWALL : THAT’s exactly what I use TANK WATER 💦 to rinse the SP🧽NGES 👌🏿
That’s what I did empty some tank water inside bucket and squeeze sponge 🧽 in bucket
I just moved tank and I had green lookin water so I Changed some water when moving fish. But my tank is cloudy ⛅️, I changed my hang filter could I’ve cleaned too much ! So I thought 💭 I might have to clean sponge 🧽 filter? A lot of dirty water came out. So I guess just wait
This makes complete sense actually. BB is not only in the spong..gonna do this and save myself the trouble of filling a bucket a with tank water just to clean them!!
Brave video, I always thought people were a bit OCD about only using tank water to clean a sponge. At least in the situation you're talking about. Thanks for making your video
Thanks! Appreciate you watching!
Another great vid!!! You are one of the best educators on you !!! Thanks for keeping that good info coming!!! 😉
chefrarestones1960 Thank you. Appreciate you watching!
Hi Jason, what i tend to take from the whole filter/bacteria thing is that people seem to seriously underestimate just how much of the bacteriological filtering/cleaning actually goes on in the filter. Everything underwater will have bacteria actively growing on it in a mature tank and the filter sponge is a tiny percentage of the overall surface area available. Heck there's probably beneficial bacteria living on the fish!
Sharpies Models and Aquatics I recently read a cool article about a symbiotic microbe that converts ammonia from fish into N2 and it lives in the gills! Crazy
IV had larva rock in my tank a small amount bacteria will be all over it 😊
I have learned more from your knowledge of running a fish room over any one else on you Tube. I clean my sponge filters every 2 to 3 weeks using water rinsed with declorinated water with Prime for my shrimp and angel fry.
Thank you so much! Really appreciate it.
Great video Jason! I clean my sponge filters with tap water the exact same way....never had any issues. In my opinion, I would think it would be the same as replacing a sponge filter with a brand new one once it gets too old. As long as your tank is already well established, there should be plenty of BB everywhere else and there shouldn't be any issues.
This is how I also clean my canister filter for 2 years plus with zero problems ❤️
We did the same with our canisters!
You've put off doing this video , we've been putting off watching the sponge cleaning video 😎👍
Great video
I have done the exact same thing for all the sponge filters in ALL my tanks for years!! I also rinse the sponges and the bio media in my canister filters with chlorinated tap water. Again never been a problem. I do draw the line on a newly set up tank, their sponges I do not clean for at least a month or more. I feel it kills off some of the good bacteria but that's OK cause it's the NEW beneficial bacteria that you really want.
Sounds like we do the same thing! Glad it's working for you too!
fortunately, I have untreated well water and haven't had to worry about chlorine, chloramine, or ammonia. I am able to clean (rinse) all my tank and filter media in the sink. My water tests 0% nitrate, out of the tap, as well. pardon the pun. :D All this makes water changes worry free but, I still keep some prime around, just in case. Love your videos and appreciate the simple to understand and common sense approach to aquarium keeping. Keep up the great content.
Raymond Bardeen That’s a great situation to have. 😀
Hi Jason you are right! Funny but my friend who’s been in the hobby for 40 yrs and I were talking about this about 3 weeks ago. He breeds rare hypans and very successfully. I could be wrong, but I believe it has to do with the types of bacteria that line/ live in our pipes. Once again.... could be wrong 😊
Interesting.
21k already! Congrats this channel is growing so fast.
Dominic TVlogs Thank you!
Talk about opening a can of worms. When the video first started I thought he is going to talk about cleaning in tap water. I have wondered about this. I have been cleaning mine in tap water but treated with Na thiosulphate (I do not use commercial dechlorinator waist of money). There is something on the Seachem site about OK to wash Matric with tap water. I wash my sponges from the canister filter in tap water and the Biohome just lightly rinsed in the water in the canister body. There is a lot of myths around about fish keeping lets debunk some more like using ammonium as the nitrogen in fertilizer. Keep up the good work Jason.
Robert Fletcher Appreciate you watching!
Thank you! I'm almost removing all medias from my canister and using only sponges :D
Let me know how it works!
There’s a lot of food for thought in this video. Thanks for sharing.
Thank you!
My household runs on rain water and I clean mine the way you do. Never had any issues.
I use tap water to clean sponge filters and never had a problem. I’d like to see this tested under a microscope. Hmmmm 🤔
You do it too? Two fish room with hundreds dollars worth of fish. I'm trying this!!!
VB 23 I should note that I never do both sponge filters from a tank at the same time. I rotate between all the filters on the left side of the tanks, the next time all the filters on the right side 😉👍
Do you do these with your plecos as well?
I use tap water to clean all my filters. I have multiple filters (internal & external canisters) in every tank and don't clean them all at once. Also, I usally keep my bio seperate from mechanical. Again, if you know what you are doing, you can break most of the "rules." Did I mention I've been doing this for over 40 years?
I love videos that dispel the myths of fishkeeping.
VB 23 yes
I have been doing this for years with no problems also glad I’m not the only one 😂
You are part of the club. : -)
Interesting to see your method, it's pretty well the same way I clean them, and have done so for more years than I can remember. I do however add a little warm water so that I don't shock the bacteria as I flush them down the drain. :) great videos, subbed.
Thanks Paul! Glad it's working for you too!
I clean mine as I'm using the python on that particular tank. Using the tap water, mixed with that tank water being siphoned out into the laundry sink, the water is half or less de chlorinated due to the mixing. Temp is also moderated this way. With only 21 tanks, I can do this and save time, rather than washing them separately from water change time. (Some tanks have 2 sponges). Glad someone else finally 'came clean' (pun intended), about how they're cleaning sponges. Thanks Jason.
Caylor's Aquatics I think there are quite a few closet tap water users out there. 😀
Ha-Haah...thank you. I do precisely the method when I clean my sponges for my powerheads that I use to filter my 110 gallon. Thumbs Up Upload!
Strict_Economy Thank you!
Thank you Jason! I have sponge filters in every tank along with a HOB, and it just doesn’t feel right to rinse them out with dirty water. I have well water so chlorine isn’t an issue for me, and I would much rather rinse them out under the tap. So many pros recommend using old aquarium water. If using tap water would be the wrong thing to do, seems like you’d have had a problem by now, especially with all those tanks. I like your way much better! What about the HOB? Old aquarium water or tap?
Deborah Jeanne I’ve had zero issues and know lots of people who have been cleaning them with tap that have had no issues either. I actually don’t clean my HOBs unless they are really bad - I do change the media and rinse out sponge in the sink, but leave the filter alone.
Prime Time Aquatics seems like I’m making a lot of unnecessary work for myself. I’ve been removing the filter from the tank, taking it apart, cleaning all the parts, etc. it’s a PIA when you have multiple tanks. You just made my life a whole lot easier!
I clean the big sponges in my aquaclear 110 in the tap water. Been doing it for years. But I use tank water for my bio media. You're brave for posting this though 😊
Haha. Thanks. :-)
I look at it this way: there's no way any of us would ever expect tap water alone to disinfect our dishes, countertops, etc. so we use soaps and cleaning agents.
So when it comes to sponge filters, why do we all of a sudden expect the chlorine in tap water to be so potent that it completely wipes out an entire colony of beneficial bacteria?
Huh, you're right... never thought of it that way! (So you're saying, don't use 409 to clean my sponge filters... 😜)
Dang, that was deep dude. : -) haha. Great point!
A Gamer's Wife lol yeah that’s a no go 😂
I have been cleaning my sponge filters in tap water for years but i have an eheim hooked and use up my sponge filters for some added filtration. Because the tanks being old and seeded with the eheim as added bacteria i feel this would never be a problem. In addition i can see on an old stocked tank due all the good stuff on walls plants and gravel with regular maintance one or twice a week this should deffinitly work .i once did this with a 10 gallon of cleaning the spong in tap water forgetting i had no alternate filtration but worked out just fine. THANK YOU for the video i m sold.
e spong
I've done both 😁 Depends on which is more convenient at the time!
I clean my sponge filters in tank water or dechlorinated tap water. If the sponge is nastier than usual, I put a waste control product in the water to help break down the gunk.
Our tap water has chloramine in it, so I won't use that on my sponge filter media unless I'm taking a sponge out of service and putting it in storage.
I do clean the HOB pre-filter sponges on the only two remaining HOBs under tap water. They really get gummed up.
Just wanna say that I used to have oscars in a 50 gallon tank and this was way back in the late 90's when I knew nothing about ammonia in the water we always did a lot of water changes and replaced carbon filters when needed and never had a problem with the ammonia in our tank. We did only use PH test kits and PH Up/Down adjusters. Not sure if it's because oscars are very strong and were spoiled with live goldfish often.
this is really helpful! :-) It is nice to get some reassurance about this.
Once a month I remove all the sponge filters from my aquariums and wash them in the washing machine, with no detergent of course. Then give them a quick rinse, and that's it. Never had an issue. I have wood and rocks in every aquarium, and that stores enough bacteria to keep the ecosystem going.
Thanks for sharing. I'm learning a lot from your videos. Keep it up!
Cocoy C Thank you. Glad they are useful.😀
Hi Jason, I found this video very interesting. Because of your background and level of education, I trust what you are telling me, and I am going to give it a try. In the past, I would fill up a bucket of tank water and squeeze them out, but your method is going to make my life so much easier. I hope you remember me from our meet up with Jeremy at Aquarium Adventures; I was the guy with the dog. Anyways, thanks very much for sharing. I really enjoy your videos 👍.
Denny's Aquatics I do remember you. I would certainly test your tank water afterwards to ensure everything is ok. 😀
Thank you so much for your help!
I always use tank water to clean my sponge filters just to cut down on my water usage. An aquarium I interned at would rinse sponge filters in the sink, but in those tanks the sponge filter was such a small part of the overall biological filtration that it wouldn’t make much difference if the bacteria in the sponge all died off lol
(Thanks Jason, for another common-sense video)
Not just the filtration, but add up the total surface area that bacteria has a place to live and compare it to the surface area available in a sponge. I'm pretty sure the sponge's surface area is a small fraction of the total.
In addition, regarding the chlorine concern: typical tap water just doesn't have enough concentration to cause a die-off, once you've squeezed the sponge out, It's miniscule. It's just not enough to affect the total population, nor even cause a perceptible change. And anyone who owns a chlorinated swimming pool knows you have to keep feeding it chlorine because it quickly breaks down and off-gases. If you need to fill a tank with chlorinated tap water, let it sit in the tank overnight and I guarantee the chlorine will be gone the next day (assuming the tank's not air-tight).
Since I've returned to the hobby this past year after many years away, I'm continually amazed how hung up on "cycling" tanks we get. We never had to worry this much years ago and it was the same water, plants and filtration. Sure, test it periodically, make sure the temp's normal for fish. Sit back and enjoy the fish. They're amazing!
I'm learning to watch your videos to the end, and then comment. ;-)
I only have a 2'x1'x1' and I use an undergravel filter, so I don't need to clean any sponges.
No amonia, no nitrite & no nitrate problem ... only 10 fish, 2 honey gourami, 3 cory, 5 guppies and lots of plants. oh, and 4 nerite snails. ;-)
New BIGGER tank in the works, need to save me pennies. ;-)
mucks Sounds like a great set up! And I’m glad you’re here! 😀
I think the key is cold water. Most newbies will clean with hot water which I think kill all bb off the sponges.
Posted on my birthday 😎
Woohoo!
Tap water is not an antiseptic. That's why chlorine in tap water will not kill your bacteria. Never has since you only rinse the media for about a minute. Great that you tell folks about this. Technically sponge filters should not be squeezed more than 4 times and then possibly... possibly you have removed a bit too much bacteria according to new wet sites and fish sites. But as you said, all depends.
Hi Jason, thanks for the link. I clean my sponges in outgoing water when I do a wc every 2nd week, or just get a small bucket of tank water and clean the sponge then turf the water down the drain.
I clean my Hygger double sponge the same way on my 10 gallon Nano fish tank with never a problem. I pull them out gently and to the sink they go. Rinse well and Squish them out good, and put em' back. Some people just seem to over think things. Occam's Razor.
Awesome video, in the past I used to use tap water without issues as well. Just a quick question on the pothos. I have pothos growing out of my un-planted 125, I was under the impression that the pothos helps with nitrates, and not ammonia and nitrites? Gotta love pothos!
That is their main purpose since microbes will deal with the ammonia and nitrites.
Never had a problem. I use some fish water during water change and squeeze the sponge much as possible. Use the dirty water for plants. Rinse in tap( not all tap is the same) and reassemble. Good to go! No deaths or sickness in over a year.
FiSHioN TaNkTiCS Good to know it’s working for you!
I have been trying a ziss bubble filter. Just have to clean a small sponge once a month, but I clean every week. Low maintenance. Hope they come out with one for smaller tanks.
Cool! Sounds like it's working well. : -)
Was cleaning with Tank water only but honestly because it's more of a hassle I would wait a month or two maybe longer. Now gonna try tap water for myself (1 have 2 per tank, maybe clean 1 per week in a tank so each one q2weeks). Thanks for the video. And destroying things I thought I knew :P lol
p talavera Certainly could start with alternating the cleanings and see what happens.
Hey Jason, I’ve been waiting for this one since you mentioned it at the club meeting 😀. I do mine the same way.
EJ Fishes 76 Ya, there’s actually quite a few of us who do. 😀
Thanks dude
Reassurance is great. My brother and I kept fish long before the internet and did not have troubles and worries. Sometimes, the internet can leave you worrying about doing everything wrong. Can you please tell us your thoughts on detritus worms?
I don't worry about detritus worms - they usually the results of too much food/waste in the substrate. Gravel vacuuming can help, as well as, reducing feeding if necessary. Some fish will eat them too.
@@PrimeTimeAquatics Thank you for the reply. I think they arrived on some plants. Will cut down feeding and gravel vac regularly.
Great video, answered all my questions. This brings me to one more ...a friend of mine has a 125g with a few 5-6" Jack Dempseys, . They dont seem as relaxed as yours, they hide alot and when I walk up to his tank they bolt and remain hidden for a while, especially if the light is on...what could cause this, PH is a bit low but all other parameters are good. I have an african tank and they are as happy as yours.
Keith Moore some fish can be skittish. I have a few tanks like that. Sometimes dither fish may help them feel comfortable.
Great video 👍
Thank you 😊
I have used tap water for 20 years to rinse sponges. To assure no problems, I have more than one sponge per aquarium and only rinse one sponge at a time.
Do the sponge filters get to a point where you definitely have to replace the filter with a new sponge ? just ordered my first set for my new 90
Theoretically, if you have a well cycled tank, you'll have a biofilm throughout all your surfaces which will serve as denitrifiers until your sponge repopulates.
However, I always use aquarium water for that extra uff-da, as the "coffee" that results is wonderful for houseplants and orchids.
Call me conservative, but I always err on the side of safety.
@@PiTaReX
Only when they start to fall apart
@@PiTaReX I order sponges from Swiss Tropucals (poret foam). 8 years old in one case and still in excellent shape
Hello Jason, thank you for your huge help!!, God bless you really!!. I wanted to ask you i have a 50L tank (5 guppy and 5 amano shrimps) with substrate ( Lava rocks, soil and sand) and moss on driftwood and rocks. I have a external filter JBL Cristal profi e402 model and inside the tank i have a Eheim pre-filter consisting 2 filter canisters. My question is how often should i clean both of them? Your answer means lot to me thank you.
I use the dual sponge filters, and I tried doing this where I cleaned, in tap water, all the left ones one week and then all the right ones the week after, for a few weeks, and I always got a ton of bacteria blooms doing it. I always have a bucket of a bit of water from my shrimp tank (I dont use my python for it cause ya know, shrimp babies) so I just clean them in that. Maybe I'll give the tap a try again!
Bay Area Aquatics If you do it measure your ammonia and nitrites. I’d be very interested in hearing what they are afterwards.
Put a tight knit media bag over the end of the Python. I regularly use a Python for changing water in a tank with shrimp in it, never lost any due to being sucked up by the Python
Using a python when the tank water runs down the drain it seems easiest to just use the sink to rinse the sponge in the sink as there is no bucket of tank water in that case. I suppose it doesn't hurt to run some tank water in a bucket to clean the sponge but if you go out of the way to get a bucket for tank water then why use the python lol? Idk, I just feel like there is enough beneficial bacteria in other areas of an established tank to not have to worry about it. That said, most including myself probably will haha. No different than throwing an old filter pad away really. Excellent content as always!
Good points!
@@PrimeTimeAquatics Probably more people that use tap water than we think. Most of them probably won't admit it though lol
Hi Jason. Thank you for another great video. Will I be able to rinse off my sponge filters with tap water if my water has chloramine in it?
Yep - mine does too
Do you have any small tanks, like 5 g or 10 g? I think it might be inappropriate to recommend this method to casual hobbyists with a little tank and silk plants and no substrate (lots of betta keepers, e.g.). Also, isn’t there a danger of cross contamination - spreading disease when you randomly put filters back in different tanks? I DO think that there are lots of right ways to do things, and folks should chose what works for them and what they feel comfortable doing. Me, I’m sticking with tank water rinses.
Waters Rising We have (13) 10 gallons with mostly just substrate and no other decor without issues. I agree - do what works! I also think testing water to make sure it’s ok is important.
Most people clean the sponge filter and at the same time carry out a water change.
When we see algae growth we think clean everything but this is bad for the fish and plants.
Never clean the sponge filter and carry out a water change within 12 hours of each other.
When we start a new tank we can buy lots of thing to get the bacteria growing but 10 litres of water from an established tank is enough to set the cycle in motion.
Recently I set up 180 litre tank with 60 litres of water from my old tank. Its free and it works.
Anyway as I say it doesn’t matter how you clean the sponge filter if the tank water is conditioned then that is all that matters.
Plus if there is an ammonia spike then you would want to consider if the tank is over stocked, planted with the right plants etcetera.
Nice video.
That's interesting that you don't have issues with ammonia by just using tap water from another tank since the microbes responsible for nitrification are usually attached to surfaces, and not typically found in the water column.
What you have got to think of is the fact that the water is already cycled. So the statement tap water is far from the quality of the water.
Although good bacteria builds up on filter media etc, the good bacteria lives in the whole amount of the water and then it clings onto the filter media.
When we use things like quick start and cycle to make our tap water cycle fast (I don't I only used de-chlorinator.) and to let us put fish in the tank we are doing the same thing.
Already cycled tank water is the same as the quick start etc if not better and good quality tank water that is already cycled and established will do a better job of establishing a tank than any additive that we could buy from the shops, because the water has directly established in the environment that it is going to be used in.
I’ve used tap water plenty of times on my more established filters. But for my newer tanks I rinse them in dirty tank water the first few times.
SandSnowMXGirl Glad it’s working for you too!
will cleaning my sponge with well water and heavy metals impact my aquarium
I guess it depends on the concentration of metals?
I stopped cleaning sponge filters under the tap on advice by my Aquarium shop owner, had problems ever since with nitrites & ammonia. Back to cleaning under tap
Been doing it for a long time and haven't had an issue. :-)
cheers bro!
I perform similar cleaning. I clean one at a time to avoid cross contamination. I use tap water as well, mind you I’m on a well. However I’ll say this, you could totally kill all bacteria on a sponge ( not that you are) and the tank will still have more than enough BB in it to balance.
Often clean mine in tap water no issues 😉👍
Good to hear!
I’m more than a noob, just getting ready to set up my first tank soon. Would you rinse an HOB’s filter media in tap water?
I do
That “big boy” tank has some awesome looking fish! I’m not sure of its name but the large cichlid (?) with long feelers or flowing sort of thin finagle towards its front underbelly is gorgeous. Dunno if you know which fish I’m talking about, or if you do, what is its name?
My guess is you're probably talking about the Geophagus surinamensis. : -)
Nice, ty! Sweet looking fish!
Hi Jason,
Sorry to bother you, I just met you at the GCCA swap (purchased some panda Cory cats). I’m newer to the hobby and I watch a lot of your UA-cam vids, just have a quick question for clarification and I’m hoping you can help me out. My setups are approximately 6 months old, Upon doing water changes (50%) is it”safe” to also clean the sponge filters (1-2 per tank depending on the tank) and HOB filters all at the same time? Or is this too much cleaning? If you need more clarification please let me know. I appreciate your time and thank you!
We clean all our filtration at the same time, but you can always rotate filter cleaning every week if you are concerned.
Thanks again for bringing down the myth
Super random question: How can you get one of your shirts? This one looks cool! I just got my first sponge filter, looking forward to using it and thanks again!
They should be available soon and when they are I will let everyone know. Thanks for watching!
Interesting, and yes very controversial, to be honest I’m amazed this works without causing ammonia or nitrite spikes, but if it works fine for you, then there isn’t much to say. However, I’ll carry on using tank water for cleaning filter sponges/media as it’s what I’ve always done, and my guess is different areas have varying levels of chlorine and chloramine.
John MacDonell Very true!
I have been doing the same thing for a while and no problem. Too many other surfaces with bacteria to worry about. I would not do it right away in a new setup
Good for you because each of your tank has a thriving culture of beneficial bacteria in the sand, gravel, decors, plants, etc. These things harbor more beneficial bacteria than the sponge filter.
This works best for you because you have a lot of tanks to clean and you can save a lot of time by doing this method.
However, this shouldn't be done if you have a bare tank. It's very risky.
What is the advantage of using cold water? Wouldn’t it be better to use warm water? I believe that the chlorine in the cold wouldn’t kill all the bacteria, but doesn’t warm water hold less chlorine? And it would be more comfortable on your hands too.
Room temp is fine. Just don't want to use hot water because the high temps would kill the microbes.
Can you please tell me which is the white fish in the background when you are cleaning the sponge in the sink. I have the same fish and been trying to get an ID.
Those were some small Dragonblood juveniles.
@@PrimeTimeAquatics Do these colour up when they get older? coz mine are just like white/yellowish.
Can you run a heavy stocked tank like you do on just sponges
Yes - biological filtration will be fine, but the mechanical filtration might not be the best.