filter pad replacement?

[bzolnowski]

i have a wet dry in a 75 gallon tank. how often should i replace the filter pad? should i completely get rid of the old one or leave a portion of it for the bacteria or doesnt it matter? mine gets crappy quick so it seems like once a week i am replacing it, am i doing any harm? thanks, brian.

 

[reefnut]

I would think replacing the filter pad when it gets dirty is doing nothing but good.

 

[bzolnowski]

some say wash it, does it matter if i just replace it?

 

[reefnut]

Well I think you could wash it until it wears out. Honesty I'm not sure. I'm not running a wet/dry and only run a filter pad periodically. Maybe Mr. Thomas will chime in. He is more experienced than I.

 

[bzolnowski]

personally i rather just replace it and throw the old one away. i have been told thought to keep half of the old one when putting in a new one due to the good bacteria. i personally feel that most if not all is in with the bioballs, i will wait to see what is said! thanks reefnut!

 

[reefnut]

If you are changing the filter pad regularly the bacteria colony on the pad is minimal. IMO, it will not hurt anything to just remove it and put in a new one.

 

[beaslbob]

I am not familiar with your particular system. However, it is possible to cause a mini-cycle when replaceing filtering media. It all depends upon how much bacteria is in the media verses how much is in the rest of the system. For instance, I have a tetra tec pf500 which has dual filters and a sponge filter. I clean only half the filter at a time. I once rinsed the sponge part and nitrites spiked the next day. I no longer rinse the sponge part.
To be safe you could replace the media with new and then allow the old media to be in the tank for a day or so. that would preserve the bacteria while the new media has a chance to cycle.

 

[reefnut]

I don't disagree Bob but we are talking about filter pads, not bio-media.

 

[daniel411]

I believe he's refering to the pre-filter for the bio-balls of a wet dry? If so, thats only designed to trap any large debris that would build up on the bio-balls creating a ton of detrious build up. So it should be perfectly fine to just throw out. Your major bacteria colony would be on the bio-balls.
On a power filter with multiple filter pads, like beaselbob mentioned. You'd only want to replace one half at a time. Example; on a skilter 400. Theres two pads, replace on of the filter cartridges... wait a few days-week, than replace the other. By staggering, you're allowing the bacteria to colonize the other also, before pitching the old one.

 

[tangman99]

The pre-filter pad in the wet/dry tray is there to only filter out large particles from the water. It is not for biological filtration. Before I converted my wet/dry to a sump and removed it completely, I rinsed it every week and replaced it once a month. You can buy the filter media in bulk and it's quite cheap.
If you don't rinse it frequently, the large crud like food will break down and contribute to your nitrate levels. It is good to rinse it frequently and there is no way that changing this can cause a cycle IMHO.
Cheers

 

[overanalyzer]

I would suggest replacing it once or month or sooner if it is getting a lot of gunk out of your water column. If it is a two pad/wheel system replace one @ a time. Or rinse one @ a time.
What else are you using for filtration?? Seems odd that a filter pad would get so dirty so quick so often ....

 

[crustytheclown]

I have switched over to using ScotchBrite pads in place of the more costly OEM's, in my wet/dry... I also find they do a much better job at removing small particles for pre-filtration, but they do need changed out every couple of weeks.

 

[nacl-man]

Originally posted by CrustyTheClown
I have switched over to using ScotchBrite pads in place of the more costly OEM's, in my wet/dry... I also find they do a much better job at removing small particles for pre-filtration, but they do need changed out every couple of weeks.
ScotchBrite pads? Now I never would have thought about that... they do that good a job huh? I assume there are a few different 'models' of the pads... which one do you use?
Cheers!

 

[crustytheclown]

The red ones

 

[chuckularone]

I thought I was the only nutcase who was using scotchbrite pads! I've used them for years in fresh water, and now in my S/W. I use generic green ones and soak them for a few days before rinsing them and putting them in the system.

 

[crustytheclown]

For the media tray in my wet/dry, I have to use 2 of them, so I cut them to fit, and place them in dry...
There is always a minute amount of sediment that leaches from these at first, but not enough to worry about.
If you get them from a janatorial supply, you can get a whole case of them for a fraction of what you would pay retail for just a few packs of them.

 

[brewercm]

Another option to the scotchbrite pads is to use generic poly roll pad. You can buy this in bulk from craft stores or I get mine from craft section at Wal-Mart. I use some on my home A/C and cut other pieces for my sump prefilter.

 

[nacl-man]

Cool thanks for the ideas guys. Something I would have never thought of before.
Cheers!