# replacing bio beads



## mousey (Jan 18, 2005)

or similar beady things.
Aquaclear recommends replacing every three months. I have never replaced mine- just taken out and washed in tank water.
Does anyone really change them?
Other filter pads and foam are replaced when they will no longer squeeze out clean.-- usually every six months or so dependdding on tank inhabitants.
I find planted tanks are messy and so are platies and plecs!


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## Guest (Dec 29, 2009)

I never change my ceramic rings, if that is the type you are referring to. You can change them, but I wouldn't suggest doing it all at once. Maybe change out a quarter of them so your cycle remains intact. And I also only change 1 fine filter pad at a time for the same reason.

I think I know the bioballs you're talkign about. Some came with a HOB I bought. i would say change out a quarter or half of them if possible. But not all.


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

A-HA!!!

Mousey, your fish keep suffering from repeated infections that just keep coming back again and again and again, and now I know a big reason why.

If you don't replace your infected filter media, the surviving pathogens deep within it are simply going to return to strike again.


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## jones57742 (Sep 8, 2007)

ms: Several of us are trying to get "hot on the trail" of your recent tribulations.



mousey said:


> or similar beady things.
> Aquaclear recommends replacing every three months. I have never replaced mine- just taken out and washed in tank water.
> Does anyone really change them?


I could not find these on the internet.

I anticipate that they are activated carbon.

They ceased functioning as activated carbon many moons ago and now function as crude biological filtration media.

Rinse them thoroughly in tank water and place back into the filtration process.




mousey said:


> Other filter pads and foam are replaced when they will no longer squeeze out clean.-- usually every six months or so dependdding on tank inhabitants.
> I find planted tanks are messy and so are platies and plecs!


I have two rudimentary HOB filters.

I rinse all the media every week or so in WC tank water.

I discard the media only every several years when it becomes "rag-tag".

TR


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## llamas (Jun 29, 2009)

TheOldSalt said:


> A-HA!!!
> 
> Mousey, your fish keep suffering from repeated infections that just keep coming back again and again and again, and now I know a big reason why.
> 
> If you don't replace your infected filter media, the surviving pathogens deep within it are simply going to return to strike again.


Mousey, 

Typically none of the media should be changed (except for a case liek the one mentioned above). The only media that should be changed on a regular basis is the chemical media. Other than that, the rest should just be rinsed in a bucket full of tank water. The only time it should be replaced is if, like TheOldSalt mention, you may have some [evil] pathogens living in the media, or if it starts to fall apart


TheOldSalt,

Wow, I never thought of that, but it makes sense. How would you go about changing the media then? If it is all infected, you would have to replace it all, but then most of your bacterial colonies will be lost won't they?


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## Guest (Dec 30, 2009)

Ya, but you can then take some filter media from another healthy filter, and use some commercial chemicals to rebuild the cycle.


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## TheOldSalt (Jan 28, 2005)

Or just use something like "Stability."


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