# Changing Filter Cartridge in 2.5 mini



## Kurly (Jul 31, 2007)

I am confused about something. I have had my 2.5 Mini-Bow for about 6 weeks. It came with a Whisper Micro Filter and says that you should change the disposable filter cartridge once a month. Will I mess up my cycle if I take the old disposable filter cartidge out and replace it with a new one?


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## Sowilu (Jul 16, 2007)

Just rince the cartridge in old tank water and you should be good to go. If you do change the filter you will be distroying some of the beneficial bacteria the tank needs.


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## Kurly (Jul 31, 2007)

Thanks. Something didn't seem right when I read that because I thought it would destroy the beneficial bacteria. I'm glad I asked before I did that plus it saved me a little bit of money from buying replacement cartridges.


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## mousey (Jan 18, 2005)

is there charcoal in the filter pad?
If so cut it open and remve the charcoal. it can leach back some of the toxins it has removed.You really don't need charcoal unless you are trying to remove medication.
A lot of us just by a sheet of filter material and cut our own to fit into our filters. It is cheaper than buying those things they make special.
Sowilu is right tho. just remove the charcoal and give the pad a bit of a swish each month.


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## Kurly (Jul 31, 2007)

Yes, the charcoal is in the filter pad. I will cut it open, empty the charcoal out and rinse the pad when I do a water change tomorrow. Just a few questions though, All that is really needed in the filter is the material? Why is the charcoal in the pad if it really isn't necessary? Why in the world do they tell you to change the entire filter cartridge once a month if it could possibly mess up the cycle thus increasing the chances of killing your fish? ... I just don't understand  

Thanks again for your help.


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## Guest (Sep 4, 2007)

Kurly said:


> All that is really needed in the filter is the material? Why is the charcoal in the pad if it really isn't necessary?


I'd just use a sponge, if you can find one to cut to fit in the small filter. Charcoal doesn't last long and after awhile is useless. I'm not sure why they put that in alot of the premade cartridges. Charcoal is good for removing meds and removing particles from the water, but you don't need it. All you really need some type of mechanical filtration (sponge, foam).



> Why in the world do they tell you to change the entire filter cartridge once a month if it could possibly mess up the cycle thus increasing the chances of killing your fish?


Well if you just rinsed in old tank water and didn't replace it, they wouldn't get your money!  I really think its just marketing to get you to buy the refills, when you really shouldn't change out the whole thing.


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## Kurly (Jul 31, 2007)

JustOneMore20 said:


> I'd just use a sponge, if you can find one to cut to fit in the small filter. Charcoal doesn't last long and after awhile is useless. I'm not sure why they put that in alot of the premade cartridges. Charcoal is good for removing meds and removing particles from the water, but you don't need it. All you really need some type of mechanical filtration (sponge, foam).
> 
> 
> Well if you just rinsed in old tank water and didn't replace it, they wouldn't get your money!  I really think its just marketing to get you to buy the refills, when you really shouldn't change out the whole thing.



Do you mean regular sponges? Or a special kind of sponge? It's that simple? Buy a sponge, cut it to the size of the filter and just stick it in there?
Yes, I agree. When I typed that I was thinking that it is a way for them to keep making money but knew that someone else would tell me that - lol.


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## Guest (Sep 4, 2007)

Well I'm talking about a sponge/foam insert that is meant for filters. Like this: http://www.bigalsonline.com/BigAlsUS/ctl3684/cp18409/si1379005/cl0/aquaclear20minifoaminsertvalue3pack. I don't use the carbon cartridges that come with my smaller filters....just use the Aquaclear filter foam and cut it to fit.  They are really cheap...especially since you just have to rinse them in old tank water every so often and don't need to replace. That is the smallest size. I'm not sure how small the Whisper filter you have is, but surely you could find something to fit. Your LFS should sell Aquaclear media. The foam blocks come in a 3pk and a 1pk and should be fairly cheap.

This looks smallish: http://www.bigalsonline.com/BigAlsUS/ctl3684/cp18430/si1379866/cl0/aquariumsystemsduettobiologicalspongedj100. Hard to tell by the picture....but it looks pretty small. I'm not sure if you'd find that exact thing in the LFS, but BigAls is an excellent place to order from if you ever need some supplies.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

> Why is the charcoal in the pad if it really isn't necessary? Why in the world do they tell you to change the entire filter cartridge once a month if it could possibly mess up the cycle thus increasing the chances of killing your fish?


Once a month is how often you need fresh charcoal to keep taking out cloudiness and oily film. Unless you have have those issues, you don't really need the charcoal. It makes an okay substrate for bacteria to grow on, so if you tank is cycling with charcoal in the filter, don't take it out for the same reason you don't want to change the cartridge. I don't like filters that only have one media cartridge, the ones with two are better as are the ones that have a cartridge and a sponge. They make it possible to change media without crashing your tank. Even better is having 2 filters. Do take the charcoal out if you need to medicate the take, and do use charcoal to remove meds once the treatment period is over.


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## Kurly (Jul 31, 2007)

I appreciate all the answers but I am now more confused than before. Sorry :-( Would it be okay just to rinse the cartridge and leave the charcoal in or not? I don't like the cartridge that has the charcoal inside of it. I really want to change it over to just a sponge if I can but how do I do that? If I replace the old cartridge with a new sponge then I will be losing the beneficial bacteria that is keeping my tank cycled right? I just don't want to mess up my cycle or hurt my fish in any way. Please bear with me. I apologize.


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Right. You don't want to start over, so to replace your cartridge, first you need to seed some need media. See if you can stick a sponge or filter floss pad in the filter with the cartridge. After a few weeks, both will have biology and it will be safe to remove the old cartridge (leaving in the new sponge) and add more new media it there is room.


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## Kurly (Jul 31, 2007)

Thank you! I finally understand something  I think it will be much better with the sponge or filter floss pad. And thanks for the link JustOneMore20


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## Kurly (Jul 31, 2007)

Okay, It's me again... I had to empty the charcoal out of the filter cartridge because I noticed that small black particles were coming out of it in the water. I did a water change and swished the disposable filter cartridge in the aquarium water in the bucket to get as much of the carbon out as possible. I put the cartridge back in the filter and now the water is cloudy. The water parameters are fine. Will the water clear up eventually or do I need to do something else? I want to make sure that nothing will happen to my Betta because of the way the water looks.

Thanks


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

Cloudy water hardly ever hurts fish. It could be a sign of "bacteria bloom" because of too many nutrients in the water. The cure for that is a water change. It could be dust or air bubbles also. pH stabilizers also can cloud water. It usually goes away on its own.


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## Kurly (Jul 31, 2007)

Good. I do notice that the water is a little dusty on the top when I take the lid off and look into the aquarium. I'll do small water changes and not worry about it anymore as long as Rainbow is acting okay. I think I am a little paranoid about things right now because I am in the process of helping my other Betta heal from his first case of fin rot. His fins are growing back so I guess I must be doing something right.

I am still learning how to take care of these little creatures the right way. 

Everyone here is such a big help.


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## Guest (Sep 11, 2007)

I'm quite confused as you are Kurly. So many ppl say different things about water changes, it's ridiculous, not on this forum, but from person to person and so on. 
I just posted a question about water changes, because in this book I read they say 60% daily is ideal, and others say 20-30% a week and some do 30% every two weeks.
And some people will tell you that changing 60% a day is too much because you'll throw your tank back into a mini cycle, but that doesn't make sense either. I have only heard that the beneficial bacteria live on things in the water, like a bio-wheel, or sponge and so on, so doing a simple water change everyday shouldn't hurt anything IMO. You will get some many different views some from people knowing what they are talking about and some from people who have no clue. I'm just letting you know things from my experience dealing with the fish I have.
With the the filter cartridge once again some ppl say every month, others say to just wash in the water you cleaned out, and others wash it in regular water. I don't think any of this will hurt your fish. I personally take my cartridge rinse it and stick it back in, as long as everything looks ok with it. But I do have other things that the beneficial bacteria can live on, so that's probably why I have no problem rinsing out my filter cartridge.
And since you added the bio-spira, I wouldn't worry about the tank cycling. It's already cycled. All cycling is, is building up the beneficial bacteria that will turn ammonia into nirtItes and then a different kind of bacteria will turn the nitrItes into nitrAtes. Both ammonia and nitrites are very very harmful to fishies, nitrates are fine as long as you keep it <20parts per million. And doing regular water changes should keep your nitrates low.

I remember when I got my first fishies and I was flippin' out every second wondering what was going on, worried about if I was doing it right or not. 

*IMO and IME water changes are the essential part of fish keeping.* 

Once again good luck!


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## emc7 (Jul 23, 2005)

You can try to skim off powder from the surface with a glass or pitcher. I had to do this in a tank that was too close to the cat's litter box. You can also soak up some of that oily film with a paper towel.


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