filter upgrade

I am looking to upgrade my filter as its a bit dated and i don't think its up to the job any more, its a fluval 3 plus and my tank is a 120 liter it worked great for seting my tank up but now that i have a few fish in i think it is starting to show its age as my ammonia levels are on the rise again and even my water changes are not doing anything

so my question is what would you recommend as a good upgrade that wont break the bank, would 2nd hand filters be an option for me?

Danny

i am looking at this one linked below, the price fits my budget and is a lot cheaper then what i have found online so far


cgi.ebay.ie/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=121096047636

dannyb wrote:

I am looking to upgrade my filter as its a bit dated and i don't think its up to the job any more, its a fluval 3 plus and my tank is a 120 liter it worked great for seting my tank up but now that i have a few fish in i think it is starting to show its age as my ammonia levels are on the rise again and even my water changes are not doing anything

so my question is what would you recommend as a good upgrade that wont break the bank, would 2nd hand filters be an option for me?

Danny

how old is it?have you cleaned the filter and or changed the media

it is approx 4 years old and was left sitting up for about a year and a half before i set my tank up, i have not cleaned it out since putting it in

dannyb wrote:

it is approx 4 years old and was left sitting up for about a year and a half before i set my tank up, i have not cleaned it out since putting it in

there is most likely your problem buddy get it out clean it and replace the media,use your old bio media in with the new to help seed it

i'l try that, question tho in the filter there is 2 sponge pads could i just replace one of them now and then in 2 weeks or so change the other would that help seed the new pads?

you can wash them out in tank water, next water change put the water in a bucket wash out the sponges put them back. Would expect the flow to be so much better after the wash, impeller would struggle to push a decent flow of water throu a sponge full of tank sludge.

john

i will try that this evening thank you

dannyb wrote:

i'l try that, question tho in the filter there is 2 sponge pads could i just replace one of them now and then in 2 weeks or so change the other would that help seed the new pads?

I was going to ask the same question or what's the best way to change a new sponge for a old one?
Like above if u take the filter apart and give it a good clean you will be surprised the different it will make.

irish-zx10r wrote:

dannyb wrote:

i'l try that, question tho in the filter there is 2 sponge pads could i just replace one of them now and then in 2 weeks or so change the other would that help seed the new pads?

I was going to ask the same question or what's the best way to change a new sponge for a old one?
Like above if u take the filter apart and give it a good clean you will be surprised the different it will make.

i would be of the opinion if there is biomedia as wee as sponges then you can change both at the same time,however no harm in being cautious either

Danny
Id agree with the lads to a certain extent!
However with the cichlids, I might suggest that you consider a small external filter!
I have a fluval 206 filter (running along side a bigger external filter) that I find very very good! It would be good on anything up to a 200 litre tank!
I also have a second hand eheim filter running on my sons 60litre that I bought off another member on here!

Just remember there is no such thing as over filtration
But under filtration would be dangerous to the fishes health!!!!

I ducked out of work early and did my water change and gave the filter a squeeze in a bucket of tank water, the fluval has a clog indicator and mine was showing fine all along turns out it was clogged and stuck up ha so its working now and flying I might just keep an eye out for a 2nd hand filter Neil

I tested the water before the change and ammonia was 2.0 ppm I did a 50% change and did an other test right away and its down to 0.25 ppm now so il check it later on tonight again

Keep your eye on the forum and on adverts etc
I found my eheim on here and API on adverts

Make sure the Impellor isnt clogged also. As for the sponges..you can replace them bit by bit if you prefer.A large sponge will suffice..just cut it in two...and replace one this time around and the other in a months time.

Gavin

Fishowner wrote:

Make sure the Impellor isnt clogged also. As for the sponges..you can replace them bit by bit if you prefer.A large sponge will suffice..just cut it in two...and replace one this time around and the other in a months time.

Gavin

I got 5 sponge for €1 in my lfc does it matter if its round instead of being square ?
and does it matter if its not the exact sponge ?
I tryed them in my filter for size and it fitted perfect.
I think there is 2 blue and 3 black.

Sponges are sponges at the end of the day
I've got bags and bags of sponges here with no name on them but they are as good as the more expensive named sponges!

If they don't fit, cut them to size!

Well what ever I did earlier has done the world of good the fish are no longer at the bottom of the tank they are back up around the top and flying around the tank

dannyb wrote:

Well what ever I did earlier has done the world of good the fish are no longer at the bottom of the tank they are back up around the top and flying around the tank

That's good news I find some second hand filters to be great.
A good cleaning every month or two can do the trick.