How often do I have to change my filter?

I mean the black spongey things inside, I'm not sure how long they can go without being changed but I think it's been going for at least four months. I have one goldfish and a fair sized yellow snail, it's a ten gallon tank. I'm just wondering because for months I never had one problem with algae, nothing at all until about a week ago. I did no cleaning but partial water changes about every other week ( just under half the tank) and that was always enough to keep it clean but now I'm wondering..

Thanks!!How often do I have to change my filter?Just rinse it out in old tank water when it gets gunged up, and re-use it.



I have some sponges here that are about 5 years old.



The sponge wont be having any effect on algae, you may need to look at the water changes or amount of light the tank is getting. Too much nitrate buildup and/or too much light will encourage algae. The filter doesn't affect those.



IanHow often do I have to change my filter?Easy just change it once a month. but also do this once a month: take apart the filter and clean off any algae growing. it surprised me how much algae was in it when i found out. but i didnt clean the filter for like 3 months so. yes do that. u can remove algae from tight places with a q-tip or even a tooth pick will work. as for your situation. have you cycled your tank? no matter what you do though, you have to clean the tank once a week. do you test your pH,hardness,alkanity, etc? if you don't clean your tank in 2 weeks you wont be happy with those results. even though your tank looks clean.How often do I have to change my filter?Change the black sponge every month,How often do I have to change my filter?Hello Courtney I agree with Lanab I just rinse my filter cartridges under running water and only replace them when they begain to fall apart.

If you complety brake down your tank and clean every thing up you well have to cycle it all over again.I use one of those gravel vacs to vaccume the gunk off the bottom.

I think it would be helpful if you took a look at a blog I have on my profile page,to view this just click on my name,then click on view my profile,then you well see the blog about cycling.How often do I have to change my filter?The last two are correct, except DO NOT RINSE IT IN RUNNING TAP WATER, USE YOUR TANK WATER! They just tell you to replace the sponges so that they can get more of your money. When you think about it, there is absolutely no reason whatsoever why media such as a sponge should be replaced. By rinsing them in tank water, you are removing large debris that could clog the holes, but are still keeping the beneficial bacteria on the media. No loss of bacteria, cash, and no hassle! Enjoy.

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