undergravel filter??????

[kitten76]

I have an undeer gravel filter system ( at least thats what I hope they are called). I had to clean the tank, 20 gal. It was so dirty! Exactly how often are you supposed to clean these under gravel filtration systems and how do they work? Does anyone have any ideas on another filtration system? I only had this tank for 3 mo. and I was shocked at how dirty it was. Is something supposed to go under the rocks????? I am dumbfounded! (obviuosly) Thank you.
O yeah as soom as i cleaned the water my mollies started mating. How long before I see some babies?

[Leo]

You have a plastic tray thing with little holes or slits in it then you set the gravel/little rocks on top of that and then have 1 or more tubes that connect to the plastic tray with some type of pumping/air flow system right? (this is a under gravel filter)

I like the waterfall filters for freshwater tanks because they are cheap and easy to take care of. And do a pretty good job keeping the tank clean (note: you may want to add a pleco/algae eater and a few snails into your tank to help with filtration and keeping it clean after your eggs hatch and the babies get a little bigger).

My all time favorite filtration system is by Fluval it is on the pricey side, but it is a great system and will keep your tank cleaner and you don't have to change/rinse the filter elements every time you do a water change like you do with other systems. So it makes life a little easier IMO.

If your fish just spawned all I can say is Yucky!! I had Koi that were brought in for the winter do this and boy did it smell (none of the eggs survived because we took them out)..... I'm not sure what the gestation period for mollies is (maybe so a search on google for it?) I know that for Koi it was around a month or so when they spawned in the spring and successfully had a ton of babies.

[Toky-Ohki]

Yes I have an undergravel filter in my large freshwater tank, there are places where you can have your powerhead and also the inlets, you can usualy slot them into pre moulded places on the plastic base that you have at the bottom.

I dont clean mean tank out very regularly, I have an Eheim aquaball 2208 with another single extension working away in there, it has three filter sponges, plus it does the bubbling.

It will be a few months yet before I start thinking cleaning under the filter base, and that is avery long and hard job, especialy with a 200 Gallon tank like I have, I would'nt say you had to clean them everso regularly, so long as you keep the actual tank water clear and at the right levels.

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[Mygala]

I love unddrgravel filters for most aquariums. You should do regular water changes, and when you do, just use the siphon to suck up a lot of the junk on the bottom that hasn't made it's way down into the filter chamber yet. I do partials (about half the water) every two to three months. Once you get a good bacterial growth going, the water should be crystal clear. I do run a diatom filter about once a year or so for a super good cleaning.

bob

[Toky-Ohki]

Diatom cleaning, ain't those the microscopic things you get in lake windermere.

I do partial water changes and when I clean my filter cartridges I use the tanks water so I dont lose the good bacteria, I also found out too late that the chlorine that is used to treat tap water was attacking my fishes mucous membranes.

I have heard of Nitrite, Nitrate, Ammonium and Phosphate but nobody said anything about Chlorine.

I lost Cherry Bomber, Kiss, Spunky and Goldrush because of this, shame I was'nt told about this before, they should add Chlorine to the critical list alongside Ammonium.

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I had a test done on my tanks water some time back and it got a 95% rating, and at this moment it is crystal clear.

However I have a problem with a bacteria it seems that produces Calcium as a by product and it is encrusted on the back of my tank as well as my toilet for obvious reasons.

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Now when I change the water by washing up bowls I add a teaspoon of Sera Aquatan to break up the chloramine before I add it to the tank.

[Skratikans]

Quote: Originally Posted by Toky-Ohki Yes I have an undergravel filter in my large freshwater tank, there are places where you can have your powerhead and also the inlets, you can usualy slot them into pre moulded places on the plastic base that you have at the bottom. I dont clean mean tank out very regularly, I have an Eheim aquaball 2208 with another single extension working away in there, it has three filter sponges, plus it does the bubbling. It will be a few months yet before I start thinking cleaning under the filter base, and that is avery long and hard job, especialy with a 200 Gallon tank like I have, I would'nt say you had to clean them everso regularly, so long as you keep the actual tank water clear and at the right levels. = ^ _ ^ =

I was just curious, what kind of light system are you using for your tank?- thanks