How to clean fish filter. More frequent cleanings may be needed if your fish is sick. Give the filter a good cleaning out when it appears to be clogged malfunctioning or working very slowly. Have fresh filtration media a small pitcher and a bucket used only for fish tank cleaning on hand before starting.
Mechanical media such as sponges or filter pads can be easily washed using regular mains water from your garden hose. Fill another bucket or container with room temperature conditioned water you can use some of your aquarium water and begin dissasembling your filter. You might not have to clean the biological filter more often as you want the fish tank filters filled with lots of bacteria important for the filtration.
Keep squeezing the sponge until the water is clear. How to clean optimize pond filter media 1 cleaning mechanical pond media mechanical media can be cleaned with tap water and the more layers the better for filtration. Place about 2 quarts of tank water in a small pitcher and set it aside.
Cleaning is simple as you have to give the filter a quick rinse in the water from the tank and put it back. During the partial water change depending on the size of your filter you leave one or two buckets of the extracted. Sponge filters can be the simplest and most economical way to filter your aquarium.
How to clean an aquarium filter. When you are ready fill a bucket with water from the tank and empty the filter media into it it is important to keep them wet so they dont dry out and kill the beneficial bacteria. I know some people that clean theirs in tap water i will try that next water change and edit this post to say how it goes.
First take your aquarium filter off the power to avoid damaging the motor of the pump which can happen if the impeller runs without adding water. Ask a veterinarian or aquarium store employee for advice during these times. In this video i show how to clean a sponge filter and how easy it can be.
Also make sure to squeeze it in old tank water as the chlorine in tap water could kill the beneficial bacteria.