My filter broke ..... !!

Hi all,

My filter broke (actually I broke it) while cleaning the tank today. The plastic tube part which connects to the rubber pipe broke, and I've yet to find out if there are spare parts out there. I have the smallest external Eheim (don't remember the exactly the code).

I've now put in a bubble maker next to my heater. My question is, how long can my fish survive without a filter? Or should I get one as soon as possible before they suffocate in their own ****. I've done 25% water change (it's a 110l tank).

Help please!!

lilee

 Hi Lilee,

I think you will be OK in the short term as you have put aeration in the tank (goldfish can live in bowls without filter although alot of people wouldn't recommend it).

But it all depends on what kind of setup / fish you have.

The only thing i would recommend is putting aeration / oxygenating tablets in the filter to keep the bacteria alive or you may have to start cycling your tank again.

I'm pretty new to this myself and have had my filter break already (i now have a small internal as a backup just incase).

Some people on here work at aquatic shops so may be able to help you out with spares, maybe if you post a pic of the filter and the part in question, one of them may help you out or point you in the right direction 

 You need to get the filter up and going properly as soon as you can lilee

In the meantime, have the airline actually running through the filter media if you can so that some air is being pushed through it to help keep some bacteria alive. Also put a product such as stress zyme on the filter media.

Don't think oxygen tablets will do much really.

Reduce feeding the fish. It won't hurt them to miss a few days until you have the filter sorted. It will cut down on waste and thus ammonia and nitrIte building up. Keep a check these with your test kit . If they appear, you'll need to do some water changes to hlep keep on top of them. Hopefully you can soon get things sorted so the tank doesn't go off balance much

We run and external and an internal and thankgoodness we do. When the Juwel powerhead failed, the external kpet going, then the external went and it was over a week before I could get another what with one thing and another. Luckily the Juwel internal kept things ticking over. I tried to keep some bacteria alive in the external by running three airlines through the media in the canister. Of course it was now independent from the tank so it was easier to do this.

I would highly recommend having two filters if you can, or at least say an internal that you could use in case of such an emergency. The media can be easily soaked in and seeded from the external

Hi,

My dear hubby has tried to do some DIY on the filter by using sealant which is not suitable to the tank. So I don't think I want to even try starting up the filter again just in case anything toxic might damage the filter media.

The only airline I have is the one that is flowing in the aquarium right now. Would it be an idea to put the filter media in a netting and placing it in the tank to keep it going??

lilee

PS. I've ordered my new Eheim, just hope it gets here sooner than later.

 2 days since your last post Lilee so how is it going?

Hopefully the new filter has arrived. Put the old filter media in it,and add something stess zyme, but the tank will likely go through some degree of cycling again so keep testing the water

Hi,

Filter has not arrived as the shop is out of the Eheim I want, but it will definitely be here next week. Have in the meantime bought an internal filter to tide me over. I figure I could use it for other emergencies. Old filter media is in the tank, in a net breeding thingy to keep it going. Will then just add to the new filter when it arrives.

Have done water change today again before putting in new internal filter.

Have unfortunately lost my baby platy and baby leopard Cory to two very hungry female fighters as I've not been feeding them since I last wrote. So I guess I'll keep feeding to a minimal till my external arrives

Thanks for your help! Will keep you posted.

 Hi firstly bad luck on breaking the filter Lillee {having done it myself i know how you feel}

Sounds like you got everything under control at the moment?

my only thoughts would be to feed very little,keep doing small water changes for now and good luck

This is why i always keep a spare filter {only need be an air driven box filter}handy or have two smaller filters set up on each tank rather than just the one?

Good luck and keep us psoted

I feel doubly stupid really cause I used to have a spare internal filter but gave it away as soon as I got my external. I never thought I'd ever need it but now I know better.

lilee:

I feel doubly stupid really cause I used to have a spare internal filter but gave it away as soon as I got my external. I never thought I'd ever need it but now I know better.

 

don't feel stupid, it's a natural reaction to rid an old thing if you get a new one. Although I wouldn't tell customers they need a backup it can be very handy Saying this, if you do need another new filter you can easily chop media up and place in a new filter to seed/kickstart  it anyway

the other advantage of running additional internals is you can whip them out for your QT tank when you buy new fish

QT setup = internal running in a tank as spare + cheapo tank from a classified ad

Thanks! I really appreciate all this help I'm getting.

I was just wondering, wouldn't it be too much for my 110l tank to have two filters running? Imean, there would be a strong current from the internal and another one coming from the external, wouldn't that be pretty unsettling for the fish?

 Hi most fish like a 'reasonable' current around the tank{avoids dead spots and hot spots?}

What i do if you do not like too much water movement is to point the outlet of the external at the glass or point the spray bar backwoods onto the glass{instead of directly into the tank}.the internal is a little harder but you can still attach a spray bar and do the same as the external! Hope this helps

 As I said earlier, thank goodness we do have two filters

Two will  be fine for your tank lilee

Nick's is a good idea too if you have the room for a QT. Alas we don't

My new filter arrived today! Yey!!!

She's a beauty. She's an Eheim Ecco 2234

http://pet.imageg.net/graphics/product_images/pPETS-3760755t400.jpg

She's a lot bigger than I thought she would be but I don't care. She already up and running and so far, so good. I'd added in the old filter media and also new ones.

I have a question though. It came with a Carbon filter which it said I should use only for 14 days. I've not ever used one before, so what is it for?

lilee (doing a jig in the background)

 Great stuff Lilee

You don't need the carbon in. It's good to put in to remove last traces of any meds. Some people use  it all the time to polish the water, but filter wool does an equally good job. Carbon has to be changed every few weeks as it starts to leach nasties back in to the water otherwise.

I sorted your link out as it wasn't open