Quote:
Originally Posted by Myka
I would not recommend rinse and reusing sponges. In freshwater tanks, sure. In saltwater tanks, no. Rinsing the sponges doesn't kill the nitrifying bacteria. If you don't kill the nitrifying bacteria the sponges become biological filters which pump out nitrate.
Most of the sponges that you buy at the LFS that are made for each filter are expensive to change out so often which is why I suggested you start sign cut-to-size media.
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With all due respect to Myka, as she definitely knows her stuff, I am not sure I agree totally with all of this statement. The reason I say that, is that I use a sponge filter with one of my sumps, only because it was built for that, and there is no room for any filter socks. It is a large sponge filter and I only have to clean it once a week. I have never replaced it and it is several years old. When I clean it, a lot of ugly crap comes out of it. And I have no doubt it has nitrifying bacteria. But because I clean it frequently, the crap gets rinsed out and does not have a chance to turn into nitrates. And this tank has zero nitrates. And BTW, this sponge filter is a lot easier to clean than my filter socks which I use in my other tank sump. They too can become nitrate factories if not cleaned frequently.