Thoughts on exposing filters to light source?

[GoFish]

Originally Posted by Proteus

My thoughts would be that you need to change the filter media more often

How often do you change it

Once in a month and a half :0
It's basically a frag tank with some structure taken from the other tank. No fish, no poop, no CUC, bare bottom, plain Jane. A bit of polyp booster/reef roids once in a while
I guess I could just change the floss instead of cleaning it.


Thoughts on exposing filters to light?

[Proteus]

Originally Posted by Vancity

Once in a month and a half :0
It's basically a frag tank with some structure taken from the other tank. No fish, no poop, no CUC, bare bottom, plain Jane. A bit of polyp booster/reef roids once in a while
I guess I could just change the floss instead of cleaning it.


Thoughts on exposing filters to light?

You still will have organics in tank you should change it weekly or remove it.
When it comes to light I don't think it would me matter either way. If you have no light the organics break free into nutrients. With light it grow algae removing nutrients.

[GoFish]

I will change the floss more often. Kinda surprised others didn't chime in. So let's say I change the floss once a week, if I put a black cover over the filter to block the light organics will be passing over a mechanical filter only, but if exposed to light it will grow algae and absorb nutrients as well as mechanical filtration.
Maybe leaving it exposed to light is a little better then

[Proteus]

Once a week minimum. If it grows algae it contains nutrients which will be in water colomn

[GoFish]

Here's what I'm talking about... Haven't put any food in the tank for 2 weeks, just did a 75% water change, and replaced all filter media. The next day, brown algae on filter floss (the photo is 2 days after WC, no food)

**May have just figured out the nutrient source. I transferred over Nitra Guard bio-cubes from the last tank and had the bag sitting beside my return pump, just took the bag of cubes out and its pretty smelly. Maybe I'll rinse them off in NSW and put half back in

[hillegom]

I don't quite understand how brown algae grow with a light source. Are you sure it is algae? Maybe bacteria or?
My understanding is light grows green algae, or red. Brown is the stuff you see growing in the pipes and hoses when there is a lack of light.
Regardless, if something is growing, it is using up nutrients in the water column.
A good thing if you regularly export that.