# Ammonia spike after filter maintenance



## L.West (Apr 26, 2013)

I'm running into problems when I take down my canister filter for maintenance. Per the advice of this site, I've been letting the canister go for like two months and then opening it up to switch out the polishing pad and blue bonded floss pad but it seems like when I change out both of those at the same time it is causing a small ammonia spike. I do have an additional HOB on this tank too but it still allowed for a spike.

What should I be doing differently to avoid this problem.

Thanks


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## coralbandit (Jul 29, 2012)

I don't have an explanation of anything you are doing wrong and would think the spike will be eliminated within 24 hrs.But possibly while the filter is open and off pull out the bio,rinse it in tank water and empty all water out of canister.Refill canister with fresh water from the tank and re install media .Just an idea? hope it helps you out.


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## Raymond S. (Jan 11, 2013)

Simple math. Bacteria which acts on ammonia colonize by available food quantity ONLY. How can I use the word exactly
when there are billions of them ? Well just letting you know that I'm not counting down to decimals...LOL...
You cut their numbers by a lot when you removed both pads.
You will notice less spike if you only change one at a time. I don't use either of that kind of "pads" so I could be misunderstanding
something here but could you rinse those instead of replacing them ?
My tanks (even the newer one) have plants that do particle filtering for me (and I'm sure the next statement will totally
discredit me) but for the life of me I don't have the faintest clue why anyone has anything but bio media in their filters anyway.
The "Aquarium industry" has brain washed us for so long to keep rotating sales on items such as "Premium Activate Carbon"
going that everyone just "follows-the-leader" and puts in whatever some aquarium company says you "NEED" in there.
I know ABSOLUTELY NOTHING about salt water, though I kept a brackish water tank for about 3 years(successfully) and never
had ANY carbon/purgen etc in there but only an undergravel filter so I don't know what's necessary for salt water and it may differ in
requirements from fresh water.
I do think I would want a single pad of pre-filter in a large tank to keep the bio media from getting clogged/w sludge. But for other than
that reason I wouldn't have any in there.
Now that the "wild card radical" who cultivates(certain types of) algae has had his rant, you might just change one at a time or
possibly rinse them in aquarium water.


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## susankat (Nov 15, 2008)

In real life you shouldn't have to clean your canister the way the company says to. I have a fluval fx5 that I clean out when the flow slows down and all I run in it is sponges so easy to rinse in dechlorinated water or tank water. I haven't changed sponges in 4 years.


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## L.West (Apr 26, 2013)

I realize now that I should not have removed both pads at the same time - lesson learned. 

The ammonia spike was just a very slight (if any) at all. It didn't even register a .25 on the color chart but we all know how we hate any ammonia showing up.

Sometimes my need to make everything perfect for my fish backfires because I am too clean. 

When I changed out those pads my thoughts were that the matrix and the black stock sponges that are in that canister would carry it for a while but I guess I was wrong.


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