Aquarium Sponge Filter – Do They Really Work?

This post is a follow up from my previous post “Advantages And Disadvantages Of Different Fish Tank Filters“.

Quick Links

Faced with an array of modern, powered filters these days, many fish enthusiasts do seem to ignore one cheap and relatively good method of filtering the water form their fish tanks. I’m talking about the aquarium sponge filter which is a low budget alternative in case you’re a little tight around the budget. Properly setup and maintained, an aquarium sponge filter provides good mechanical and biological filtration other than supplying oxygen to the aquarium.

Aquarium sponge filter works really well for tanks meant for fry and also quarantine tanks. Because of the relatively low suction power of the aquarium sponge filter, small fry will not be sucked into the inlet valve of the filter. For quarantine tanks, the low water movement of the aquarium sponge filter will allow the sick fish ample rest as it recuperates, with placing too much stress on it. However, what you do need to realize is that it does not provide chemical filtration so it will not remove any medication that you might have used to treat the fish.

Another benefit of the aquarium sponge filter is that it is very easy to setup. This makes it an ideal filter for beginners as well as experienced breeders who need a quick filtration system.

How Does An Aquarium Sponge Filter Function

Powered by a small pump, water is sucked through the sponge, trapping sediments, waste and excess food. Also the sponges sold these days allow colonised bacteria which remove ammonia and nitrates from the water. The water suction is created by air lift tubes placed in the center of the aquarium sponge filter that have small holes pierced in them, with an air line inside where bubles will rise out off, sucking the water into them. The water then flows out of a return tube that is generally placed a the half way mark below the water level to provide a little current in the water. It’s as easy as that.

When you first use a brand new sponge, it will be able to remove the larger sediments but will need a few days to turn cloudy water pristine. This is because it needs to build up its colony of beneficial bacteria first, also called seeding. This can either be done the traditional way, that is by just letting the filter run its course but there are other faster ways of building up beneficial bacteria.

One popular method is to allow a brand new aquarium sponge filter to float around the tank for about a week before it is used, allowing it to pick up the beneficial bacteria and thus making it efficient from day one when you decide to use it.

The Disadvantages Of An Aquarium Sponge Filter

The main disadvantage of an aquarium sponge filter is that as it filters the water, it will definitely clog up with the larger sediments. Therefore, the sponge needs to be cleaned regularly. Never allow it to run more than a week without cleaning. It is easy to notice if it is time to clean the filters because the rate of water return will slow down and eventually the water will begin to get cloudy.

Cleaning the aquarium sponge filter is very easy. Just remove the sponge from the inlet tube and gently squeeze it in old tank water or declorinated water. Never clean an aquarium sponge filter with direct tap water because the clorine from the tap will kill off the beneficial bacteria.

After reading about Aquarium Sponge Filter, why not continue reading Fish Tank pH: Is It Really That Important?