I'm just gonna go ahead and ask....

[finnfinnfriend]

Originally Posted by thekoimaiden

Ya. You can only fight mother nature so much. Plus, having a cycled tank is a great thing. You don't have to worry about your fish getting ammonia poisoning when you go away for a while. I've left my tanks for up to 2 weeks with no ill effects.

Wow....yeah that is great! So should I just keep doing what I'm doing and wash the filter media in dirty aquarium water?

I feel Like I should change the media....like, ever.....Doesn't the activated carbon only last so long?

[thekoimaiden]

Actually you are probably going to want to bump up your changes to twice weekly and get a test kit. Or at least have you water tested by a reliable pet store and ask for the numbers to know just where you are in the cycle. Your tank may already be cycled.

As for changing the filter, the activated carbon runs out in about a week. But if you change the cartridge every week, then your tank won't be able to hold a steady cycle because you are throwing away the good bacteria. Personally, I don't use activated carbon filters anymore because they are a moneypit. If you change the carbon often enough to keep it working properly then you end up dumping at least $100 a year on cartridges.