Sponge filter

[TomO]

What size sponge filter should I get for a 20 gallon shrimp tank?

[CorydorasEthan]

1 hour ago, TomO said:

What size sponge filter should I get for a 20 gallon shrimp tank?

If you are considering an Aquarium Co-Op spong filter, I would go with the Medium size.

[Streetwise]

Shrimp are low-impact. Any size sponge should be fine, so it is more of an aesthetic choice. In my 16 and 20 gallon tanks, I tend to use a Nano in each of the back corners, or a singular Nano or Small in smaller tanks. In very short tanks with substrate, I may omit the lift tube.

To keep going, I like the Small or Medium in buckets and small tubs, depending on height.

These are three great things about a sponge filter with shrimp:

• Safety
• Circulation
• Grazing

Let the detritus collect, and enjoy watching your shrimp!

Edited March 12, 2021 by Streetwise

[Will Billy]

Like @Streetwise mentioned, for a 20 gallon 1 nano should suffice for a shrimp tank filtration wise. If it were me i would put 1 nano sponge filter in each corner (for a total of 2 sponge filters). Again like @Streetwise said they will eat off of the sponge so you are not only providing surface area for beneficial bacteria you are providing surface area for shrimp to eat. 

Edited March 11, 2021 by Will Billy
Clarification, 2 sponge filters, 1 in each corner.

[Bobbi M.]

Do I need to sterilize my sponge filter each time it's used in my quarantine tank, or would you toss the sponge?  Could I just wash with hot water or microwave it, let dry then re-use?  

[Will Billy]

19 minutes ago, Bobbi M. said:

Do I need to sterilize my sponge filter each time it's used in my quarantine tank

Believe it or not, this is a very pertinent question. Most people know to use a seasoned filter for a quarantine tank. But what do you do with the reusable filter media once quarantine is complete? Lets dissect this question further. How i quarantine is most different from what is what i would consider common practice. I prefer to not add meds until i see a problem. For me my quarantine tank is exactly that, plop them in and observe. If i see a problem, i only medicate for the visibly noticeable problem. Common practice is to add meds wether the fish are sick or not. On the one hand an ounce of prevention is worth a pound of cure philosophy, on the other i save meds and only use them as i see fit, saving me on the cost of meds but also not dosing my pets with unnecessary meds leading to stressing them further for a treatment that is not needed. Granted blasting a quarantine tank with a med trio means you can add your fish sooner (like 2 weeks, compared to my method of 4 weeks or longer of observation). Should a problem arise, what do we do with the medicine laced, possibly contaminated filter media? My quarantine method allows me no harm no fowl should all fish make it through quarantine no problems to just reintroduce my sponge media directly in my tank. If however i have an ich outbreak for example and i treat my quarantine for ich, #1 i dont want to introduce ich contaminated media into my display tank, and furthermore #2 i dont want to introduce fish meds to my display tank that uses no activated carbon to remove residual meds. I know i took a long way of going about this but, generally it is far easier for me to seed a sterile sponge with new bacteria, than to worry about and adjust consequences of a contaminated sponge. My method is to dip the contaminated sponge in bleach to kill bacteria and rinse with chlorinated hot tap water to remove surplus bleach. Once confident the bleach is mostly gone (as it is hard to rinse off) i soak the media in a 50/50 hydrogen peroxide vinegar solution. The hydrogen peroxide will oxidize and exfoliate trapped meds, the vinegar will remove fungal impurities such as different molds and fungus that are resilient to bleach that mostly kills bacteria. After a 1 hour soak in vinegar and H2O2, i rinse again and soak in dechlorinated water for 24 hours swishing and squeezing periodically. Before reintroduction to a display tank, to start growing new bacteria. It seems like a lot to go through, and maybe im extra cautious, but the vinegar is only applied if and when i see a fungal infection, bleach if and when i notice a bacterial infection, and if no infection is observed i do not use my regimented sterilization method at all. Just my 2 cents, im sure others have different quarantine methods and sterilization procedures. Thats what i do, and so far it has not failed me.