# Filter sucking up cherry shrimp



## trixella (Jan 24, 2011)

Has anyone had a problem with the Aquaclear filters sucking up their red cherry shrimp? I just had to pull the bottom tube off of my filter b/c an adult cherry was trapped in it at the upper filter tube intake.


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## chiefroastbeef (Feb 14, 2011)

Zip tie some nylon stocking over the outlet, it will prevent that from happening again.


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## kevmo911 (Sep 24, 2010)

Or take one of the AquaClear sponges, cut it into a block larger than the end of the intake, and cut a slit in it. Slide it over the end of the intake.


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## mordalphus (Jun 23, 2010)

Fluval prefilter sponges are awesome too, you can pick them up at your LFS for 3 dollars, or I can ship you one for 3 dollars shipped if your LFS doesn't have any. I use them on my HOB filters, they work great!

Here's a link to see what i'm talkin about: http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3650250


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## HolyAngel (Oct 18, 2010)

mordalphus said:


> Fluval prefilter sponges are awesome too, you can pick them up at your LFS for 3 dollars, or I can ship you one for 3 dollars shipped if your LFS doesn't have any. I use them on my HOB filters, they work great!
> 
> Here's a link to see what i'm talkin about: http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=3650250


+1
i use those on all my filters ^^


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## trixella (Jan 24, 2011)

I have a fluval sponge I bought a couple of months ago that looks like it is meant to be over a intake tube but I didn't know if a thick sponge would impede the flow and cause the motor to burn out on the filter so I haven't used it yet.... You think it'll be okay?


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## studentclimber (Apr 11, 2011)

I know this is going to sound bad but I let the filter go at the cherry shrimp and vice versa. They do a great job at keeping the cartridge clean, not to mention they grow very fast when all the spare food floating around in the tank gets delivered straight to them. I just empty the filter every 5 or 6 weeks so it does not get over crowded. Sometimes the cartridge is clean enough to toss back in.

FYI the filter is also a comparatively safe hiding spot from the fish in my tank. I have foam covers on my other shrimp colony filters, but there are no fish in those tanks, so they don't need to hide in the filter. The shrimp love feeding on the stuff that gets trapped in the foam.


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## trixella (Jan 24, 2011)

Looks like my question was answered while I was posting.


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## studentclimber (Apr 11, 2011)

Glad to be of service. For the record, I do keep foam over the intake to my UV lights on all of my tanks. See, I am not really a cruel person.


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## trixella (Jan 24, 2011)

Got a couple of questions about the fluval pre filter. Does using the filter prevent your sponge inside the filter from getting debris in it (thus reducing the need for cleaning it)? How do you prevent releasing all the crud back into your tank when you take the pre filter sponge off to clean it?


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## reybie (Jun 7, 2007)

I tried using the fluval prefilter for use with my eheim but it it clogged too fast and ended up a shrimp disaster. I just recently got one of the stainless prefilters from shrimplab, just waiting to hook it up and see if it works.


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## fresh.salty (Jul 2, 2010)

The Fluval sponge seems a bit "fine" to me. I bought a course sponge block made for wet-dry filters and just cut my own. I make it so the walls are pretty thin so it can go at least a month before it needs cleaning.


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## mayanjungledog (Mar 26, 2009)

The filter sponge for Zoomed 501 canisters work great too. It's a little larger and coarser than the Fluval pre-filter and doesn't get clogged quite as quickly. I used both this and the Fluval filter.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

reybie said:


> I tried using the fluval prefilter for use with my eheim but it it clogged too fast and ended up a shrimp disaster. I just recently got one of the stainless prefilters from shrimplab, just waiting to hook it up and see if it works.


It clogs up for me to. But its a fine filter. I just rinse it every 4 days.

If you want to be cheap you can get some screen material for a screen door and wrap your intake with it or cut a filter pad and zip tie it around your intake


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## trixella (Jan 24, 2011)

How do you keep crud from floating around your tank when you take the pre filter off?


accordztech said:


> It clogs up for me to. But its a fine filter. I just rinse it every 4 days.
> 
> If you want to be cheap you can get some screen material for a screen door and wrap your intake with it or cut a filter pad and zip tie it around your intake


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## fresh.salty (Jul 2, 2010)

Plastic cup over it, pull it off and then out of the tank will catch most of it.

But I can't see myself doing it mare than once a month unless I'm doing a water change more often. I don't usually.


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## accordztech (Dec 6, 2004)

trixella said:


> How do you keep crud from floating around your tank when you take the pre filter off?


I dont i let it go and it will eventually find its way back lol


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## Buff Daddy (Oct 19, 2010)

Aesthetics aside, a scrubbie works well also.


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## jasonpatterson (Apr 15, 2011)

I use the fluval prefilters as well. My cherries keep it reasonably clean, I only wind up rinsing the thing out maybe once a month or less. At this point they're likely doing most of the biological filtering in the tanks anyway. They are stretchy enough that they'll fit tubing up to 1" diameter if you're careful.


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## trixella (Jan 24, 2011)

I'm glad I had a pre filter on hand. I'm thinking the Aquaclear filter must have sucked up quite a few of my shrimp before I realized it b/c I don't see very many shrimp in my tank any more.  I wonder if they got sucked up into the motor part.


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