Rinsing filter pads

[Dosry5]

I have hanging toilet brush like filters in my skimmer box that I rinse off a couple times a week. They sit right behind the basket and right before the pump. They get nasty.

But the filter pads (and bio balls) in my waterfall box I don’t mess with. Should I be rinsing those too? Or would that damage/kill good bacteria?

 

[BKHpondcritters]

I (personally) rinse the filter pads in my skimmer baskets once or twice a week, depending on time of year & how dirty they're getting. The filter pads/etc... in my biofalls get cleaned once a year. The ones in the large Biofall we remove & clean in the early winter (once temps have all biological activity shut down for the year) and the ones in the smaller skimmer we clean in very early Spring. At that time, we also reinstall the filter mats in the larger skimmer & consider everything 'good to go' for the year.

 

[Gemma]

I rinse the bio falls pads during Spring cleaning, and after that I don't touch'em again until the following Spring
The Skimmer box is my only mechanical filter so those pads I keep very clean, rinsing daily even if I could get by doing it twice a week

 

[Dosry5]

Thanks for the replies. I dug this pond last summer and this is my first spring with it. By the end of the year last year i had pretty nice water. For a month now it’s been so green I haven’t seen any of my goldfish. I’m trying to find a solution while still being patient. Maybe daily cleaning of the skimmer filters will help.

 

[poconojoe]

Do not rinse the bio balls. Rinse the pads.

 

[bagsmom]

For the first time in two years, I rinsed the spring filter media in my bio falls. I meant to be gentle but I think I overdid it. The pond has been taking its sweet time in looking nice this year. I think I should have left the biofalls alone!