I rebuilt a full new pond 11 months ago. Changed over to a GC Tek Alpha one bead filter. Due to lack of space this is my full filtering system.
My fish load is in line with what the manufacturer said the filter can handle for my size pond. approx. 2800 gallons.
I admit I'm a slightly heavy feeder , My pond pigs devour every last drop of food i feed them. The skimmer might collect a little.
I do a cleaning every Saturday, i usually notice the clarity of the water goes from amazing to slightly dirty. but still able to clearly see the bottom perfectly. the pressure in the filter does increase over the week.
Here is my question.
by cleaning this often am i killing off the bacteria. I backwash for probably 5 minutes and remove 10-15 % of the water each week. and add more bacteria Microbe_lift bead bacteria
I get very slight ammonia reading and my nitrates and nitrites also are showing a very low reading.
It appears i am never full cycling the filter.
I also have a foam issue. nothing terrible but an annoyance.
Am i chasing my own tail with this cleaning. should i just let the filter get really dirt. (think not)
IS IT POSSIBLE TO OVERCLEAN A BEAD FILTER?