I have a 20 gallon tank with an HOB filter on one end. The filter head is covered with a sponge. But babies are still getting sucked in and stuck to it. I understand that babies that are weak will die off. But I'm losing about 10 a day. At this rate they will all be gone in a week. Any ideas and suggestions would be greatly appreciated. If I can stop this from happening it would be great. Thanks in advanced!

Try covering or clogging the intake with something finer to cut the power of the suction? I don't know how fine/coarse the pores on your sponge are, but maybe pantyhose over the top of it, or stuff some polyfill into the intake tube?

It's actually pretty fine. The angelfish babies definitely don't get sucked in, just pulled against it. The strong ones are able with quite a bit of effort swim away but the smaller and struggling to get away and some clearly aren't.

What about using a sponge filter (or 2) instead of a hang on back one? You can make them with just a few items:

Platic Water Bottle
Tube (I used PVC piping, but I've also used uptake tubes for underground filters)
Airline Tubing
Air Pump
Sponge (Open celled works best. I use the Aqua Clear sponge/foam.)

Cut the water bottle in half. Cut large square holes in the bottle leaving 1+ inch above and below. I cut 3 squares with about 1/2 an inch in between. Cut the sponge to fit snugly inside the water bottle (it doesn't have to be perfect). The bottom 1" of the water bottle is for gravel to hold your filter down.

For the next part, you have 2 options:
1. Drill/poke holes in the part of the tubing that will go in the sponge. Make one of the holes big enough to fit airline tubing. That hole will be above the sponge and the tubing will go inside. Using scissors or anything sharp, poke a hole in the middle of the sponge and shove the tube/PVC pipe inside.

2. For this method, your tube has to be big enough to fit an air stone in. Simply stick the tube in the middle of the sponge, put the air stone inside, and cover with enough gravel to keep it in place.

Here is a picture to show you what mine looks like in the end:

I have a sponge over the intake of the HOB filter.


Here is an image of the sponge over the intake of the HOB.

Hey Shorty - you probably want more sponge material (thickness) on that. I use a prefilter that is just like a small sponge filter - a circle of 4-5" diameter. I believe it's this one from Jehmco:

Does that one fit onto the HOB intakes? Or would I need something else to set it up?

That particular model comes with a variety of adapters for various size intake tubes. I have it on my FX5 at the moment. It's designed to work on filters with intake tubes rather than with PVC plumbing.

Sounds like that's what I need to find then. I doubt they'd have it in my town. We don't get much in for fancy things lol. Too far away from large city populations.

I got mine here, if I recall.

http://www.jehmco.com/html/hydro-sponge_filters.html

That's where I'm looking right now

Do you think for Angel babies I should get the fine pored? And if the 2" long would be good enough or should I go for the 4" long?

Oh, now for that I'm really not the right person to ask, sorry. I'm running the 4" model on a FX5 that's on my 125g tank with adult cichlids - very different circumstances.

Well I'm betting if you have the 4" in a 125 then a 2" for a 20 gallon should work lol. The HOB is a Penguin Bio-Wheel 150.

I just use the large sponge that you buy for the AC110's. I cut it in half and cut a hole in one side about an inch or so deep and slide it onto the intake. Has worked great for all of my babies. Or I just use the bubble sponge filters in with my babies. Its really all you need. You dont feed them much, they dont have a lot of waste, and you do more than enough water changes to where you will not have issues.

My parents are still in with the babies. They are GREAT parents, espcially for thier first batch. I actually had to put cardboard in between my two tanks that sit next to each other because Mom kept trying to fight the fish in the other tank to save her babies lol. Water is doing well it's just the babies getting stuck to the sponge.