cleaning bio balls

[una box]

How often should the bio balls in our water weir be cleaned.  I understand they have to be cleaned in pond water and that I cannot use the hose with tap water - is that right? 

Thanks for helping me.

[miguynmkoi]

I think it depends on how "dirty" your filter box gets.  In my box when the gunk gets too gunky (too hot here for real words  ) I just rinse the balls in a bucket of pond water, loosely.  Then the balls go back into the filter box.  The dirty water goes to my garden! 

I do this rinse only once a year, twice if DH feeds the fishies too often.

[Julles]

I'll hose off my filter media, then empty most but not all of the water and sludge from my filter.  But I leave the bio balls alone.  You WANT that gunky stuff, to make more good bacteria in the cleaned filter.

[tranquility]

honestly your bio shouldn't get much if any sludge in it...that is what your machanical filter is supposed to do.....but, I have a few of those box filters I use in tanks and they Always get gunky....so everytime I clean the machanical pads then I clean the bio balls in pond water...just swish them around alittle and dump the water....
Lawannna