separating fish from filter for a few days

[stef25]

im rebuilding my tanks this weekend and have a last minute question

- how long can filter medium survive in tank water without fish? ill put the tank water in a bucket and plan to leave the medium in there about 3 days, without fish. Will the medium still be working when i put it back?

- will it be a problem to put fish in a container thats not a tank and doesnt have a filter? in other words will ammonium and nitrite reach dangerous levels in less than 3 days?

 

[homebunnyj]

1st q, not long, without a source of ammonia
2nd, you'd need to put a bubbler in, and probably change the water... definitely test the water
Do you not have any way to run your filter on whatever you're gonna keep your fish in?

 

[stef25]

i have one spare tank where i can run a filter but two big fish will be going in a 30L plastic bucket and its sort of hard to run a filter in there ... ill give it a go since i do not want to screw things up

thanks

 

[TLH]

How many tanks do you have if it's going to take 3 days to redo them?
I would really think about doing one tank at a time or staggering your work.
You could always run two filters on one of your other tanks providing you don't have disease in either.