Filter question - push up or drip down?

[hankn]

I have a filter question. Which is better - having the water drip down via gravity through your mechanical filter media (sponges, mosquito netting, perlon, etc.) or have the water come in via the bottom and push its way through the filter media on top of it and the water drains out of the top?

Which method traps more gunk?

[perfect_prefect]

i would recommend an above rain down on the media so you can see the build up, rather than having it on the bottom side, i dont think besides possibly the weight of the waste helping from going up through the media do have many advantages to the bottom fed system. but if you have alot of xl waste i would go with the bottom feed with a drain in the bottom of the filter that you could open to drain the large stuff without. pulling the media. also you could shut off the feed line and spray down through the media without pulling it to clean this way too. so i guess both ways have up sides. leaves it up to you to weigh the advantages and which way would work better for your situation.

[WeeNe858]

both methods should be able to filter the same assuming they are the exact same setup. the befits with a drop down is that you can divert water flow while you tend to the filter and you also save energy by simply pumping the water up and having gravity do the dirty work, literally.

[Muske]

My filter is upfilled...

I don't use any media once the temps. are safe for hyacinths. I pull my filter pads and let the plants do all the work. They just float on top and i pull them out every couple of days and blast them w/the hose. It knocks off all the debris in a couple of minutes. Makes the grass grow really green in those areas of clean off....