here we go... 500g build start
- Thread starter brich999
- Start date
ok heres the next question, ive got the bio covered i believe (20l pond matrix) and def water movement and heater, but what about mech? i added pond clarifier, and it started to clear the water, but ive had to wash the filter socks 3 times in the last hour. is there anything easier? i was thinking fx5, but i would need a few i think and they get costly, what about a big fluid bed filter filled with kaldnes k1 and k3? i guess thats supposed to house macro organisms that eat poo. anyone know? worst case scenario i deal with ugly water, but i will know its bio good. plus if i ditch the filter socks, i can turn up my hammerhead pump
For the 100g are you just filling it with media and running the water through for the whole thing or are you setting it up like a w/d?
If it's just full of media you can always get a sheet of acrylic for an overflow wall, separate it, and use pot scrubbies in the first section for mechanical filtration. That's how I run my 3 chamber w/d. First whole chamber is just mechanical. Once the water is mechanically filtrated the other two chambers below the drip tray work the biological angle.
If you're not doing w/d I would recommend it. With a tank this big I'd want a w/d for sure. Of course, like you said, you could always run something like a Marineland C-360 along with the sump. You can snag one of them off bigals for like 130$ I believe and I think they're still doing free shipping over like 80$ or something.
If it's just full of media you can always get a sheet of acrylic for an overflow wall, separate it, and use pot scrubbies in the first section for mechanical filtration. That's how I run my 3 chamber w/d. First whole chamber is just mechanical. Once the water is mechanically filtrated the other two chambers below the drip tray work the biological angle.
If you're not doing w/d I would recommend it. With a tank this big I'd want a w/d for sure. Of course, like you said, you could always run something like a Marineland C-360 along with the sump. You can snag one of them off bigals for like 130$ I believe and I think they're still doing free shipping over like 80$ or something.
fine jon, FTS looks horrible, and i look like i have man-boob going on, but here ya go just after i added sand... err i hate you for making you show this. ill get a better one without me in it and so nobody has to see my unfinished basement
ya but i hate the marineland, and no its not a wet dry, couldnt design one to flow enough for me. the prob with even a mag-360, it wouldnt even flow the whole tank in an hr and would prob clog really quick. fx5 is prob the only one that could handle the job, but even then i think i would need a couple minimum
For washing the filter socks I just put em in the wash.....no soap, no bleach. My fish are messy so I run them once, take out of the wash, turn em inside out. Wash again. Turn back inside out and wash one more time. Spin em a few times and good as new.
A sump is the way to go...especially w/ filter socks. Easy to change out is the key. And cheap cause you can reuse them. The tank will clear up eventually. Give it time.
On my 225g im using a 55g sump w/ 60#s of ceramic media and a 100 micron filter sock. Powered by 2 quiet one 6000's.
A sump is the way to go...especially w/ filter socks. Easy to change out is the key. And cheap cause you can reuse them. The tank will clear up eventually. Give it time.
On my 225g im using a 55g sump w/ 60#s of ceramic media and a 100 micron filter sock. Powered by 2 quiet one 6000's.
im just getting so frusterated with washing them, im doing it by hand to try to get the water clear quick. thanks for the tip though
Lol, well the tank looks excellent. The FTS shows how big it really is. Make sure when you take the new one you include a common household item so you can see size comparison. 
Yeah, the hell with buying multiple canisters. That's a bit obscured. So technically the socks are your only mechanical right now, yeah? .... Not sure what I would do to add to mechanical here ...
Yeah, the hell with buying multiple canisters. That's a bit obscured. So technically the socks are your only mechanical right now, yeah? .... Not sure what I would do to add to mechanical here ...
