How do you guys with sand for substrate keep sand from getting into your powerheads?

  • We are currently upgrading MFK. thanks! -neo
C L O W N K N I F E

C L O W N K N I F E

Jack Dempsey
MFK Member
Sep 10, 2011
3,213
7
38
Plumas Lake, California
I recently setup a 120g and I used play sand for the substrate, after plugging in my powerheads that I set on a tube that is attached to a undergravel filter plate, it sucked up a bunch of sand and turned off. Now I have the powerheads just dangling near the top and not set on anything. I'm just wondering how you guys keep the sand from getting in them? Do you buy suction cups to hold them in the right place instead?

I found online that if you place a stone under the intake that it will keep most sand from being sucked up into it...but I would think that most sand would still be able to bypass that stone
 
its all about grain size. i put to small of grain in mi 180 and had to take it out an hour later. maybe on your intakes you could put a u shape o them so the intake would face upwards vs. down towards the sand
 
I probably would not connect the power head to the undegravel plate with sand. I think it may be a constant problem.
 
I didn't know you could use sand on an undergravel filter plate as it falls through the slots thereby defeating the purpose of using them.
 
I didnt know people still use undergravel filters :). I think deeda is right on it not working with sand. I use play sand in all my tanks, and my power heads all come with suction cups or atleast you can buy brackets for that. I just use them to circulate water, cause aggatate the top for air and give my fish/clownloaches something to play in. If you really want the extra filtration as well just buy one of those powerhead prefilters as well.
 
can't use undergravel filters with sand, gotta use powerheads and make sure u wash the sand very well before u put it in there, that is critical
 
I know you can't use undergravel filter plates when you have sand for a substrate. & I know how crappy they are. I just put them underneath the sand to hold the tubes vertically so I can place my powerheads on them. I guess I should of spent the extra money and went with pool filter sand. & I suppose I shouldn't of even put the undergravel filter plates in the 120g. lol

Right now I got my bubbler hose in them, since placing my powerheads on them doesn't work. & I don't use my powerheads as filters, I use them for the current they produce and for surface agitation.

@Amber, I know I have to wash the play sand before using, and I did. I put 3 bags in 3 five gallon buckets and filled up the buckets with water and dumped them about 50 or more times. Thanks though. :)

...I'm not a nooby lol, I just didn't know or think of using suction cups instead. I'll buy some suction cups to hold them in place then, thanks!
 
Play sand is easy to kick up. Unfortunately with HOB filters and stuff it can grind away, SO noisy, until you have to buy new impellers, etc. Haven't that much experience with powerheads, but I went away from sand entirely and have just recently returned now I am using FX5's... The larger impeller doesn't seem to suffer from anything that gets kicked up.

By the way, when I first put the sand in, I pour it straight in without washing, I fill the tank, swill the sand around and then python out all the water (and the floating sand). I refill, repeat, refill, repeat. It's a hell of a lot easier to wash the sand in a big tank than a bucket... That's really my main tip. ;) After a good wash, anything that gets kicked up is usually heavy enough to fall down again (the lightest stuff was all siphoned out during the washing).

Of course with some fish, those which burrow, you might want to forget sand altogether.
 
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