Need help on filteration

[RedSalmon]

I have a tank with gravel and fine sand and they are about 1 to 2 inches thick.The problem is most of the waste stays on the bottom if not they kinda attach themselves to the plants.

I have a spraybar on one side of the tank so the current moves towards the other end where the tube sucks the water for filtration. The flow is just right,not too strong and too weak.

Im not sure if ugf works since the gravel are kinda thick and consist of fine sands.Is there any other way to filter those waste out?

 

[wataugachicken]

weekly gravel vacs to remove it manually. an undergravel filter will get clogged with sand, plus in a planted tank the roots get into the system and clog up the pipes as well. you still need to vaccum the tank when running a ugf, otherwise it gets very dirty and is a disaster waiting to happen when you eventually remove it. the point of a ugf is to turn the substrate into a biological filter. it will trap physical waste, but YOU still have to remove it.

 

[fish head )'>]

I have not heard any good things about UGF in the long run.

 

[Merbeast]

I used UGFs for years, and as long as you maintain them (gravel vacuum well and often), they work great. I prefer to run them "reverse flow". I have since moved away from them to explore live plants more, but you still need to vacuum the gravel. Heck, you should be doing weekly water changes anyway, why not vacuum the gravel while you are at it?