Do you really need to replace polyfiber or sintered glass? I could see replacing polyfilter when it gets too clogged, but is it necessary? And shouldnt it take a while, and cant you just rinse it out and reuse it? And I am not in the habit of replacing biological media, but I have been told that you should replace sintered glass after a while. Is that true? I currently have a sump running with some polyfiber, other mechanical filter pads i bought from my LFS, bioballs, matrix rocks, and sintered glass, and I was just wondering for maintenance purposes. thanks.
Sintered Glass and Polyfiber
- Thread starter gonnelro
- Start date
Polyester fiber, used for mechanical filtration should be routinely replaced to maintain an acceptable flowrate through your filter. Regarding sintered glass (which is used as a biological support), any porous media will eventually collect sediment and reduce the surface area that the bacteria can colonize. However, in many/most cases, there is an excess of surface area available to begin with. So, you can suffer some loss over time without any ill effect upon your water chemistry. Most of us will rinse the biomedia with tank water when servicing our filters and I suspect that this has some utility in extending the life of these supports. I would rinse the sintered glass and keep an eye on the ammonia and nitrites. If these levels are satisfactory, I personally would not change the sintered glass (given its cost). I have had the same Ehfisubstrat Pro in my filters for 3 years and have seen no detectable decrease in water quality. However, you must provide good mechanical filtration prior to the sintered glass or it will collect sediment and other debris rapidly.
Never heard ceramic biomedia called sintered glass before, but i haven't been in this hobby extremely long.
I'd wash the polyfiber with every water change and the biomedia just about every other month give it a shake around in tank water.
I'd wash the polyfiber with every water change and the biomedia just about every other month give it a shake around in tank water.
Thanks guys, that pretty much what I thought. I just was wondering if poly-fiber had some chemical compund in it that might absorb waste and dump it after a while like carbon or something. Also the sintered glass I asked about because it said to replace it on the packaging - probably just trying to sell more of their product - and that didnt sit right with me given the nature of biological filtration. Thanks for the input though. Just wondering, anyone use sintered glass here? I bought it because I heard its the best bio-media you can get, but yea its expensive.
gonnelro;1618481; said:
If they didn't do that, then how would they make any money off pads, ceramic media, or anything else that doesn't be replaced. Soon they'll start telling you to change your heater every 6 months...