Under Gravel Filters

[mgk]

Not at all. The UGF does absolutely nothing that a plain ol sponge filter won't do.

all biological media, does nothing that a plain ol sponge filter won't do.

it all does the same thing just harbors nitrifying bacteria

 

[dawnmarie]

They are great at colonizing beneficial bacteria. My tanks were also the clearest whenever I used UGF's! UGF's with powerheads compared to no UGF's will alllow for higher stocking levels. They have pro's and con's just like anything else. MFK has many a thread about UGF's. You might want to do a search.

I couldn't have said it better. Do your own research.
IMHO the more flow the better.

 

[bitteraspects]

Well the tray does get disturbed as my jag loves to move gravel

and as soon as he opens a hole down to the tray, any flow through the gravel is lost. water will always take the path of least resistance.

do yourself a favor. trash the UGF, get a good canister filter, and never look back .

 

[fishbum]

Get some powerheads that you can reverse the flow on,and it will not allow the crap to build up underneath the plates.
I personally do not like having the lift tubes and the powerheads taking up room in tanks and how they look,but there is nothing wrong with a UG as long as it is maintained like any other filter.

 

[dogofwar]

I quit using UGFs many years ago...better alternatives without the drawbacks.

For that matter I quit using more than a light sprinkling of gravel / sand...as well.

Over time crud accumulates under the filter plate in UGFs. If you're committed to cleaning this out and cleaning the gravel thoroughly, then they're just fine.

Matt

 

[dawnmarie]

and as soon as he opens a hole down to the tray, any flow through the gravel is lost. water will always take the path of least resistance.

You are right about that, If your fish dig in the gravel you have to watch out for "holes". This is the only downside I have discovered so far.
The under side stays clean if you have sufficeint flow and do regular Gravel vacs. My UGF flows 1000+ GPH so it may not be representative of all or most UGF's.

 

[beerad555]

Thanks for all your replies.

 

[Oddball]

http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=285563&highlight=ugf

 

[CHOMPERS]

and as soon as he opens a hole down to the tray, any flow through the gravel is lost. water will always take the path of least resistance.

Sorry to poo poo on your parade, but it takes more that just a hole. There are a bazillion holes through the gravel already. The slits in the plate meter out the water so that a digger doesn't disrupt the flow in the proportions that you suggest.

By the way, wasn't it discovered in that other thread that you didn't have any real experience with UGF's? It's always the people with little or no experience with them that are always adamantly bad mouthing them.

 

[tcarswell]

Sorry to poo poo on your parade, but it takes more that just a hole. There are a bazillion holes through the gravel already. The slits in the plate meter out the water so that a digger doesn't disrupt the flow in the proportions that you suggest.

By the way, wasn't it discovered in that other thread that you didn't have any real experience with UGF's? It's always the people with little or no experience with them that are always adamantly bad mouthing them.

#1 Yes I pretty much had to bring that to light last time he was trashing them He has been rather relentless in his pursuit of bashing these filters.

I use UGF on my two 55 gallons they do an awesome job. I would never remove them. Water stays crystal clear and no build up. Even if I take off a spare cap on the UG plate and turn the python all the way up I get nothing from under the plates maybe a stray speck or two.

The key to success with them for me so far has been to use more porous gravel and a good bed of it (2-3" at least) to trap any debris and give you a large amount of surface area.