underground filter
- Thread starter fuzzy
- Start date
I personally don't like them. They collect too much waste in the gravel whether you vac or not, and are useless for any larger fish that have a tendancy to dig. I stick to HOB and cannisters myself.
i started using an undergravel with plants and i didn't have any problems.. so far.
and i wonder why the plants i bought don't have roots; they don't rot even without sunlight or any special lighting
and i wonder why the plants i bought don't have roots; they don't rot even without sunlight or any special lighting
Has anyone ever taken a UGF out of a tank that has been set up for a couple of years? The result is all of the junk trapped under the plate turning your water dark gray--This was my 20g that had water changes/gravel vacs at least once every two weeks. Besides, with the advent of biowheels and bioballs, UGFs are old technology.
I feel they are not worth the effort with the advances in bio media for canisters/hang on backs/DIY systems these days. I don't doubt their effectiveness, but I just dont think they are needed anymore. Why bother to add on biofiltration thats not needed or going to be used?
Save yourself effort by laying a thin layer or sand or gravel, and focus time you would have spent gravel vacumning on other aspects of fishkeeping. I would keep a powerhead or two for circulation though.
Save yourself effort by laying a thin layer or sand or gravel, and focus time you would have spent gravel vacumning on other aspects of fishkeeping. I would keep a powerhead or two for circulation though.
rottbo said:
, i don't use any UGFs right now but have had favorable experiences with them using air pumps, another thought is to have a reverse flow capable powerhead and set it to reverse and also have a external filter, this way it would be easy to clean your gravel and it would all be taken up by your external filter which you will in turn clean (never tried this myself, only heard about it)
I've used UGFs for over 30 years and have never had a problem with them. I set them up according to recommendations by Dr Stephen Spotte. I place bonded pads between the plates and gravel. The pads provide 800 times the surface area for bacteria to adhere to, offer a good base for plants to root to, prevent gravel from clogging the UGFs slots, and keep sludge from accumulating under the plates. 4 powerheads ran the filter with 2 powerheads discharging to double bio-wheels. I ran a 240gal bichir tank for 2 years with this setup. When I had to break the tank down to move, the white side of the pads was still white and there wasn't a bit of sludge under the plates. The only maintenance was a bi-monthly gravel wash/water change.
