What types of sponge media
- Thread starter monsterK
- Start date
I would suggest using Poret foam as it's versatile, comes in different PPI (Pores Per Inch) and lasts a long time. Ideally you would place it vertically in your sump for ease of cleaning.
Do you have any pics of your sump set up?
Do you have any pics of your sump set up?
Ok awesome I'll take a look , is there a good PPI u suggest? And I'll take some
In the uk I usually purchase it in packs of three. You get a coarse one (black), a slightly finer one (blue), and a very fine one (green). You may want to trim them for a snug custom fit.
You position them in the sump so that the water goes through the coarser ones first.
Then to finish the "sponge block" off some have a wad of filter floss to catch the really fine stuff and help polish the water.
The whole sponge block needs to be removed carefully and rinsed out in tank water on maintenance day. The filter floss, which is full of the very fine crud is usually tossed and replaced with new.
A word of advice. You need to position the sponges and floss in such a way that they are easily removed and replaced. And when you do remove them to clean them, take it easy. Just yanking them out sloshing about is going to release all their crud into your sump.
You position them in the sump so that the water goes through the coarser ones first.
Then to finish the "sponge block" off some have a wad of filter floss to catch the really fine stuff and help polish the water.
The whole sponge block needs to be removed carefully and rinsed out in tank water on maintenance day. The filter floss, which is full of the very fine crud is usually tossed and replaced with new.
A word of advice. You need to position the sponges and floss in such a way that they are easily removed and replaced. And when you do remove them to clean them, take it easy. Just yanking them out sloshing about is going to release all their crud into your sump.
Here's some of that Porrett Foam Deeda was mentioning, just as it arrived and uncut.
I wanted enough, to stand vertically as a wall in my sump.
Here its cut to fit, it separates my pump, and biomedia section, from the planted section
I use shrimp in the planted section to help break down chunky detritus, and police gunk from the surface of, and in the porous parts of the foam.
When the foam gets plugged, I pull it and spray it out in the garden, with the garden hose.
My sump is a 6ft, 125 gal tank, run almost full.
As you can see, the pump bio-media section is about 15% of the sumps volume, and the only semblance of a baffle, is the Porrett wall.
The other 85% is heavily planted, with aquatic and terrestrial plants
The Porret Foam has been in use for about 4 years, and still viable (installed in Dec 2020).
My water parameters below
Left ammonia, next to it nitrite, and right nitrate
Another test below
I wanted enough, to stand vertically as a wall in my sump.
Here its cut to fit, it separates my pump, and biomedia section, from the planted section
I use shrimp in the planted section to help break down chunky detritus, and police gunk from the surface of, and in the porous parts of the foam.
When the foam gets plugged, I pull it and spray it out in the garden, with the garden hose.
My sump is a 6ft, 125 gal tank, run almost full.
As you can see, the pump bio-media section is about 15% of the sumps volume, and the only semblance of a baffle, is the Porrett wall.
The other 85% is heavily planted, with aquatic and terrestrial plants
The Porret Foam has been in use for about 4 years, and still viable (installed in Dec 2020).
My water parameters below
Left ammonia, next to it nitrite, and right nitrate
Another test below
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Agree
But........When I pull the Porrett wall to be hosed down, no matter what I do, or how careful I am (maybe I'm just a bulll in a China shop) the entire tank and sump turn brown and get clouded with gunk, but withn 24 hours as the gunk rescedes and seasons the foam again, and the tank and sump are clear.
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Usually 20 PPI is a good choice though other pore sizes are available depending on your particular need. If you are in the U.S. or Canada, check out Swiss Tropicals for their foam sheets.
I got some left from green wave engineering,same thing as Swiss. Comes in different sizes and PPI. good quality
A trick I learned when taking out dirty sponge filters is wrapping them first in a wet washcloth or hand towel before lifting them out. Really reduces the muck going back in the tank. Once you wrap the sponge just haul it out like fish in a net.
For a matten type I would take a regular towel, lean the sponge against it slowly then lift. I always keep a supply of microfiber towels for aquarium use only.
For a matten type I would take a regular towel, lean the sponge against it slowly then lift. I always keep a supply of microfiber towels for aquarium use only.
You can alleviate the problem to an extent by vacuuming the surface of the sponge while siphoning out some water during a change...but no matter what you do, there will be a considerable amount of brown water coming out when you remove a piece of sponge. Embrace the suck! It won't hurt anything, and will clear quickly when you rinse the sponge out and replace it.