DIY wet/dry Q.

[spiral_72]

A quick question for those in the know...

I have noticed several trickle filters built out of a 10 gallon
aquarium and others in a similar fashion with the sump beside the
filter section. Correct me if I am wrong but wouldn't that submerge all
or part of the bio balls and make the drip plate or spray bar kind'a
useless? Ideally bio balls needs to be kept wet but not submerged,
right? So the filter would have to be above the sump.

O.K. one more: Why 3/4", 1" and 1-1/2" bio balls? Obviously the
1-1/2" would have more surface area, but by using the 3/4" you could
fit more balls per volume. (space is a concern for me)

...... I doubt I'll save any money on this DIY, but I'd like the
challenge! :)

My Aquarium info & pics at:
http://www.geocities.com/spiral_72/Spirals_page.html

[Elaine T]

spiral_72 wrote:
> A quick question for those in the know...
>
> I have noticed several trickle filters built out of a 10 gallon
> aquarium and others in a similar fashion with the sump beside the
> filter section. Correct me if I am wrong but wouldn't that submerge all
> or part of the bio balls and make the drip plate or spray bar kind'a
> useless? Ideally bio balls needs to be kept wet but not submerged,
> right? So the filter would have to be above the sump.
>
> O.K. one more: Why 3/4", 1" and 1-1/2" bio balls? Obviously the
> 1-1/2" would have more surface area, but by using the 3/4" you could
> fit more balls per volume. (space is a concern for me)
>
> ..... I doubt I'll save any money on this DIY, but I'd like the
> challenge! :)
>
> My Aquarium info & pics at:
> http://www.geocities.com/spiral_72/Spirals_page.html
>
I think most of the DIY designs have a only a few inches of water in the
10 gallon tank to submerge the pump and heater. The bio balls are
usually raised above this few inches of water on a stand made from a
piece of fluorescent lighting diffuser (egg crate) or acrylic with holes
drilled in it.

--
Elaine T __
http://eethomp.com/fish.html <'__><
rec.aquaria.* FAQ http://faq.thekrib.com

[John >]

"spiral_72" > wrote in message
oups.com...
>A quick question for those in the know...
>
> I have noticed several trickle filters built out of a 10 gallon
> aquarium and others in a similar fashion with the sump beside the
> filter section. Correct me if I am wrong but wouldn't that submerge all
> or part of the bio balls and make the drip plate or spray bar kind'a
> useless? Ideally bio balls needs to be kept wet but not submerged,
> right? So the filter would have to be above the sump.
>
> O.K. one more: Why 3/4", 1" and 1-1/2" bio balls? Obviously the
> 1-1/2" would have more surface area, but by using the 3/4" you could
> fit more balls per volume. (space is a concern for me)
>

For a small sump the 3/4" balls would work OK

For me the 3/4" and 1" balls would travel through the pipes and create a
blockage. I still have to dig a 1 1/2" ball out of the hose every now and
then, but much less than the smaller balls. They would surely clog up the
system. My bio balls are completely submerged, they seem to be doing what
they were intended for.

I use two 40 gallon Rubbermaid garbage cans.

Starting at the top, I have 2" polyfil & charcoal bags, under that I have
Plexiglas with 1/2" holes then another 2" of polyfil. Another layer of
plexi with 3/8" holes to help disperse the water flow, then 30 gallons of
bio balls.

From the bottom of that can, I have a 1 1/2" hose to the second can about
2/3's of the way up so the polyfil in the first can stays UN-submerged. In
this second can I keep the water only 1/3 high, so if the power goes out
there is room to take the overflow from the tank. 600gph pump returns back
to the tank.

In my case this is NOT enough filtering. I am trying to devise a sealed
system that I can move at least 1,500 gph and filter to 20 - 40 microns

Any Idea's?
JOhn ><>

[spiral_72]

Elaine,

Uh, huh.... so when they boast a 5 gallon sump it means the sump area
CAN hold 5 gallons if it has to but normally just enough to cover the
pump inlet. I see! That makes sense, although misleading.

John,

Whoa! That's a big'un! 1500gph and 20-40 microns is going to require a
filter with a very large surface area. The most economical idea I have
is use house water filters. They are small, (3" dia, 12" long) filter
20-60 microns depending..... and somewhat inexpensive. They flow at
least 100gph each. Mount ten of em' using bulkheads on an acrylic plate
the size of your container. Fix the unit so that water accumulates on
the plate and falls through the filters to your sump area. The only
problem I see is you may have to keep 10 gallons of water on the plate
to keep up the water pressure through the filters. I don't think water
would drip through these filters very well.......Assuming your pump is
AFTER your filter of course.

[John >]

> Whoa! That's a big'un! 1500gph and 20-40 microns is going to require a
> filter with a very large surface area. The most economical idea I have
> is use house water filters. They are small, (3" dia, 12" long) filter
> 20-60 microns depending..... and somewhat inexpensive. They flow at
> least 100gph each. Mount ten of em' using bulkheads on an acrylic plate
> the size of your container. Fix the unit so that water accumulates on
> the plate and falls through the filters to your sump area. The only
> problem I see is you may have to keep 10 gallons of water on the plate
> to keep up the water pressure through the filters. I don't think water
> would drip through these filters very well.......Assuming your pump is
> AFTER your filter of course.
>
Can't be a drip filter, needs to be a sealed system so the water can be
pressured through. I have some idea's, but it will take a while to get it
done. Still threatening to use a pool sand filter.

JOhn ><>