Filter advice

Cheryl,

This is a bit long-winded, but you hopefully will find the information
useful.

Backflushing probably refers to a pressurized filter, like what you would
have with a swimming pool, as opposed to a gravity filter, which is what it
looks like you have. A gravity filter works by passing the water over the
filter media and letting it just naturally drain out through the media to a
drain back to the pond. To clean, you remove the media and run it under a
hose or through the dishwasher.

Pressurized filters force it through the media under pressure. Backflushing
refers to reversing the pressure on the filter media to allow the dirt to
release from the media. It would then be rinsed away somehow, either
manually or with some sort of diverter valve.

I recently upgraded my filter set up to a gravity filter from a submerged
in-line filter (a royal pain to keep clean). I chose the Fishmate with the
UV light. It looks somewhat similar to your filter. Water enters the top,
drops into a chamber with the UV light and then spills out of that into the
filter media and to the drains back to the falls.

My filter has three important features. First, the media does not cover the
entire surface of the bottom of the box. Instead, there is a corner cut out.
Why this is important is that once the filter media gunks up over time. As
this happens, it blocks the flow of water out. If it covered the entire
bottom, when it got completely gunked up, there would be no easy way for the
water to get out, so the box would fill up and spill over. With the corner
cut, there is still a place for the water to get out through the drains. The
water simply washes over the gunked up filter to the cut out corner and out
through the drains.

Second, the outlets are HUGE in comparison to the inlets. That way, no
matter how much water is entering the box, the exit capacity is more than
enough.

Third, the media is not on the bottom, but suspended above it by a plastic
tray filled with porous rocks. This means that there is room under the media
for the water to collect and reach the drains.

I can't believe how well this filter works. I was looking at pressurized
filters costing hundreds of dollars and up, but opted for this, which was
just a couple hundred and works fabulously.

The filter is rated for 1200 gallons per hour and I used to have a 1200 pump
feeding it. I just upgraded the pump to 3500 gallons, which I plan to divert
between a direct line to the falls and a slow stream through the filter.
However, I haven't yet been able to put all the new plumbing in place.

While I'm waiting to find the time, I put the outlet into the fishmate just
so I could see all the water at once coming down my falls. Even with nearly
3 times the water coming in to the filter, it is still draining out just as
fast as it enters.

Soooo, raise your media off the bottom, cut a corner a few inches back on
the far end away from the inlet and be sure you have big enough drains to
handle the outflow. And keep the filters clean.

Remydog

----- Original Message -----
From: "Cheryl"
Newsgroups: rec.ponds
Sent: Sunday, April 25, 2004 5:39 PM
Subject: Filter advice


Yeah it can be washed out which i was planning to do this week anyway.
What
do u mean by backflush it? ( sorry im new to pond/fish keeping! )

Heres some pics:
www.geocities.com/me_pigley/photopagefish.html
www.geocities.com/me_pigley/fish2.html

Cheryl

"Nedra" wrote in message
ink.net...
Hi Cheryl,

Not knowing the size of the filter in relation to your pond -
I'm going to take a wild guess and suggest that you unhook
the filter and backflush it. Is it one that you can wash?

Nedra
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Pines/4836
http://community.webshots.com/user/nedra118

"Cheryl" wrote in message
...
Hi

Im after some advice about my filter. In the past couple of days we
noticed
that the pond water level had dropped a good few inches and just put
it
down
to the sunny weather weve been having. Anyway we have noticed today
that
the
reason for the sudden drop is that the water is overflowing from the
filter
box. Is this because its too small and that we need a bigger one?

any advice would be greatfully recieved

Thanks
Cheryl








"Cheryl" wrote in message
...
Yeah it can be washed out which i was planning to do this week anyway.
What
do u mean by backflush it? ( sorry im new to pond/fish keeping! )

Heres some pics:
www.geocities.com/me_pigley/photopagefish.html
www.geocities.com/me_pigley/fish2.html

Cheryl

"Nedra" wrote in message
ink.net...
Hi Cheryl,

Not knowing the size of the filter in relation to your pond -
I'm going to take a wild guess and suggest that you unhook
the filter and backflush it. Is it one that you can wash?

Nedra
http://www.geocities.com/Heartland/Pines/4836
http://community.webshots.com/user/nedra118

"Cheryl" wrote in message
...
Hi

Im after some advice about my filter. In the past couple of days we
noticed
that the pond water level had dropped a good few inches and just put
it
down
to the sunny weather weve been having. Anyway we have noticed today
that
the
reason for the sudden drop is that the water is overflowing from the
filter
box. Is this because its too small and that we need a bigger one?

any advice would be greatfully recieved

Thanks
Cheryl