Trickle Filters

[looby loo]

Hi, are these filters any good and what media do use with them?

 

[n3ont3tra]

Trickle filters are great for biological filtration. I think most use some kind of sponge... the point is to only trickle the water onto the sponge so it gets as much oxygen as possible for the bacteria to grow... I think. I know they're good, though.

 

[Kaylee]

How big is ur tank? If you have a big tank with alot of fish, it would be a good idea.

A trickle filter is a Biological filtration which is the process in which beneficial bacteria convert organics that have been broken down into the toxic elements of Ammonia and Nitrite into the less harmful compound Nitrate.

There are many options that you can select in you media as in sand, gravel, sponges, ceramic rings, bio-balls. Just go to your local pet shop and ask them for suggestions that they have available for a biological filter.

You must use a mechanical filter to keep free water-flow paths.

For me, I have a 30 gallon tank with a hanging whisper mechanical filter and i added some ceramic rings after the filter. So the one filter defeats 2 the mechanical and the biological filtrations.

Left this up for awhile, taking care of my kids, probably some posts before mine that explains it as well good luck!!

 

[darknirvana217]

I've never liked the trickle filters. I always felt that my water was not circulated properly and that debris was not being picked up effciently. I prfer the canioster filters. One of teh best brands to go with all filter systems is the Eheims.

 

[shroob]

Trickles are the way to go if you have large tanks, or dense stocking. However they do lack for mechanical filtration, but this is more than made up by their huge bio filtration, not to mention customability and their cheap cheap price (if you make your own, not that hard really).

For media you can pretty much use anything with surface area, though if you're unsure, better to ask on this forum or somewhere, as it it might be dangerous to fish perhaps.

 

[andywg]

It all depends on what sort of trickle filter you mean. The hood based ones that rely on a pump in the tank are ok, but the best are sump based wet/dry trickle towers. By putting sponge on the drip tray you have better mechanical filtration than any other system (at least in my experience - having the media exposed to air and not submerged makes it far easier to pull physical waste out of the water).

As to circulation issues, that is purely down to the pump used.

It should be noted that wet/dry filters tend to gas off CO2 and make planted tanks a bit harder.