FishProfiles.com Message Forums

	Pre filter wool
nitro Big Fish Posts: 395 Kudos: 823 Votes: 50 Registered: 20-Nov-2003	Kind of a stupid question but.. Does friendly bacteria colonise on prefilter wool?
Posted 26-Jan-2006 11:19
littlemousling Conchiform Posts: 5230 Registered: 23-Aug-2003	Yes, definitely. It'll colonise anywhere but pre-filter fiber is a particularly good place since there's water flowing through it constantly, carrying things that rot into ammonia (ie food). -Molly Visit shelldwellers.com!
Posted 26-Jan-2006 11:19
garyroland ---Prime Fish--- Posts: 7878 Kudos: 4010 Votes: 103 Registered: 31-Dec-2001	Some may favor filter wool, but because it has a tendency to clog and become a slimey mess I would suggest it never be used... --garyroland.
Posted 26-Jan-2006 11:19
nitro Big Fish Posts: 395 Kudos: 823 Votes: 50 Registered: 20-Nov-2003	Cheers to both of you. Gary, I know what your getting at but i clean mine fairly regualry and change when i see necessary.
Posted 26-Jan-2006 11:19
garyroland ---Prime Fish--- Posts: 7878 Kudos: 4010 Votes: 103 Registered: 31-Dec-2001	With all the efficient sponge filters there are around, I see no need for outdated and somewhat inefficient filter wool... --garyroland.
Posted 26-Jan-2006 11:19
trystianity Mega Fish Posts: 1028 Kudos: 926 Votes: 49 Registered: 20-Mar-2004	Aquaclear filters have good sponge inserts, they can be purchased for other filters of the same approximate size and only need to be rinsed instead of replacing them. Wool or floss does tend to get messy and will need to be replaced quite frequently. I have used aquaclear sponge inserts on penguin filters and they work great.
Posted 26-Jan-2006 11:19
garyroland ---Prime Fish--- Posts: 7878 Kudos: 4010 Votes: 103 Registered: 31-Dec-2001	That's correct, Tryst... Filter floss, as it's known today, is an old throwback to the first early filters when filter foam was unknown. In those days the floss was a real pain in the trop and was so inefficient that it had to thrown away on a regular basis. I would go as far to say if one is looking for a disease magnet, try filter floss/wool. It should provide all the dirty desire one could wish for. --garyroland.
Posted 26-Jan-2006 11:19
nitro Big Fish Posts: 395 Kudos: 823 Votes: 50 Registered: 20-Nov-2003	I would go as far to say if one is looking for a disease magnet, try filter floss/wool. It should provide all the dirty desire one could wish for. Note that i said i use it for PRE filter wool. i use it to stop large dirt etc from entering the main filter sponges.
Posted 26-Jan-2006 11:19
victimizati0n Banned Posts: 1217 Kudos: 1105 Votes: 31 Registered: 29-Apr-2004	isnt their filter wool in like the filter cartriges that most people buy?
Posted 26-Jan-2006 11:19
garyroland ---Prime Fish--- Posts: 7878 Kudos: 4010 Votes: 103 Registered: 31-Dec-2001	The floss used in filter cartridges just before water enters the carbon layer is a different weave... It's much thinner and stiffer than the standard filter floss that can be purchased in bulk form. Using floss as a pre-filter may be a waste of time since the internal foam sponges, as used in canister filters, are designed to trap larger particles before entering the biological chambers. I also suspect that the application causes increased pressure on the pump motors having to work a lot harder. --garyroland.
Posted 26-Jan-2006 11:19
FRANK Moderator Posts: 5108 Kudos: 5263 Votes: 1690 Registered: 28-Dec-2002	Hi, In the old days (Back when Gary was First Mate, and I was but a lowly Deck Hand on Noah's Ark). It was the days of slate bottoms, steel frames, and black sticky tar that held tanks together. Filters used charcoal, and filter floss as mediums. The idea was that the water was first passed through the floss to remove debris, and then through the charcoal to remove organic compounds (fish urea, etc.) In those days, after two weeks to a month (depending upon fish load) the carbon lost its ability to remove the organics and became just another form of mechanical filtration. The floss clogged up so fast that it had to be replaced nearly every week. It came in small boxes the size of Cracker Jack boxes, up to very large bags of the stuff about the size of todays "Party size" bag of popped Popcorn. It was placed first, so that the debris would not clog the charcoal and prevent the charcoal from removing the organics. If you forgot it, it would turn black and smell horrible. It would clog up,and the filter overflow onto the floor and once drained a tank on me. (I was not always a responsible fishkeeper.) Bacteria did form within the floss, but it clogged up so fast, that it never did any real good. Just about the time the bacteria might have done some good, the floss clogged up and we replaced it. Frank -->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--
Posted 26-Jan-2006 11:19
ACIDRAIN Moderator Posts: 3162 Kudos: 1381 Votes: 416 Registered: 14-Jan-2002	I must agree about the outdated use of most filter flosses for bennifitial bacteria growth, and any use other than mechanical filterization. The question is nitro, why use something so outdated, when there are much more efficient ways? If you are looking to increase your biological filter, the best way and most inexpensive way, is with a sponge filter with a high flow on it. _____________________________________________________________ There is always a bigger fish...
Posted 26-Jan-2006 11:19
nitro Big Fish Posts: 395 Kudos: 823 Votes: 50 Registered: 20-Nov-2003	ok ok you've got your point across its problems about going slimy and smelly. Next time i go to my LFS i will buy something else
Posted 26-Jan-2006 11:19


	Jump to:

The views expressed on this page are the implied opinions of their respective authors.
Under no circumstances do the comments on this page represent the opinions of the staff of FishProfiles.com.

FishProfiles.com Forums, version 11.0
Mazeguy Smilies