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i've read that ugf can "anoy" the plant roots of a comunity aquarium but i've also read that plants acn benifit from a ugf buy "puling" the nutrients into to the gravel so i personly figure half way between is good by this i mean having a low stength one powered buy air lift instead of a power head what do you think about ugf?
declan

Last edited by victa_fish at 19-Jun-2005 18:31

First off, if the UGF is powered by air and the tank is planted, pull the UGF out...you don't want a ton of surface agitation...

Second, UGF's are pointless because all the do is pull poo down to the bottom so it can ROT better...you need to tear down tanks every couple years to clean it all out or the tank starts to get funky...

Third, UGF's will bother plants because of all of the movement down in the roots, and the fact that there's open space beneath them.

If ya got a powerhead driven powerhead, put the whole setup in an unplanted tank and reverse the powerhead (if possible). Then you'll have an RUGF that is a LOT better because it cleans the gravel, instead of making a mess of everything...

IMO, yer better off just sticking the airstone or powerhead or whatever straight into the tank, rather than sticking it on a UGF that'll just suck crap into yer gravel and make it rot...

Have fun

hmmm i never looked at it that way PW but i guess your right

w00tness I'm not stupid

hey waffle i didn't say you were stupid lol

I know you didn't, but I did

Hi,
Actually UGF's are very efficient filters that use the
entire bottom of the tank for filtration. They are
hidden (by the gravel), require next to no maintenance,
have no parts that need to be replaced, and have no
moving parts. You simply place the plates on the bottom
of the tank, cover with gravel, and clean the gravel
on a regular basis, as you would anyway during your
normal tank maintenance.

UGF tanks are only "hostile" to a very, very few plants,
most of which do not make it into our stores for sale.

The number of uplifts should depend upon the size of the
tank. One is all that is required with tanks up to 50/55G.
at 55, I would use two. At 75, I'd use three. In the
old days the only means of creating the suction was by
placing an airstone in the uplift tubes. Over time
the airstones fell apart, and before that many would clog
as a bacteria grew on them and clogged the tiny holes.

Today, they should be powered by a small pump that will
actually fit (wedge) into the uplift tubes and move more
water, quieter. If you have a well planted tank, you
can simply trim the uplift tube so that the output of the
pump is under the surface and does not rile it. Some,
like myself, run the output through a reactor when using
injected CO2.

To care for an undergravel filter, simply divide your tank
(mentally) into 1/4s, then every three months clean a
section with your syphon as you change the water in
the tank. You should change a portion of the tank water
at some interval anyway, just jam the tube end into the
gravel enough to swirl the gravel around in the tube and
let it fall back into place. Watch the suction - too much
will remove the gravel, too little will not do the job.
Do this ONLY in open areas that are not planted.

In areas that are heavily planted simply swirl your hand
over the plants to bring up any detritus and remove it with
your syphon.

Use MTS snails to keep the gravel "loose" and add some
corries to serve a similiar purpose. The corries will
take care of the first 1/4 to half inch, and the MTS snails
will take care of most of the remainder.

IF you simply install the UGF and forget it, it will
eventually become clogged as any other type of filter
would and could eventually cause problems. As with anything
you have to take care of it. With a UFG, there is nothing
to replace.

I've had my current tank set up with a UGF for over
20 years. I'm an aqua gardener, and a member of the
Aquatic Gardeners Association (A.G.A.). While I have
absolutely no sense of aquascaping, I do grow plants -
lush green jungles of them. I doubt very seriously, that
I'd ever have a tank without a UFG.

Frank


-->>> The Confidence of Amateurs, is the Envy of Professionals <<<--

I agree, Frank. As many know I have stated before that I use UGFs and have so since starting in the hobby over 30 years ago.

Do I use other filtration also, sure I do, but believe that there is no "Best Way" and that with good maintenance and attention to your tanks there is absolutely no reason why UGFs can not be very effective.

I don't have the experience with live plants as others do, but I'm currently in the process of setting up several tanks that will be planted. As an experiment I'm going to have tanks with both UFGs and without and basically the same setup - in other words the same lighting, plant assortment, etc. - the only difference will be filtration to see if there is really any difference in plant performance.

Jim

---

Water, taken in moderation, cannot hurt anybody. -- Mark Twain