biomedia in planted tanks

["Greger Lindstrand" <greglind at algonet_se>]

Would this work?

I've seen in a pool shop, that the cleaning aparatus of a swimming pool is just a big cannister filled with sand, 2-3 mm grain size and a pump to run it.
About 100 kg sand is put into a metal cannister and then you hook up a pump to it. The beauty of it (hence my intrest) is the cleaning proceedure. simply swich a valve and backflush until clean water is shown in the little window. Switch back and continue to run as usual.

Would such a setup work for a planted aquaria?
I could hide the thingy (it's big) in the basement, so apperance isn't an issue, but would it work?

Give your thoughts on the subject!
Greger