Re: Canister Review -- or - Rinsing my Socks

["S. Hieber" <shieber at yahoo_com>]

Chuck said, in part:

> My filters wear socks, too.  I don't know if these are
> made anymore, but 
> the best sock I've ever found for typically sized filters
> are the refills 
> for the Tetrabilli sponge filters from Tetra.  They are
> cylindrical, black, 
> dense, and last for years.  Another helpful thing is that
> they are 
> "predrilled" and slip right over the intake tube with no
> muss and little fuss.

The Marineland RUGF sponges work well, also, although less
dense than the Tetra stuff -- pick your filter needs.  The
Amiracle sponge for its prefilter box, about the same
density as the Marineland sponge, works on tubes that are
about 1".


If you find a source for reticulated urethane foam where
you can buy reasonable quantities in bulk, you can make
your own socks.  To drill this stuff, compress is between
two pieces of wood and drill the sandwich with a fortsner
bit.  It's difficult to get the stuff to compress neatly.

You can also nip away at it with scissors.  Doesn't leave a
very tidy an uniform hole, but, hey, it's just filter sock 
;-)  .


>  The sock/prefilter should be thought of strictly as
> a mechanical 
> filter.  Along with extending the maintenance cycle of
> the main filter, the 
> idea is to remove larger debris from the tank before it
> has a chance to 
> break down and add to the nutrient load.  That's the
> theory I'm operating 
> on anyway.


Unavoidably, they function as a biosurface, too, unless you
boil or bleach them and do that too often for a culture to
regrow.

Scott H.

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