Filter Floss

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Mowbz

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Filter floss. Lots of us have it, but what do you do with it?

Granted, as a base for bacteria its not the best material, but the amount of time it spends in our filters, it alive and usable.

Ive been thinking, could we not be promoting and chucking this to the newbies for startup tanks? I normally run mine for 6 weeks, rinse mine out, run it for another 3 or so, then bin it after. I imagine most do something similar, or just chuck it without washing.

About 1/5 or 1/4 of my media is floss, and i chucked this in the bin the other day when i changed it for new stuff. While its probably no good for filtering out crud anymore, could we not be making better use of it?

Im happy to post it for cost of postage only if it help others get tanks off the round quicker and its going to be more fish friendly.

How could we facilitate this? A post in the for sale section (But what newbs check there?) A thread on people willing to donate media (never updated?) or via a sticky in the Welcome to TFF section? Put a link of the Beginners resource section under fishless cycle?

Ideas?
 
Good idea. Mine is usually chocka with filth, so there would be some good colonies of bacteria in there.
 
It's what I ship when donating media. My cleaning routine is pretty much the same depending on the tank, run it for several weeks, one rinse, a few more weeks & it gets replaced.
 
:) oooh can you post in anywhere ? Like up to bonny Scotland .. Or will it have all dried up hehe ! If so, it sounds like a great idea .. I think lots of people would pay for mature media .. I certainly would .. But I'm very inpatient :)

And just a quick question since we're talking bout filter floss ... I'm doing a fish less cycle n my floss is grotty from tannins ... Can I change it or will i leave it until the cycles finished ?
 
As someone who's just starting up I'd love any kind of mature media I can get!

Do most of you run the same routine for the most part? Like you replace a floss every 4 weeks for example?

If so you would have a list like the media donation one with a rough date that some floss will be available each month from each member and how much it will cost to get it.

So for example, I might always have some media available at around the 20th of the month give or take and it'll be about £4. One new pad for my EX 1200 is about £3 and at a guess it'll be £1 to ship it anywhere in the UK. If nobody wants it then it goes in the bin.

The only question is, as the last thing in the filter how much bacteria is actually in the floss?

EDIT: and if anyone in the UK has any they can post me today I'll love you forever!
 
I run somewhere around 20-25 box filters with floss in my setup, maybe half the size of a baseball to close to a baseball size hunk in each. The routine is it's looking dirty, rinse it. It's pretty flat, won't fluff, toss it out & replace it.


The box filters are just floss, with a few rocks for weight, set up for mechanical, sponge filters take care of bio filtration. The floss is the first in line for water flow, boxes are higher flow rate, sponges are lower.



Shipping depends on your zip code in the US, USPS is a flat rate, at times closer distances makes UPS cheaper.
 
:) oooh can you post in anywhere ? Like up to bonny Scotland .. Or will it have all dried up hehe ! If so, it sounds like a great idea .. I think lots of people would pay for mature media .. I certainly would .. But I'm very inpatient :)

And just a quick question since we're talking bout filter floss ... I'm doing a fish less cycle n my floss is grotty from tannins ... Can I change it or will i leave it until the cycles finished ?

I think most would be happy to post anywhere in the country they live in, would only cost around £1. Most people dont buy the boxed wool (as its so freaking expensive, as i found out) as but it in rolls from ebay fior pennies, so its not worth a great deal, i imagine most would want to just cover postage, and since its to help newbies get tanks of the ground properly, i cant see the point in profiting from it.

In answer to your question on cycling, i would leave it in there. Its probably got a decent amount of bacteria in there now, and you dont want to stall the cycle.

Ben
 
As someone who's just starting up I'd love any kind of mature media I can get!

Do most of you run the same routine for the most part? Like you replace a floss every 4 weeks for example?

Pretty much. Its only any good for about 8weeks max generally, and then it goes "flat" as TOlak said. Once its like that its no good for keeping water crystal clear, but would hold a healthy amount of bacteria.

If so you would have a list like the media donation one with a rough date that some floss will be available each month from each member and how much it will cost to get it.

So for example, I might always have some media available at around the 20th of the month give or take and it'll be about £4. One new pad for my EX 1200 is about £3 and at a guess it'll be £1 to ship it anywhere in the UK. If nobody wants it then it goes in the bin.

I think thats a fair idea. Everyone that runs floss can post the date they are going to do their change, and members can take it on a first come first served basis. I personally can probably supply enough each time to either get two 80ish litre tanks instantly cycled, or around 1/4 of an average sized external full, so you could stock with a few fish straight away and work up.

The only question is, as the last thing in the filter how much bacteria is actually in the floss?

EDIT: and if anyone in the UK has any they can post me today I'll love you forever!

You would be suprised. Providing its been in there 6-8 weeks, its essectially "fully cycled". I wouldnt expect there to be as strong a colony as whats in my bags of ceramic, but a healthy amount none the less.
 
Anyone due to throw there filter floss out soon :blush: ? I'm right in the middle of my fishless cycle so would really appreciate a wee boost, and i'm getting bored of watching an empty tank lol :good: :good: :good:
 
Mine got binned last weekend, hence this thread! Will be another 6-8 weeks before mine is chucked, but some people have many more ttanks than i, so it wont be long!
 
Mine got binned last weekend, hence this thread! Will be another 6-8 weeks before mine is chucked, but some people have many more ttanks than i, so it wont be long!

lol worth a try :blush:

Fingers crossed someone will have some soon :good:

Seems like a great idea.. im surprised theres not a business out there for it .. coz theres definately a market for it.. :nod: I for one would pay to speed up my cycle
 
Most get it from their LFS or friends with tanks, thats how i started. There are however a minority that dont know the LFS's can give it out (some do, some dont) and dont have any "fish friends", so they either have to cycle from scratch, or they go down the Fish-IN cycle route, which normally doesnt end well.
 
Right, I've got 2 lots of floss going should anyone want it? Just cover postage via paypal. If that is ok with you then pm me and I will post tomorrow.

Right, I've got 2 lots of floss going should anyone want it? Just cover postage via paypal. If that is ok with you then pm me and I will post tomorrow.
 
Half the problem with donating media, is that the people who recieve it, dont really know what to do with it (as stupid as that sounds).

I think that getting them to do a fishless cycle or a fish in cycle, is a far more valuable experience than handing it to them on a plate, because if things go wrong in the future they wont know how to over come the issue as they skip that important part of the learning curve.
 
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