Undergravel Filters

[wetdog]

hi all,i currebtly have a submersable filter, like most have, but back in the day there was no problems with undergravel filtration. even now, shops still run undergravel. so my question is............would an undergravel filter be ok with sand? i will still keep my filter pump as well.

mick.

 

[chrisbassist]

The drawbacks to undergravel are

harder to clean and maintain.

That's about it. They are still good filters but people don't want to put in the extra effort to clean them.

 

[mattlee]

not so sure sand is ideal for these filters as it can become quite compact on top preventing the filter from doing its job to its full potential

 

[taffy1]

Advantages of the Under gravel setup would be that there is more aeration under/around the gravel. Disadvantages (which is not a huge deal in a well established/clean tank), would be the lack filter pads and carbon pads that trap a lot of loose particles, clarify water, and hold a ton of your good bacteria. At least the few UG setups I've seen do not offer any sort of filter padding, but you still do have lots of bacteria in the gravel and on the ornaments.

 

[Gilli]

I wouldnt have an undergravel filter. I started off with one when I came back into fishkeeping purely because id had one years ago but I lived to regret it. So much gunk built up under the filter after a year and I couldnt get it out and my water started to suffer. I ended up having to completely redo the tank as I had to take it out and start with a new filter. there are so many wonderful modern filters now - go with an external if you can afford it - they are a breeze to clean and your water quality will be awesome!

 

[flix_cw]

Interesting. I have an UGF at the moment but it's only been running 5 months. It's only a 28L, but i imagine it may cause problems after awhile. Hopefully by then i'll have a bigger tank anyway, and just use the 28L as a fry/QT tank!

 

[hamfist]

I really like UG filters for smaller tanks, even though they are very unfashionable these days. I would far, far rather use a UG filter than one of these small internal or HOB filters that one sees being sold with most small tank kits. UGs are very effective if set up well, with good water flow through the substrate. Also, if you are using aeration to power them, then the water is automatically very well aerated.
They are also cheap !

However, sand is not the right substrate, as has been mentioned above. It simply compacts together too much, and the water flow through it will not be sufficient. There are also not sufficient spaces between the grains for lumps of poo etc to be drawn down into the substrate.