Under gravel filter

[firedragon92]

hey guys

i have an undergravel filter in my 3 foot tank with three up lift tubes at the top of each of these tubes i has an activated carbon attachment. Anyway i removed this today to put in some Melafix for my injured jewel and when i pulled them out a cloud of gunk came though the uplift tubes and into my tank.

Is this normal?

is it just a build up of waste that has been sucked down by the undergravel filter?

i just thought i better check

i was also wondering how effective a power head is on an unredgravel filter as i have it running off an airpump and was thinking of up grading?

Would i need a powerhead for ever up lift tube?

cheers

[wombat1100]

Yes its normal, it is just a build up of "gunk"
I would suspect that to use a power filter you could get away with one but you would have to block off the other tubes so as the water isn't sucked down them.
I believe they are more efficient but i haven't ever done it so I'm just guessing!
Dazz

[joz]

Not sure whether the a power head is worth the trouble??
But maybe when doing water changes stick a siphon hose down the U/G uplift,this can suck out excess gunk thats sitting stagnant down there.

[firedragon92]

thanks for your help

i thought it was just a build up of gunk, but wanted to be sure in case it wasn't working properly.

ill look in to the power heads in more detail, however it sounds like ill need to get one for each tube which will be costly

any experience with the power heads would be helpful

cheers

[joz]

IMO stick with air,its cheaper to run and very effective.

But if you like powerheads on uplifts for any reason ,go for it..If you don't mind all the turbulance that is.

[GoGuppy]

hey guys
i was also wondering how effective a power head is on an unredgravel filter as i have it running off an airpump and was thinking of up grading?
Would i need a powerhead for ever up lift tube?
cheers

Gday FD
I used a powerhead for years on an earlier tank, as I did not like the noise of an air pump. I also liked the additional movement of water in the tank created by the PH. Yes, you would need to blank off the other lift tubes, as otherwise you would be by passing the gravel (water flows in the direction of least resistance!). But the flow with a PH would probably be greater than the three lift tubes combined so this is not a problem.:p
A couple of disadvantages though: 1) another item visible in the tank. 2) you would need a prefilter on the PH so another filter to clean from time to time. 3) the PH could malfunction, so don’t through the air pump away.;)
Hope the above helps you in making a decision.
Cheers

[firedragon92]

i think ill stick with the air pump then the money i would spend on the PH would be better spent on other things

cheers guys

[masterid]

It is generally acknowledged that there are three forms of filtration: biological, in which ammonia and nitrite of fish waste is broken down by bacteria, chemical, in which carbon or resins are used to adsorb dissolved waste, and mechanical, in which solid waste is strained from the water by floss or filter cartridges.

Of these, a UG filter (http://www.agritura.com/index.php/cat/c362_Technical-Components.html/category/Technical-Components) effectively provides only biological filtration. The small amount of charcoal in a UG cartridge does very little chemical filtration before becoming saturated and whatever mechanical filtration occurs is actually a threat to the stability of the aquarium (http://www.agritura.com/index.php/cat/c344_Aquariums.html/category/Aquariums) (more about this later). :)

[wombat1100]

I agree the UG filter only provides biological filtration, but in my opinion thats the best kind for your tank, it also traps the waste as you said, but if you are doing regular water changes as you should be thats not a problem , u just use a gravel siphon.and i also agree that the charcoal containers in the up tubes are useless although i don't use charcoal at all and have no problems.
I run 5 tanks , some of which have UG filters running as std with air, one in reverse with a power head set up and some without a UG filter at all depending on the amount of external filtration from canister filters, i found all ways are effective

[Woodsy]

I would conjecture that U/G's also act as mechanical filtration. Discuss :p

Edit: I cannot spell...

[wombat1100]

well by trapping the waste for you too clean out i would agree woodsy! therefore its a biological and mechanical filter!!!