What do you know about an under gravel suction filter?

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Hey guys,
I had a consultation with Eric Triplett, the pond digger, and he mentioned an under gravel suction filter. In looking into these it seems like the way to go. Does anyone have any experience with this type of filter?
 
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Hey guys,
I had a consultation with Eric Triplett, the pond digger, and he mentioned an under gravel suction filter. In looking into these it seems like the way to go. Does anyone have any experience with this type of filter?
Only in fish tanks - can't quite imagine it in a pond. I'm very satisfied with my simple pond/bog arrangement - no cleaning, lots of plants and it works.
 
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I'm the same as Hound Heaven. I have used them in aquariums. I think it is all a matter of preference and what makes the most sense for your set up. This is just one of several options for filtration.
On a side note, I love Eric Triplett! His old YouTube videos inspired and instructed me to build my front yard goldfish pond!
 
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Do you mean an intake bay? Those seem awesome and I want one on my next pond as a way to get leaves and any surface debris.

I want an upflow bog filter for general filtration. Are you planning a bog as well?
 
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@Laaf -- I love my intake bay! It works wonderfully!
Actually, an under gravel filtration system is a whole different thing. It's very interesting! I love how there are so many options out there for pond construction and filtration. It is all fascinating!
 
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Do you mean an intake bay? Those seem awesome and I want one on my next pond as a way to get leaves and any surface debris.

I want an upflow bog filter for general filtration. Are you planning a bog as well?
I could not decide between an intake bay or a negative edge/infinity edge. I did a pros and cons for them both and found each others weakness was the others strength. So the solution was a narrow opening to a over sized intake bay but instead of the intake bay pulling the leaves twigs and crud into the gravel on the bottom. I over sized the intake bay. The draw from the pump was instead of coming from below came from the negative edge and its overflow/ skimmer principles.

Having the narrow opening pulled in the leaves any other debris but once the intake opened up the surface draw lessened allowing the debris to sink to the bottom where it sat on top of the gravel. a few water lilies placed just right caught the leaves and they would not go over the negative edge. and nothing was pulled down into any rocks. But because my negative edge is only a small portion of my pumps 12000 gallons i would also place a net under the falls and any leaves that did make it to the falls gets caught in the net

how well does this work


Hey guys,
I had a consultation with Eric Triplett, the pond digger, and he mentioned an under gravel suction filter. In looking into these it seems like the way to go. Does anyone have any experience with this type of filter?
I thought this was talked about. will a under gravel work for a time sure it will. But there is two major differences the way i see it one . as the debris is pulled into the bed as it clogs its going to start blocking anything from being pulled in. Such as oxygen, a REVERSE FLOW THROWS THE OXYGENATED WATER under THE GRAVEL . oxygen naturally wants to raise through the water column and the gravel. THE under gravel filter tries to pull it down through the tighly packed gravel.
when you pump dirty water below the gravel if allowed to settle the dirt will fall and not clog the gravel. where you can clean it out at a latter time. to clean an under gravel you need to suck at the gravel which will also disturb and remove bacteria.
 

YShahar

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Pond trade magazine had two articles about this system:

Looks like the trick to making it work long term is having fairly large holes in the manifold, and large rocks so the air can get through without clogging.

Definitely looks like an interesting idea!
 
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Pond trade magazine had two articles about this system:

Looks like the trick to making it work long term is having fairly large holes in the manifold, and large rocks so the air can get through without clogging.

Definitely looks like an interesting idea!
Interesting idea. Good to see a post from you.
 

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Pond trade magazine had two articles about this system:

Looks like the trick to making it work long term is having fairly large holes in the manifold, and large rocks so the air can get through without clogging.

Definitely looks like an interesting idea!
Yes very good to see you ❤️
 
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While @YShahar HAS GOT TO BE THE TOUGHEST AND MOST RESOURCEFUL GRADMA I KNOW. though we have some others here on this forum. But they just don't get excited playing with plastic and buying a new finger hammer like yshahar. I two was happy getting a message from her yesterday. Amidst it all she is trying to finish her bog. I know with all the crap going on over there she has to be very happy having a pond a reflecting pond to loose ones mind for endless hours. Actually kinda jealous she can sit out at the pond all night in the warm air and not give blood to the mosquitos.
 
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Pond trade magazine had two articles about this system:

Looks like the trick to making it work long term is having fairly large holes in the manifold, and large rocks so the air can get through without clogging.

Definitely looks like an interesting idea!
@YShahar thanks for sharing these articles. Eric Triplett did a wonderful podcast on the topic with Mike White. It's a fun listen if you're interested. It's a little long but you can always put it on a little faster speed. They talk about using 3/4" round gravel.

I suffer from I-can-do-everything-itis so ultimately it's my goal to build my new pond with one of these. It's just beyond difficult to dedicate time to it with a 1 and 5 year old, plus life. I'm really excited to be a part of this community and learning more about the hobby/passion. I'm definitely addicted.
 

YShahar

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@YShahar thanks for sharing these articles. Eric Triplett did a wonderful podcast on the topic with Mike White. It's a fun listen if you're interested. It's a little long but you can always put it on a little faster speed. They talk about using 3/4" round gravel.

I think I listened to that one when it first came out. I was seriously thinking about putting one of these in, but in the end decided to just keep it simple. I would definitely revisit the idea if I ever decide to convert my setup into a swim pond.

I suffer from I-can-do-everything-itis so ultimately it's my goal to build my new pond with one of these. It's just beyond difficult to dedicate time to it with a 1 and 5 year old, plus life. I'm really excited to be a part of this community and learning more about the hobby/passion. I'm definitely addicted.

Oy, I hear you about the I-can-do-everything-itis! But the older I get, the more I find that my self-expectation is overblown! The pond is probably my last "boots on the ground, ask no quarter" project. I hate the idea of calling in extra muscle, but likely that's what will happen going forward. With young kids, it's hard to get anything done, so cut yourself some slack! I had to wait until the kids were off to the army before even thinking about redoing the garden.

And yes, this is a great community! Great people all around, and a fantastic amount of combined experience!
 
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Hey guys,
I had a consultation with Eric Triplett, the pond digger, and he mentioned an under gravel suction filter. In looking into these it seems like the way to go. Does anyone have any experience with this type of filter?
I’m a little late to this post but I bought a kit from them and it’s great. Check out my profile for my pond build post. It wasn’t without problems trying to build it myself but I haven’t changed my water at all and I only have to clean out my skimmer and pump basket once a month or less. I have 7 goldfish and one koi they are doing great now. The only problem I have is algae but that’s my fault for not getting more plants right away. Best choice I ever made compared to my previous pond which was high maintenance. Feel free to ask me anything you need to know but the triplets are very helpful if I have an issue they know just what to do.
 
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I’m a little late to this post but I bought a kit from them and it’s great. Check out my profile for my pond build post. It wasn’t without problems trying to build it myself but I haven’t changed my water at all and I only have to clean out my skimmer and pump basket once a month or less. I have 7 goldfish and one koi they are doing great now. The only problem I have is algae but that’s my fault for not getting more plants right away. Best choice I ever made compared to my previous pond which was high maintenance. Feel free to ask me anything you need to know but the triplets are very helpful if I have an issue they know just what to do.
He does a Podcast as well, and when you listen to it about the undergravel section filter They do talk about there being an algae bloom but that it'll take care of itself
 

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