bio filter

[c2c7390]

ive seen alot of talk about skippy filters...i have a trickle filter...why is a skippy filter suggested more than a trickle filter and does the water cause alot of back pressure on the pump

 

[koiguy1969]

skippys are bar none the best filter you can build, no more back pressure than any other filter, even though its bottom fed, the water is plumbed to the bottom inside the filter from the top. you have to figure head heigth in and ciculate your total pond volume at least once an hour,twice is great. your 400gal pond, you'd want atleast a750gph pump for max efficiency. set it on the ground next to your pond,cause its outlet is on the top. your trash can your using will work fine.

 

[c2c7390]

what makes the skippy style so good???wouldnt it have more back pressure than my trickle filter right now???because of all of the water in the drum???

 

[koiguy1969]

yes pushing it thru more water will cause some resistance but it doesnt work your pump any harder. at least not with the newer style submersables. their free floating armature will still spin,just less water will move. there is no point of contact to wear out. your trickle flow doesnot keep all the media surface wet all the time this allows for good oxygen,but the flow and constant water contact of all surface areas allows for more even dispersion of nutrients to the bacteria,thusly a larger more flurishing colony of bacteria to nuetralize and feed off the nasty stuff that they're to. as your media gets full it channels the water(and debris), the skippy collects and contains the gunk at the bottom of the tank, to easily be flushed out,makes for easier clean out. if your filter is working so well you are fighting for it... dont bother you dont need a new filter anyway!!!

 

[koiguy1969]

what size pump are you using anyway? with as high as your water has to travel (head heighth) your probably losing as much flow if not more, because with the skippy you could put your filter on the floor, cause the water enters from the top and exits from the top also. and when water is flowing thru the tubing under water the pressure is equalized or something thats why they tell you to calculate head heigth from the water surface not from the pump.(i dont know exactly how that works) but just a couple fish... your probabloy good to go anyway. but even your filter should turn the water over close to 2 times an hour

 

[c2c7390]

i use 2 Rio 2100s and they pump about 3 feet from the surface of the pond to the top of the filter...could i reverse my filter and still use my bioballs instead of the skippy media...

 

[c2c7390]

could you guys post pictures of your filters...cause im looking to redo mine

 

[c2c7390]

what exactly is the "skippy" media

 

[DrDave]

what exactly is the "skippy" media

The skippy media is sponge like material, however, you don't have to use this to make this style of filter work. I have 7000 pieces of small tubes in mine and they work better than the sponges since I never have to remove and clean them. Eventually, the sponges will have to be removed, cleaned and or replaced because they will deteriorate over time. ABS tubes will never deteriorate or saturate with the scum that it collects.

 

[mister2driver]

Hi DrDave, do you have picture of these small pieces of tubes? The idea of not removing them and cleaning sounds very interesting.

 

[DrDave]

This is 1/2" irrigation tubing cut into 1.5" long pieces. I have about 7000 of them in my 55 gallon drum. A paper cutter and 2 hours of chopping to get enough.

 

[c2c7390]

i never heard of using pipes for filter media...could i still use my Bio balls for the filter medium

 

[koiguy1969]

you can use any media you want...even combine medias

 

[c2c7390]

you can use any media you want...even combine medias

ok cool

 

[c2c7390]

does the drain size matter...for when you "flush" the filter and how often should this be done