BenignVanilla wrote:
I don't have a bio-filter per se, as I am using a VF, but I plan to add one
eventually. I have started saving the straps from boxes of paper from
Staples, 6 pack rings, the locking rings from milk containers, etc. I
figure, when I am ready to build the bio filter, I'll have plenty of media
ready.

A true honest-to-goodness PORG -- I did the same thing, only I started
gathering the plastic media even before we moved into the house with a
pond. My DH thought I was a little "ditzy" but when I used some of my
"found" filtering material in a biowheel aquarium filter and it worked,
he stopped wondering about having me treated for my "funny" obsession.

Be careful with the 6 pack rings though - they become brittle from
exposure to heat and cold, found one in my front flower bed that
disintegrated when I tried to pick it up -- *&#@!)@ little pieces.
--
Kathy B