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P&L 10-09-2004 06:32 AM

Sea Storm Fluidized Bed filter - replace media?
 
I have a large Sea Storm fluidized bed filter that sat dormant for too long
and requires replacement of the sand media. Looks to me like both ends of
the cylinder are sealed shut. Anyone know how to replace the sand?

Thanks.

Phil
Ottawa Canada



Tom 11-09-2004 01:15 AM


"P&L" wrote in message
...
I have a large Sea Storm fluidized bed filter that sat dormant for too

long
and requires replacement of the sand media. Looks to me like both ends of
the cylinder are sealed shut. Anyone know how to replace the sand?

Thanks.

Phil
Ottawa Canada



Sea Storm made two different filters. One is, indeed, a sealed unit and you
cannot get it open. The other has a removable top. If your unit has the
red and blue dots indicating "Input" and "Output" connections, it is
probably the older style sealed unit. If the filter you have is marked "In"
and "Out" (in writing), then it is the new one and the top can be unscrewed.

Sea Storm set themselves up for failure on these filters in three ways.

First, they tested every filter for leaks before shipping. You would think
this would be a good thing, but it is not. The filter sand was shipped wet
and when it dried out, it assumed the consistency of concrete.

Second, the initial units were sealed and when the sand hardened, you can
just toss them out as they are impossible to open. Corrected in units
shipped after mid-1997.

Third, these filters MUST have a check valve inserted into the feed (input)
line and they do NOT come with one, you have to buy it elsewhere. If you do
not use a check valve, as soon as the power cuts off, the filter sucks the
sand all the way back into the sump. Bummer. Nowhere in the info that came
with the filters does it mention this by the way. :(

Even after saying all this, these are GREAT filters if you can overcome
their weaknesses. They provide good fluidization and are sized for monster
tanks.

Tom

PS: BTW, you DO know that in the event of a power failure lasting any time
at all, you MUST take these filters offline as the bacteria die quickly in
the absence of oxygen. Flush them to waste after a prolonged power outage
and all is well, start them up pouring the dead bacteria into your tank, and
you may have problems. But this is a problem with any biological filter
when circulation is shut down.



P&L 14-09-2004 03:29 AM


"Tom" wrote in message
news:_zq0d.169471$mD.110978@attbi_s02...

"P&L" wrote in message
...
I have a large Sea Storm fluidized bed filter that sat dormant for too

long...





Sea Storm made two different filters. One is, indeed, a sealed unit and
you
cannot get it open. The other has a removable top. If your unit has the
red and blue dots indicating "Input" and "Output" connections, it is
probably the older style sealed unit. If the filter you have is marked
"In"
and "Out" (in writing), then it is the new one and the top can be
unscrewed.


Thanks for your informative post, Tom. I definitely have the older sealed
unit. I will try the following: Outside with the hose I will blast out the
current contents. If successful, I will try to sterilize the interior to
kill the nasty bacteria that are in there currently. I have new sand on
order. I am not at all sure how I will get it into the unit but that will be
the last step. Worth a try. All this make sense to you?

Cheers, Phil



Ian Smith 14-09-2004 02:19 PM

On Mon, 13 Sep 2004 21:29:22 -0400, P&L wrote:

I am not at all sure how I will get it into the unit but that will be
the last step. Worth a try. All this make sense to you?


Set up teh filter with a spare pump / powerhead driving it from a
bucket of water. Wedge the pump such that the inlet is pointing
straight up. With teh pump running, trickle a fine stream of sand
into teh inlet - it should get dragged along through the pipework and
deposited in the filter.

Obviously, this only works if tehre isn't a pre-filter on teh
fluidised bed. It also is liable to give wear on your pump impeller,
and at worst knacker the pump entirely. It might also upset any
check-valve in teh circuit. It's a fairly slow process, but I've
topped up the media in a home-made fluidised bed (with no prefilter
and no check valve) by this method when I didn't want to take it out
of teh system where it was running.

regards, Ian SMith
--
|\ /| no .sig
|o o|
|/ \|

Tom 14-09-2004 04:49 PM


"P&L" wrote in message
.. .
Thanks for your informative post, Tom. I definitely have the older sealed
unit. I will try the following: Outside with the hose I will blast out the
current contents. If successful, I will try to sterilize the interior to
kill the nasty bacteria that are in there currently. I have new sand on
order. I am not at all sure how I will get it into the unit but that will

be
the last step. Worth a try. All this make sense to you?

Cheers, Phil



Phil,

Is the sand that is in the filter loose at all or is it pretty much a solid
chunk? If the latter, then you are out of luck trying to loosen it by
running water through it, beating on it, or swearing at it. I tried all
three. I had one running constantly for two weeks and the sand remained as
solid as ever, even though water would run through the filter in small
amounts.

About the only thing you can do to save the filter is cut the acrylic tube
in two, remove the solidified sand and acrylic weld it back together. This
is not difficult to do if you have the means to cut the acrylic body tube
accurately. Weldon #4 acrylic cement will 'glue' the two halves back
together perfectly if the joint is cut smoothly.

When you cut the thing apart, you will see what I mean about the sand
becoming hard as a rock. You can refill the unit, or any FB filter unit,
very easily by merely pouring sand down the 'output' side of the plumbing.
The easiest way, of course, is to just put the sand in when the two halves
are cut apart. This will also allow you to put a couple of handfuls of
coarse aquarium gravel in the filter. It has been found that FB filters
will start up easier after a temporary shutdown (power failure for example)
with this gravel base in the unit. The heavier gravel stays at the bottom
of the unit and is first to settle when the filter is shut down, keeping the
finer sand from compacting itself around the water outlet in the bottom of
the filter.

I have 4 or 5 of the newer model Sea Storm filters with the removable top
that I refurbished with new o-rings and media. These are the ones that take
one pound of media and will filter a 125 very nicely. If all else fails
trying to fix your existing unit, drop me a note and I'll sell you one of
these if you just gotta have a working Sea Storm FB filter. :) You can
contact me at seaskate32043 at yahoo dot you-know-what.

Tom



P&L 01-10-2004 05:43 AM


"Tom" wrote in message
news:TxD1d.191353You can
contact me at seaskate32043 at yahoo dot you-know-what.

Tom



Thanks Tom, my new media arrived the other day and I will attempt the
operation this weekend. The good news is that I have left a good amount of
water in the tube (now a festering bio experiment) so the sand is still
loose. BTW, when I originally bought the unit, the sand was indeed already
wet but was not at all solidified. I must have just lucked out with a
relatively "fresh" unit. It also had a small amount of coarse gravel in the
bottom as you described, I will set it up that way again.

As far as a check valve is concerned, I have the filter hanging off the back
of a 120 g tank with the end of the return hose positioned out of the
water - there can be no reverse siphon. The input is powered by a 401
powerhead with prefilter. I have never had startup or siphoning problems at
all.

Alas, if I do manage to botch the whole thing, I will definitely take you up
on your offer. Thanks for your generosity.

Cheers,

Phil




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