Hi, was wondering if someone could tell me if I did the right thing here. I
built a Biofilter for my pond.It is 12X7X2. The one I built is 9gal.
basically a square Rubbermaid box. The pump (1200gph) pumps into the "top"
of box through an 18W UV light, then goes into filter through a 1 1/4" thick
Med. filter pad. It works its way down through the filter media. The media
is a combination of Bio Ceramic Barrels,Two bags of Lava Rocks crushed into
smaller sizes and regular Supra media, then finally exits out the bottom
into pond. Will this design keep water ok? Thanks..............

"Paul" wrote in message
...
Hi, was wondering if someone could tell me if I did the right thing here. I
built a Biofilter for my pond.It is 12X7X2. The one I built is 9gal.
basically a square Rubbermaid box. The pump (1200gph) pumps into the "top" of
box through an 18W UV light, then goes into filter through a 1 1/4" thick Med.
filter pad. It works its way down through the filter media. The media is a
combination of Bio Ceramic Barrels,Two bags of Lava Rocks crushed into smaller
sizes and regular Supra media, then finally exits out the bottom into pond.
Will this design keep water ok? Thanks..............

The efficiency of any biofilter depends mostly on the bioload in the pond. I
suspect that if your bioload is low to moderate, it should work well for you.
If it is high, you may want to attach an additional cell to the existing one.
Having said that, I wouldn't go through the trouble until you've let this one
run long enough to see if it is going to handle the load. If it does, then
you're done. If not, think about adding another cell. The wonderful thing
about biofilters if they are constructed properly is that you can always add
more cells to the flow (if you have the room).

Thanks, but what do mean by add a "CELL". I have approx 20 goldfish in size
from 3" to 6" and three KOI sizes from 3" to 8".
"George" wrote in message
news:XrRje.25397$WG.8217@attbi_s22...

"Paul" wrote in message
...
Hi, was wondering if someone could tell me if I did the right thing here.
I built a Biofilter for my pond.It is 12X7X2. The one I built is 9gal.
basically a square Rubbermaid box. The pump (1200gph) pumps into the
"top" of box through an 18W UV light, then goes into filter through a 1
1/4" thick Med. filter pad. It works its way down through the filter
media. The media is a combination of Bio Ceramic Barrels,Two bags of Lava
Rocks crushed into smaller sizes and regular Supra media, then finally
exits out the bottom into pond. Will this design keep water ok?
Thanks..............

The efficiency of any biofilter depends mostly on the bioload in the pond.
I suspect that if your bioload is low to moderate, it should work well for
you. If it is high, you may want to attach an additional cell to the
existing one. Having said that, I wouldn't go through the trouble until
you've let this one run long enough to see if it is going to handle the
load. If it does, then you're done. If not, think about adding another
cell. The wonderful thing about biofilters if they are constructed
properly is that you can always add more cells to the flow (if you have
the room).

Hi, was wondering if someone could tell me if I did the right thing here.
I
built a Biofilter for my pond.It is 12X7X2. The one I built is 9gal.
basically a square Rubbermaid box. The pump (1200gph) pumps into the "top"
of box through an 18W UV light, then goes into filter through a 1 1/4"
thick
Med. filter pad. It works its way down through the filter media. The media
Hi Paul - IMHO, you have the right idea , but the filter is a bit small and
will need cleaning more often than I would like - My pond is close to the
same size as yours with ~ 40 fish , but I use a 45 gal barrel with a 1200
gal pump (upflow design) and I need to "backflush" it 2 - 3 times a season
when it loads up (no UV, but the UV only helps with algae bloom anyway and I
never have it when my filter is running) Also 1200 gal/hr is a lot for a 9
gal filter to work properly. You will know how it works when you test the
water, or to be safer go to a larger container and add media to it as you
need it (or get tired of cleaning it so often)
Gale :~)

On Sat, 21 May 2005 21:54:00 -0400, "Paul" wrote:

Thanks, but what do mean by add a "CELL". I have approx 20 goldfish in size
from 3" to 6" and three KOI sizes from 3" to 8". ~ 1200 gallon pond, 9 gallon filter.

IMO. That filter isn't going to do it. You're going to be cleaning it all
the time and the bio-bugs are going to be washed away.

I have 1500 gallon pond(s) w/7 koi and about 20 baby koi 3-4" my filter is
150 gallons. Can be seen at website below. ~ jan


See my ponds and filter design:
www.jjspond.us

~Keep 'em Wet!~
Tri-Cities WA Zone 7a
To e-mail see website

"Paul" wrote in message
...
Thanks, but what do mean by add a "CELL". I have approx 20 goldfish in size
from 3" to 6" and three KOI sizes from 3" to 8".

Those goldfish will reproduce fairly rapidly and the koi will get very large in
a few years. In the next two years you will likely need a larger filter than
what you currently have made. What I mean by a cell is that you have a
rubbermaid box that you have converted to a biofilter. That is what I call a
cell. You can add another "cell" which will increase the capacity of the filter
by making another one and connecting it to the existing one or build a larger
one. But eventually, your load will become to high and you'll have to "cull the
herd".

"George" wrote in message
news:XrRje.25397$WG.8217@attbi_s22...

"Paul" wrote in message
...
Hi, was wondering if someone could tell me if I did the right thing here. I
built a Biofilter for my pond.It is 12X7X2. The one I built is 9gal.
basically a square Rubbermaid box. The pump (1200gph) pumps into the "top"
of box through an 18W UV light, then goes into filter through a 1 1/4" thick
Med. filter pad. It works its way down through the filter media. The media
is a combination of Bio Ceramic Barrels,Two bags of Lava Rocks crushed into
smaller sizes and regular Supra media, then finally exits out the bottom
into pond. Will this design keep water ok? Thanks..............

The efficiency of any biofilter depends mostly on the bioload in the pond. I
suspect that if your bioload is low to moderate, it should work well for you.
If it is high, you may want to attach an additional cell to the existing one.
Having said that, I wouldn't go through the trouble until you've let this one
run long enough to see if it is going to handle the load. If it does, then
you're done. If not, think about adding another cell. The wonderful thing
about biofilters if they are constructed properly is that you can always add
more cells to the flow (if you have the room).

"Gale Pearce" wrote in message
...


Hi, was wondering if someone could tell me if I did the right thing here.
I
built a Biofilter for my pond.It is 12X7X2. The one I built is 9gal.
basically a square Rubbermaid box. The pump (1200gph) pumps into the "top"
of box through an 18W UV light, then goes into filter through a 1 1/4"
thick
Med. filter pad. It works its way down through the filter media. The media
Hi Paul - IMHO, you have the right idea , but the filter is a bit small and
will need cleaning more often than I would like - My pond is close to the
same size as yours with ~ 40 fish , but I use a 45 gal barrel with a 1200
gal pump (upflow design) and I need to "backflush" it 2 - 3 times a season
when it loads up (no UV, but the UV only helps with algae bloom anyway and I
never have it when my filter is running) Also 1200 gal/hr is a lot for a 9
gal filter to work properly. You will know how it works when you test the
water, or to be safer go to a larger container and add media to it as you
need it (or get tired of cleaning it so often)
Gale :~)

Hi Gale:

If you install a pre-filter in front of your main filter, you won't have to
flush the filter at all or at least only ocassionaly (which is even better,
because the microbes in the main filter will remain undisturbed, will grow more
profusely in the filter media, and will clean the water more efficiently). Then
every time you notice that your water flow out of the main filter is retarded a
little (usually about every 3-4 weeks on average), simply pull the pre-filter
out and clean it Here is a link to a page which describes my filter set up
(which is similar to yours in function), and shows the details of the
pre-filter. The trick is to prevent detritis from building up in the main
filter, and only allow pre-filtered water to flow through the main filter. That
way, you are reducing the nutrient load to a level the main filter can quickly
digest, and won't suck up particles into it that cause it to clog.

http://home.insightbb.com/~jryates/filter.htm

Scroll down until you see the pre-filter. I use a commercial pre-filter, but
you can easily make your own.

Enjoy.

George

every time you notice that your water flow out of the main filter is
retarded a
little (usually about every 3-4 weeks on average), simply pull the
pre-filter
out and clean it Here is a link to a page which describes my filter set
up
(which is similar to yours in function), and shows the details of the
pre-filter. The trick is to prevent detritis from building up in the main
filter, and only allow pre-filtered water to flow through the main filter.
That
way, you are reducing the nutrient load to a level the main filter can
quickly
digest, and won't suck up particles into it that cause it to clog.

http://home.insightbb.com/~jryates/filter.htm

Scroll down until you see the pre-filter. I use a commercial pre-filter,
but
you can easily make your own.

Hi George - I find it interesting you have your converted pool filter
submerged in your pond, I had always assumed they would be used as an
out-of-pond filter
Right now I have my pump in a 1/4" mesh basket to hold back the leaves
etc, but I still have to pull the pump every 3 - 4 weeks to keep the intake
clean of the smaller vegetation pieces. I intend to put in a Savio skimmer
which will do what your prefilter does as well as skim the surface of the
pond and keep the pond floor cleaner
Gale :~)

Thanks George, i understand now. I think i will have to make another.
"George" wrote in message
news:gvUje.26827$796.6441@attbi_s21...

"Paul" wrote in message
...
Thanks, but what do mean by add a "CELL". I have approx 20 goldfish in
size from 3" to 6" and three KOI sizes from 3" to 8".

Those goldfish will reproduce fairly rapidly and the koi will get very
large in a few years. In the next two years you will likely need a larger
filter than what you currently have made. What I mean by a cell is that
you have a rubbermaid box that you have converted to a biofilter. That is
what I call a cell. You can add another "cell" which will increase the
capacity of the filter by making another one and connecting it to the
existing one or build a larger one. But eventually, your load will become
to high and you'll have to "cull the herd".

"George" wrote in message
news:XrRje.25397$WG.8217@attbi_s22...

"Paul" wrote in message
...
Hi, was wondering if someone could tell me if I did the right thing
here. I built a Biofilter for my pond.It is 12X7X2. The one I built is
9gal. basically a square Rubbermaid box. The pump (1200gph) pumps into
the "top" of box through an 18W UV light, then goes into filter through
a 1 1/4" thick Med. filter pad. It works its way down through the
filter media. The media is a combination of Bio Ceramic Barrels,Two
bags of Lava Rocks crushed into smaller sizes and regular Supra media,
then finally exits out the bottom into pond. Will this design keep
water ok? Thanks..............

The efficiency of any biofilter depends mostly on the bioload in the
pond. I suspect that if your bioload is low to moderate, it should work
well for you. If it is high, you may want to attach an additional cell
to the existing one. Having said that, I wouldn't go through the trouble
until you've let this one run long enough to see if it is going to
handle the load. If it does, then you're done. If not, think about
adding another cell. The wonderful thing about biofilters if they are
constructed properly is that you can always add more cells to the flow
(if you have the room).

Thanks. I've been reading and a lot of articles say not to clean them
anymore than you have to.Does that make sense?
"Gale Pearce" wrote in message
...


Hi, was wondering if someone could tell me if I did the right thing here.
I
built a Biofilter for my pond.It is 12X7X2. The one I built is 9gal.
basically a square Rubbermaid box. The pump (1200gph) pumps into the
"top"
of box through an 18W UV light, then goes into filter through a 1 1/4"
thick
Med. filter pad. It works its way down through the filter media. The
media
Hi Paul - IMHO, you have the right idea , but the filter is a bit small
and
will need cleaning more often than I would like - My pond is close to the
same size as yours with ~ 40 fish , but I use a 45 gal barrel with a 1200
gal pump (upflow design) and I need to "backflush" it 2 - 3 times a season
when it loads up (no UV, but the UV only helps with algae bloom anyway and
I
never have it when my filter is running) Also 1200 gal/hr is a lot for a 9
gal filter to work properly. You will know how it works when you test the
water, or to be safer go to a larger container and add media to it as you
need it (or get tired of cleaning it so often)
Gale :~)

"Paul" wrote in message
...
Thanks. I've been reading and a lot of articles say not to clean them
anymore than you have to.Does that make sense?

Yeah, you need the bacteria build-up in the filter to balance your pond
water biologically - once that is achieved you will have clear water as the
algae bloom has nothing to live on and starves. Ergo when you clean the
media in your filter, you temporarily slow down the biological action in
your filter. I use scotch brite type pads (5 cu ft in a 45 gal barrel) and I
use chlorinated tap water to back flush during the season and to clean the
media for winter storage and have never had a problem even though you keep
reading you can't use tap water for this. I think it is because the pads are
fairly dense and you can't get them completely clean and they get back up to
speed quickly
Gale :~)

You use these pads and and cut them to however size you want and this is
your bio-media? Good idea.
"Gale Pearce" wrote in message
...

"Paul" wrote in message
...
Thanks. I've been reading and a lot of articles say not to clean them
anymore than you have to.Does that make sense?

Yeah, you need the bacteria build-up in the filter to balance your pond
water biologically - once that is achieved you will have clear water as
the
algae bloom has nothing to live on and starves. Ergo when you clean the
media in your filter, you temporarily slow down the biological action in
your filter. I use scotch brite type pads (5 cu ft in a 45 gal barrel) and
I
use chlorinated tap water to back flush during the season and to clean the
media for winter storage and have never had a problem even though you keep
reading you can't use tap water for this. I think it is because the pads
are
fairly dense and you can't get them completely clean and they get back up
to
speed quickly
Gale :~)

"Gale Pearce" wrote in message
...

every time you notice that your water flow out of the main filter is
retarded a
little (usually about every 3-4 weeks on average), simply pull the
pre-filter
out and clean it Here is a link to a page which describes my filter set
up
(which is similar to yours in function), and shows the details of the
pre-filter. The trick is to prevent detritis from building up in the main
filter, and only allow pre-filtered water to flow through the main filter.
That
way, you are reducing the nutrient load to a level the main filter can
quickly
digest, and won't suck up particles into it that cause it to clog.

http://home.insightbb.com/~jryates/filter.htm

Scroll down until you see the pre-filter. I use a commercial pre-filter,
but
you can easily make your own.

Hi George - I find it interesting you have your converted pool filter
submerged in your pond, I had always assumed they would be used as an
out-of-pond filter

It was either that, or redesign the whole thing. Not an option for me because I
don't like the idea of puncturing my liner to run a hose/pipe through it to the
filter. And with the rocks around it, it provides a haven for other critters,
especially fry. And since it really doesn't matter if the filter is in the pond
or outside of it from a filtration standpoint, it was the easier solution.

You use these pads and and cut them to however size you want and this is
your bio-media? Good idea.

Hi Paul - www.grassrootsnursery.com in Michigan sells the pads in 1 cu ft
bags for about $18 - this would be cheaper than buying them in a store
Gale :~)

I don't get this. You see on the shelves in the stores these small boxes
that are capable of filtering a 1,000 gal. pond and people are telling me i
have to build a 50 gal. filter to do the same job. I'm
confused................................
"Gale Pearce" wrote in message
...

You use these pads and and cut them to however size you want and this is
your bio-media? Good idea.

Hi Paul - www.grassrootsnursery.com in Michigan sells the pads in 1 cu ft
bags for about $18 - this would be cheaper than buying them in a store
Gale :~)