Filtration

About Filtration

External and Internal filters serve one purpose – to clean water; how they go about this is totally up to how they are setup and used; the three main uses of filters are:

Mechanical Filtration: The filter will be packed with filter floss to extract particles as suspended solids and act as a pre-filter reverse-flow system and trickle filters.  To achieve a good through-flow of water and extend media life, it is important to pack all materials fairly lightly.

Chemical Filtration: The filter should be packed with an absorptive medium such as activated carbon or specific removal resin.  This may act entirely independently or as a pre-filter to an ultraviolet sterilizer, in which case the packing should include some filter floss just before the water return.

Biological Filtration: The filter should be packed with a porous material that is also fairly coarse and allows a good water flow.  If flow is restricted in any way, the bacteria will begin to die.  Encase the biological media in a nylon bag to prevent it being drawn into the pump motor impeller. As this type of filter must be disturbed as little as possible, it is no advisable to mix it with other media that require regular attention, such as filter floss.