Filter Sock

[pgaschulz]

Okay explain the filter sock to me....I mean is it just a white sock or a special sock you buy?

Thank You,
pga

 

[doubletap4311]

special 200 micron bag

 

[shaginwagon13]

Re: Filter Sock

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11750332#post11750332 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by pgaschulz
[B....I mean is it just a white sock....[/B]

I think there was someone that posted here last week or the week before about how they used an actual sock instead of buying the proper ones at the LFS because he didn't know any better

 

[kraash]

filter socks are made of a special material, they really help with polishing your water and killing micro bubbles. They also need to be changed out very often or they can act as a nitrate sponge. I change mine every 3 days, turn them inside out and run 1 washing machine cycle with a 1/2 cup of bleach, and then 2 rinse cycles of just cold water, air dry and they are good to be changed out with the dirty ones.

 

[pgaschulz]

so they can last a while, on my sump i can put a pad on top before the water trickels down....will this do the same?

 

[Larah]

Yes someone posted a photo of a santa clause christmas sock that they used! It was sooo cute!

 

[sundancer]

And an athletic sock for added insurance!

 

[lewismw]

I would recommend not using a filter sock. They just capture suspended organics and hold them in the water column. You are better off running carbon. What is the main reason you want to run a sock?

 

[wachuko]

Running a sock in mine keeps the water in the tank clear...

I clean it every weekend (I know, I know, it should be more often but I am too lazy to do it every three days...)...

 

[lewismw]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=11751054#post11751054 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by wachuko

I clean it every weekend (I know, I know, it should be more often

See thats just it, running GAC makes the water crystal clear and you dont have to constantly clean and change the media. Although there is some debate on how long to run carbon, it is quite a bit longer than a filter sock.

 

[uscharalph]

I can't see running my tank without a filter sock for the forseeable future. Someday that would be nice. It amazes me how much stuff is removed by it.

 

[Zoophile]

I'm using a filter sock at the moment because I've got some big hunks of dislodged hair algae floating around in my system. If I don't catch them, they're going to end up getting tangled in one of many pump impellers.

This is a new set-up (hence the algae) and my change over to RO water and a Phosban filter are doing a great job in starving off the bloom. I don't expect to run the sock after the algae is gone or I've got bigger problems than the sock will fix.

I change the sock every day because I don't want the free nitrates and PO4 reintroduced back into the tank. If socks aren't changed VERY frequently, this is certainly what would occur. I run GAC as well, but the sock is to catch chunks.