How to clean old filter socks?

[clevername]

Felt or mesh- soak them in a bucket with a capful of bleach. When I have enough, Wash them in the washing machine with a cap full of bleach and a double rinse.

this is exactly what i do. Let them stackup in the bucket till i need to wash all of them.

 

[macksalazar]

I rinse them with the hose inside and out then when I get a bunch of them I wash them in the washing machine with bleach, then air dry. Then I soak them in a bucket of rodi water and prime then air dry again.

 

[MondoBongo]

Sorry, but I disagree. Using a dilute bleach solution for ten to sixty minutes will kill bacteria, viruses, fungi, and algae. The physical act of agitation, either by hand in a bucket or in a washing machine, will remove dirt.

from what i understand, bleach is also an oxidizer, so that should help break things down and aid their removal through physical agitation, right?

a big part of why i go the bleach route is to get the stank out, so my house isn't smelling like crusty old reef tank when i change my filter socks. but they do appear cleaner, not just color wise, after bleach and manual agitation in a bucket/vigorous rinse, than when i just rinse without the bleach soak.

 

[Mussin]

So are filter socks a thing of the past?

 

[Zalick]

So are filter socks a thing of the past?

I use them when I blast my rocks/clean the tank. And for some extra water polishing if the water looks a little cloudy.

 

[Sk8r]

Bleach can be neutralized with Prime. Soap is a lot harder to get rid of.

 

[mav3rick478]

If you don't want to use bleach, vinegar also works decently enough. I turn my socks inside out, fill the detergent cup up with vinegar and use the hottest water setting. They come out very clean this way.

This right here. If you don't like bleach vinegar is a more natural detergent. I use vinegar to wash all our dog's blankets in hot water. No extra rinse needed. Plus it helps clean and disinfect the washing machine. I also use it to wash all our towels in hot water of course, gets rid of the bacteria that cause the wet smell and keeps them soft too.

Sent from my Pixel 4 XL using Tapatalk

 

[dadnjesse]

I put them over a piece of 2 1/2 inch Pvc pipe to hold them open and use the hose to wash them.