In tank Trickle filter?

Ok, basically I wanted to keep the most of the lava rock exposed and to achieve this I needed a way to reduce the flow of the overflow so that the amount of water that comes in is not much more than that which is pumped out.

The design uses 1/2" square acrylic blocks that are adhered to the walls of the overflow enclosure. Then egg crate is used to make shelves that will support media and let the water flow through. Then there is a very primitave flow reduction device that is a 1/2" square block that has a notch cut into it and a "comb". The block is adhered to the side of the overflow with the notch facing up. Then the comb type piece which has cut outs to match the cutouts in the overflow is placed in the notch. The comb is moved back and forth so that slots in the comb align with the slots in the overflow. This is the full open position. The comb can be moved so that the slots in the overflow are partially covered, reducing the waterflow.

I had toyed with the idea of rigging a stand pipe so that the pump is eliminated and the desired water level could be achieved by adjusting the depth of the standpipe, but I don't think that there would be enough room in the overflow for the stand pipe and the media.



I know that this is more modification than most would want to do and it will probably never be used, but hey, it was fun designing it. Also as a side note, be careful with the amount of water you restrict, because if enough water can't get into the overflow it will run over the tank and get on the foor. It would likely not be too much due to the nature of the system, but it would be enough to ruin your day.

That looks like a more professional version of what i have going already lol, only major difference that i see is the lava rock is not coming into contact with the pump, the floss still has it's ledge just not eggcrate underneath it. I want to try and avoid the siliconing, since i'd have to drain a good chunk of the tank and would have very little filtreration (170 gph) i'd like to avoid it if possible (I do have another 55 Gallon, but My Fahaka doesn't like company, well maybe he does, but the eaten fish won't. I have been thinking about changing some stuff for eggcrate, maybe if I put eggcrate under the floss, then on top of the pump? so the seperation still happens, but i dont have to silicon the stuff?

Also should i replumb the intake on the magnum 350? it's at the bottom of all of this, so it's filter already filtered water. I have a return drileld in the very middle bottom of the tank, but thats by sand, and my magnum is allergic to sand. maybe just have it suck in the intake that it came with (over the top type thing)?

Yeah, the changes are minor and the benefit is probably not worth the effort. You should only have to drain the tank to just below the overflow though?? Then siphon the existing water out of the overflow. It doesn't seem like it would be much water loss. I dunno. I was thinking that your overflow was probably acrylic and you could use solvent to join the pieces. Still takes time to cure though.

As for the magnum, I would route it over the tank with the intake close to the overflow so that the magnum can do some mechanical filtration before the water gets to the floss in the overflow. This would be especially beneifcial if you are using UGJ's. Another tip that I would reccommend is using a prefilter sponge over your magnum intake. this colects most of the solid waste before it can get to the canister. Mine clogs reducing the flow about once a week, but I do water changes weekly so it isn't a big deal to sqeeze out the sponge during the wc. Another benefit is that is gives the bacteria another place to hang out! Just dont rinse it in regular tap water and the bacteria will be fine. Oh, I almost forgot, don't use the fine celled foam, use the coarse stuff like is used for pond filters.