Pre filter (who does?)

[miareefer]

As the thread title says ime curious to who uses a prefilter on there tanks some people believe it can lead to more problems then its worth. so whats your angle on the situation?.
as for me ime a BIG believer on the whole prefilter thing as i can only prove from the following pics i clean my pre filter matt once a week and ime always astonished at the amount off stuff thats collected in the matt some people tend to think it can add a possible higher level off nitrates the pics shown are taken over a week .

[miareefer]

dirty matt

[Poseidon]

I don't use 1 myself. But I do use Quick Clear filters every once in a while to "POLISH" the water...

Mike

[zhenya]

As the thread title says ime curious to who uses a prefilter on there tanks some people believe it can lead to more problems then its worth. so whats your angle on the situation?.
as for me ime a BIG believer on the whole prefilter thing as i can only prove from the following pics i clean my pre filter matt once a week and ime always astonished at the amount off stuff thats collected in the matt some people tend to think it can add a possible higher level off nitrates the pics shown are taken over a week .

There is nothing wrong in using prefilters providing that you clean/replace it often.If not they most likely will lead to more trouble then they are worth,elevated NO3 levels being one of them. Like Mike,I use it occasianaly to polish water,especially after my maroon clownfish desides to fan the sand to no end Argh,what a PITA those clowns can be sometimes

[Elmo18]

I use it occasianaly to polish water,especially after my maroon clownfish desides to fan the sand to no end Argh,what a PITA those clowns can be sometimes

Man oh man, i can't agree even more. My GSM clowns are a PITA sometimes At least they really aren't when they're near the anemone.. but sometimes i go up to the tank, and they will just (well the female) will go to the front acrylic and just swish like no end.

- Elmo

[Papa Doug]

As long as I run a sump, I will run filter wool. My drain pipes empty into a large tub, with a multitude of holes cut in the bottom side. Like mentioned, the amount of garbage that collects in there, is unreal. I change mine on a regular basis.

I have seen all the arguments about leaving it circulating or letting the skimmer remove it, but have seen neither happen regular in any of my tanks.

However, a lot of this can be alleviated by shutting down return pumps before feeding, but if your me, I forget to turn them back on. Many moons ago, my Tsunami wavemaker did that, but dont have it anymore.

When I run skimmerless and sumpless and run the scrubber from a pump in the capped overflows, I employ a large powerfilter, with the normal cartridge in them for assisting in cleaning. I have also ran that way, with a large beckett taking water direct from the tank and returning it to the other overflow. Seems to remove much more of the crap that way, but again, needs shutting down during feeding.