Show off your Filter Mods!

[nabokovfan87]

I could literally write some sort of an essay on how much I have had to mess with my HoBs to get them to function and "fix design issues".  I have always enjoyed this aspect of the hobby and I'd love to ask everyone about their setups. For reference below, I'll toss in a few pretty epic videos when it comes to filter setups.

Please feel free to post and share your filter setups here!
 

 

I'll have to grab some paper and sketch out a few mods I've done!

 

Edited May 8, 2022 by nabokovfan87

[Fish Folk]

Alrighty. Just made two videos showing a couple basic filters I employ.

2x HOB 75s for overstocked grow-out…

And here’s a small Powerhead + Sponge Filter mod I learned on the Forum here…

 

[nabokovfan87]

This is the most recent one for me.  Replacing damaged sponge off the Ziss Bubble Bio Moving Bed Filter and adding a fine filter foam to help keep the media chamber / air chamber from filling with gunk.

Another way to perform this is to use actual fine pad cut into a circle and only the black foam (bumpy side down)

This is the original, replacing it because it's tearing on both sides right in the middle.

This is the new one, bumpy foam, stacked with bumpy side facing each other so it fits in the filter.

Edit: More mods to the ziss.  Trying to buffer my water without adding it to the substrate (black substrate)

https://forum.aquariumcoop.com/topic/23806-ziss-bubble-bio-crushed-coral/

Edited May 27, 2022 by nabokovfan87
fix store link

[RichNJ]

I have a Co-op med sponge filter in a 20L.  Any ideas on how to temporarily modify it to have a fine polish pad?  Trying to filter out some finer suspended organic material (probably decaying plant matter). 

 

[Katherine]

I think you can zip tie or rubber band a pad around the sponge.

[Patrick_G]

Probably not the answer you’re looking for but you could get a cheap HOB or underwater power filter from Amazon, fill it with floss and just run it until you’re detritus is cleared out. 
 

[nabokovfan87]

On 6/4/2022 at 11:11 AM, Katherine said:

I think you can zip tie or rubber band a pad around the sponge.

This is the one I've heard.

I don't see anything in the thread, but if you find something you have success with, be sure to post it here!

 

[Corbidorbidoodle]

I second a temporary water polishing filter. That's what I do. It's just a small internal filter, shaped kinda like a pint glass. I put a handful of pillow stuffing in there, and then the next day, when the water is clear, I remove the whole thing.

[RichNJ]

I went the internal filter route and it worked well.

 

On 6/28/2022 at 9:17 AM, RichNJ said:

Update…I used a Sicce Nano Micron internal filter ($20 on Amazon).  I didn’t use the provided sponge, but used some blue filter floss and a polishing pad (left over scraps). The tank looks better in two weeks, and much less floating particles.  I already rinse out the media too as it clogged up pretty fast. 

 

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

Marineland Penguin Biowheel 200 (sans biowheel) 🤣

Bunch of detritus was being washed back out in the tank. @nabokovfan87 helped me resolve the issue and this is the end result.

Inflow > seeded floss > water flow in back > new coarse sponge (gap under it) > new filter floss > seeded ceramic media (fully submerged) > coarse sponge in outflow to dampen sound (placed UNDER the lid).

Also the tops of sponges are above water level (except for those first seeded sponges at inflow- those are submerged). 
 

Works great, no more detritus piles.

 

Edited July 26, 2022 by Chick-In-Of-TheSea

[Patrick_G]

On 7/25/2022 at 6:21 PM, Chick-In-Of-TheSea said:

Works great, no more detritus piles.

Nice! It looks like a good solution. 

[nabokovfan87]

On 7/25/2022 at 6:21 PM, Chick-In-Of-TheSea said:

Works great, no more detritus piles.

The Aqueon Quietflow is literally the same exact thing but the pump is on the opposite side!
Marineland Penguin filters are also the same exact way and you can mod them the exact same method.
Tetra HoBs as well flow in this pattern and have this same general setup.
 

Hopefully if anyone is trying to figure out how to mod one of those, they can easily do it now with confidence!

 

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

On 7/25/2022 at 11:49 PM, nabokovfan87 said:

The Aqueon Quietflow is literally the same exact thing but the pump is on the opposite side!
Marineland Penguin filters are also the same exact way and you can mod them the exact same method.
Tetra HoBs as well flow in this pattern and have this same general setup.
 

Hopefully if anyone is trying to figure out how to mod one of those, they can easily do it now with confidence!

 

@nabokovfan87 you are like a filter encyclopedia.  😆  Does your employment relate to anything mechanical, bychance?  Seems you love tinkering.  My dad & brother are the same way. They go "curb-shopping" in the neighborhood and find vaccum cleaners, paper shredders, air compressors, or whatever people are throwing away - and they fix them up!

[nabokovfan87]

On 7/26/2022 at 5:45 AM, Chick-In-Of-TheSea said:

Does your employment relate to anything mechanical, bychance?

I used to work in aerospace, airplane seats.  Went to college for computer engineering.  Filters were "easy" for me to understand in terms of just how to fix them. 🙂

On 7/26/2022 at 5:45 AM, Chick-In-Of-TheSea said:

My dad & brother are the same way. They go "curb-shopping" in the neighborhood and find vaccum cleaners, paper shredders, air compressors, or whatever people are throwing away - and they fix them up!

That's awesome.  Recycling at it's finest!

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

Baffle from Galaxy Glow Studios (Etsy) and my mod to it. Made for a dropped waterline.

 

[TeeJay]

You already know what my mods are. I learned from the best. And I have to say it was very simple and only took less than 2 hours from taking it off the tank. Cutting and filling in all the holes.

 

[nabokovfan87]

On 9/4/2022 at 2:56 PM, TeeJay said:

You already know what my mods are. I learned from the best. And I have to say it was very simple and only took less than 2 hours from taking it off the tank. Cutting and filling in all the holes.

Updates on mine, I'll have to toss in the thread, but.... Yeah! The worst part is just waiting for the silicone to dry.

[nabokovfan87]

Aqueon Quietflow Setup Options:

 

[nabokovfan87]

Also fits on the aqueon quitflow.  Remove the maintenance indicator, use it to add a plant to your HoB.

[nabokovfan87]

If you have any of these or the Marina/fluval hang on breeder boxes, Mark drills a hole in his to open up the intake and stop things from clogging due to the design issue. Very, very good idea, but please don't use your hands to hold parts and drill them. Use something a bit more secure and keep your hands out of the path of injury!

If you have a small file, that works too!

 

[nabokovfan87]

This is for the NEW Marineland series of filters.  Tag @TeeJay because I do believe he has one setup as well.

This is how I would set mine up! 

Step 1: I would have TWO of these prefilters designed for the system.  Mechanical filtration DONE
Step 2:  Remove the Cartridges that come preinstalled, you can use them as a spacer
Step 3:  Add in a bag of ceramic media where the cartridges were installed previously.

[TeeJay]

I bought the pre filter designed for it but didn't like how it works so I put a co op pre filter sponge on it and took the cartridges out and put in a piece of my own green medium sponge. If fills the compartment completely up 

[TOtrees]

I LOVE filter mod threads.

My three fave mods at this time are:

1. dual sponge filter: replace the fine round sponges with larger coarse sponge blocks. great flow, less clogging. extra tip: be sure to set the top of the main tube elbow close to the waterline, for best water movement. (forgive the water quality, I had just added some golden pearls).

2a. AC HOB: use 1/2" CPVC or pex tubing and a pair of 90 deg elbows to create a longer uplift tube, where the ACO prefilter sponge sits on the original AC uplift screen (the slotted conical part), but it points UP instead of DOWN, so you can just lift the prefilter off the tube. Bonus, see how the pex tube matches the size of the fluval tube, just below the waterline? 

2b. If you use AC HOB on a rimless tank, crazy glue some sort of spacer to the inside underneath of rim gap, so that the filter sits closer to the tank. This leaves better space for the uplift tube, esp if you use a prefilter, and extra esp if you use a larger prefilter like the ACO ones. See the white blocks under the outflow in the pic? Just a couple pieces of corrugated plastic to shift the position of the filter farther forward. 

[nabokovfan87]

On 6/16/2023 at 2:02 PM, TOtrees said:

2b. If you use AC HOB on a rimless tank, crazy glue some sort of spacer to the inside underneath of rim gap, so that the filter sits closer to the tank. This leaves better space for the uplift tube, esp if you use a prefilter, and extra esp if you use a larger prefilter like the ACO ones. See the white blocks under the outflow in the pic? Just a couple pieces of corrugated plastic to shift the position of the filter farther forward. 

I LOVE the way the tidal has this adjustment with the plastic screw. Works so well and secure.

[Chick-In-Of-TheSea]

This video is old but I still think it’s really cool.

Sera sells something like this called a prefilter reactor. They can be daisy chained as well.

Edited June 17, 2023 by Chick-In-Of-TheSea