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Dagwood Sandwich: Hot-Rodding the Jehmco Round Box Filter


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Hi all:


As I continue to work on my Six-Piece Nano-Ponds project, I wanted to try an alternative to the tried-and-true sponge filter: this 4" box filter from Jehmco:
 
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(non-affiliate link)
 
In the constant debate between sponge and box filters, the sponge filter usually wins for me, except for one big problem: that thing is a mess to clean, even using the baggie technique. So I thought I would see if I could get some nice layered sponge work going on in such a way as to make it easiest to clean and most efficient in polishing the water while I'm at it!
 
The Jehmco box filter consists of three pieces. Water flow goes from top to bottom, and then bubbles back up through a tube in the center.
 
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So, rather than think of mechanical media and bio media as two distinct phases in filtration, I'm thinking of it more along the lines of a "gradation". Coarse particles get filtered out and removed first, and the fewest bacteria grow there, because that's cleaned and/or changed more often. At the end, I would have the most bacteria and the finest particles. And all the layers in-between would be a progression from one to the other.
 
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If I layer things right, the plan is to never change most of the media!
 
So I went hunting on Amazon, and found this lovely pack of AquaNeat foam pads in various densities, designed for SunSun filters and others:
 
(non-affiliate link)
 
This selection provided me three pads of each kind, all for $13. It may seem like overkill, but I'm actually building SIX such filters, so it'll all get used!
 
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The pads are about 8-1/2" across, so I figured I could get 2-3 box filter pads from each one. I plan never to replace them.
 
The replaceable part comes from this blue and white floss, $7 from PetSmart (sometimes discounted), and I think I should be able to get somewhere around 20 pads from this one piece!
 
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The final type of pad I wanted to employ here was also a piece of filter foam from Aquarium Co-Op, because it's so very coarse and a good first layer:
 
 
After taking some measurements, I decided I needed four-inch circles, so I first cut a piece of cardboard to size, and I used that as a guide for cutting my pads.
 
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I punched each pad twice with a chopstick to make room for the filter tubes, and assembled my "Dagwood Sandwich" of a box filter!
 
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I ended up using TWO floss pads for the top, to help catch more detritus before it enters the pad assembly. Looks like the Aquarium Co-Op pad will catch a lot as well.
 
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One last bit of hot-rodding to do: The Jehmco Web site suggests that putting a real uplift tube on the filter will significantly increase the draw of water through it. So I purchased a 3-foot piece of 1/2" stiff tubing (also from Jehmco), cut it into six-inch lengths, and it fit quite snugly on my filter box:
 
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And that's it. I'm hoping that maintenance will pretty much consist of replacing the two floss pads, lightly rinsing the first couple layers of pads most often, rinsing the rest of the pads progressively less often.
 
One souped-up, turbo-charged, hot-rodded box filter ready to go!
 
I'll try to post a follow-up in coming months about how well this worked out.
 
Thanks for reading!
 
Bill
 
 
Edited by Bill Smith
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45 minutes ago, Faedother said:

Honestly, it looks like it would do a great job. What do you estimate the expected time will be between cleaning?

Depends on stocking and feeding levels, so it will vary for everyone. I would expect to need to clean/change the floss every "x" weeks, then maybe rinsing the next layer every "2x" weeks, then the next layer every "4x" weeks, etc...

But I will be probably making some form of light maintenance every week.

Edited by Bill Smith
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  • 4 weeks later...

Today I added another feature to improve on this filter: an elbow outlet with a duckbill nozzle:

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https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01N11DVZS
(non-affiliate link)

These particular nozzles fit the 1/2" tubing on the box filter perfectly, force-fit without glue:

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This tube and nozzle attachment pushes quite a bit of water, even with just the bubbles of the USB nano pump:

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Under the water, there's a nice long linear stream, as evidenced by the bubbles showing up several inches away:

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I think this nozzle helps increase the water pressure, giving it more power!

Edited by Bill Smith
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I've often thought of getting some of the box filters and using them in some of my tanks. I used them a lot when I kept fish back in the late 80s-early 90s and would just fill them with the poly fil from the craft department at Walmart, along with a handful of aquarium gravel to help weigh them down. They always worked well for me back then, and I'm sure with the reusable pads like what you used, they will work well and be easy to service. 

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I have a question that may seem daft. I’ve seen folks using elbow tubes at the top of air driven filters like this and sponge. I saw @Dean’s Fishroom use one on an under gravel I believe to get flow. Is there a good way to do this on the aquarium coop sponge filters? I’m sure a DIY could be done but since @Cory tested his stuff so much....I’m sure he has a way worked out....right? Or has anyone done it?

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28 minutes ago, Tre said:

I have a question that may seem daft. I’ve seen folks using elbow tubes at the top of air driven filters like this and sponge. I saw @Dean’s Fishroom use one on an under gravel I believe to get flow. Is there a good way to do this on the aquarium coop sponge filters? I’m sure a DIY could be done but since @Cory tested his stuff so much....I’m sure he has a way worked out....right? Or has anyone done it?

It's a good question, but I don't see any way this could be done with the sponge filters, because the air goes in through the same tube that the water comes out. The box filter uses separate tubes.

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11 hours ago, Tre said:

I have a question that may seem daft. I’ve seen folks using elbow tubes at the top of air driven filters like this and sponge. I saw @Dean’s Fishroom use one on an under gravel I believe to get flow. Is there a good way to do this on the aquarium coop sponge filters? I’m sure a DIY could be done but since @Cory  

20200829_083634.jpg.21a6610a7ca63ff73d6992b2043f78a7.jpg20200829_083640.jpg.7297c62c3d588c981beaaa9c7b5b8fae.jpg20200829_083634.jpg.21a6610a7ca63ff73d6992b2043f78a7.jpg20200829_083744.jpg.5f9a24c111c0f180616d936f94ade903.jpg

Top Fin (petsmart brand) undergravel filter upright tubes fit sponge filters like they were made for them @Tre

20200829_083643.jpg

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On 8/28/2020 at 5:52 PM, Tre said:

I have a question that may seem daft. I’ve seen folks using elbow tubes at the top of air driven filters like this and sponge. I saw @Dean’s Fishroom use one on an under gravel I believe to get flow. Is there a good way to do this on the aquarium coop sponge filters? I’m sure a DIY could be done but since @Cory tested his stuff so much....I’m sure he has a way worked out....right? Or has anyone done it?

As seen above and below in this thread it is possible to come up with a way to put an elbow at the top of the co-op sponge filter. The only point I'd like to make is that you should have a reason for doing so. A sponge filter or box filter set up in their normal configuration will most likely give you plenty of surface agitation for oxygen exchange to happen or to break up the bio-film that can develop. However, and this is my reason for doing so, if you want directional current and or surface current direction this is the reason that I would find a way to attach some form of elbow to the top of the lift tube and or extend the lift tube to the tanks surface and add an elbow.  Cory breeding, pleco breeding, keeping fish that like swift water like hillstream loaches, these are all reasons that come to mind. So I guess I'm saying, no need to modify the filters just to be modifying them, do so with a reason or outcome in mind.

 

Confession: I do modify just to be modifying all the time, far more failures that successes. My turning good aquarium products into fish junk box is immense, but those failed projects are never passed on. . . just the good ones.

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  • 1 month later...
Just now, Sigrahzul said:

How has this setup been working for you after a couple of months? My box filters are coming up for maintenance soon and thinking about giving this a shot versus using just filter floss. 

Working well, not really clogged. I'm behind in my maintenance due to the interest of bees in my ponds!

Will follow-up in the next day or so with any additional thoughts and what I discover in the layers of foam.

Bill

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3 minutes ago, Sigrahzul said:

How has this setup been working for you after a couple of months? My box filters are coming up for maintenance soon and thinking about giving this a shot versus using just filter floss. 

One thing I did decide to do differently: The top layer of floss was replaced with more layers of very coarse foam. It makes more sense since the floss is so fine.

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7 minutes ago, Bill Smith said:

Working well, not really clogged. I'm behind in my maintenance due to the interest of bees in my ponds!

Will follow-up in the next day or so with any additional thoughts and what I discover in the layers of foam.

Bill

Usually honey bee water collectors have little interest in stinging 🙂. Interestingly the role of water collecting is a genetic trait and these water collectors have no interest in collecting nectar or pollen. 

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7 minutes ago, Daniel said:

Usually honey bee water collectors have little interest in stinging 🙂. Interestingly the role of water collecting is a genetic trait and these water collectors have no interest in collecting nectar or pollen. 

They do divebomb me when I start clearing out duckweed. Which is expected: that's their landing pads!

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On 10/21/2020 at 11:54 AM, Sigrahzul said:

How has this setup been working for you after a couple of months? My box filters are coming up for maintenance soon and thinking about giving this a shot versus using just filter floss. 

So today I cleaned all the box filters in my nano-ponds, after about two months of neglect, and here are the conclusions I've come to:

1. Blue & white floss on the top was the wrong approach, as it catches everything first and prevents the lower pieces of foam to be as effective. An extra layer of coarse foam is a much better idea.

2. Cleaning takes 3-4 minutes. I simply disconnect the airline tube, pull the box out and drop it into a bucket of tank water. I squeeze out each of the foam discs, and reload the box.

3. The inlet vents have to be scrubbed with a toothbrush.

4. Probably double the work of cleaning a sponge filter, but FAR LESS MESSY. No detritus pollutes the tank.

5. A thin layer of extra-fine floss as the bottom layer would serve to help polish the water, but in a pond, I don't care so much.

6. The duckbill elbow outlets on top really are essential; they get some real current going.

All in all, I still like these better than a sponge filter, at least for ponds. In a tank, I really care about appearances, so I always use HOB filters.

Where the sponge filter shines above all others, for me, is that there is nothing better for seeding bacteria into other tanks.

Bill

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