undergravel filter question

bunk97

bunk97

Member
I have a 30 gallon QT the undergravel filter plate is two peices is it important to have the same amount of flow for each side. I have a powerhead for pulling water but I read it is important that they have the same amount of flow but what if it is two seperate peices becasuse haveing two powerheads for a 30 gallon tank makes for a very strong current to much I was hopeing to have a powerhead for one side and a regular airline tubeing for the other side. Thank you for any help you may give.
humahuma
 
ocellaris_keeper

ocellaris_keeper

Active Member
for a QT tank the only thing you have to make sure of is the water parameters. A 30 gal is pretty small and I wouldn't worry.
Question: Is this really your Hospital tank are is this yoru display tank?
 
bunk97

bunk97

Member
no this is really my qt I was told to set up a tank the same as you would any other. I have two damsels in there now to cycle the tank. My question was can I have a powerhead on one side of the ugf and a regualr airline tubeing on the other. it is two seperate peices instead of one. I read some where that you have to have the same amount of water preasure comeing out of both sides but I am pretty sure it meant one that is connected (just one peice)
p.s. why would you ask me if it was really my qt
 
frogger

frogger

Member
alot of people think of a qt tank being around 10g's. I personally
have a 55g qt that I keep up and going for new creatures. I keep two small spotted/pattern8 puffers to keep the bio going. The only problem that I can see with a larger qt tank is that if you choose to medicate, it takes alot more medication. If you use hypo, no problem. It is also easier to lower and raise salinity and not shock them by raising too fast. Some prefer to set up a qt tank only when needed (i.e. sick fish, new fish.) Mine is just a simple easy-maintenance addition to the bedroom thats soothing at night. I think the reason Bruce asked/said that is because it's not normal to have that big of a qt tank. I could be wrong though.
Good luck
mat
p.s. I'd get rid of the UGF. I had one and they get clogged. Bad parameters for a long time because of it. You should have seen the sludge when I removed the plate. I still have one plate left that I'm not to anxious to remove. The first one shocked the crew pretty good with a good spike. That was 2 months ago and one of my anenomes is still recovering (hopefully.) Now that my QT is healthy, I am going to transfer everything before I remove the last plate.
If it was my tank, I'd remove them now before the tank gets established so you have to go through what I did. However, I'm sure there are plenty members here that swear by UGF's. Never again though. Sorry for rambling and long post.
 
bunk97

bunk97

Member
thanks for your responses I appreciate you takeing the time to respond. I am considering your suggestion on takeing the ugf out of qt. the only thing is i have spent so much money on my other 2 55 gallons and lots of equipment that money is limited for my qt. I know it is as equally as important but my lfs has all ugf's in his store and has had them for 17 yrs his water paremeters are excellent. He has all kinds of filters and he said that the ugf is as good as anyone of his filters for sale. so i figured it would be sufficent for my ugf. what if i get a powerhead that has reverse flow on it. would that help get the sludge up from under the plate
thanks again
andrew
 
surfnturf

surfnturf

Member
I'm not going to say one word about UGF or no UGF here, just point something out. If you can't put a powerhead on each lift tube, then cap one of them off. If you put an airstone in one and a PH on the other, the PH will put water through the one with the airstone on it and pull bubbles under the plate. The bubbles will then get pulled into the PH making lots of tiny bubbles, good for a skimmer, not good in the tank. For a reverse flow or RUGF, you have to make sure the water is filtered well before being pushed under the plate, otherwise same problem.
 
mmslue79

mmslue79

Member
I personally would donate the UGF to goodwill, they might have a better use for it.... Dont mean to be harsh, UGF are just plain worthless.:cool:
 
surfnturf

surfnturf

Member
I have UGFs running on a wrought iron stand(over 6 mos.), where I can see underneath the plate, there is no sludge, zero. It all depends on how you use it. Water params are great!
 
col

col

Active Member
Hurray Surfnturf
I'm also using UGF in FO tank. I know the risks of UGF, but because of certain restraints I'm starting out with one and that's the end of the story. As soon as you post on any board with a problem people forget about the problem and start harping on about UGF.
I've even read a post somewhere about some expert saying Protein Skimmers are a waste of time - yessssssssssssssss!!!!!
Bunk97
If you only had one filter plate in place it would need the same amount of flow definitley. With 2 plates I'm not sure if it is the case - I would guess not.
Anyway for a QT I'm sure it's fine.
 
surfnturf

surfnturf

Member
Col,
One thing that makes a lot of sense to me, is to use the undergravel filter under 4-5 inches of fine sand until the tank has cycled, then remove the uplifts and cap it off, there you go Jaubert plenum.
 
frogger

frogger

Member
surf,
Not to be rude or anything, but have you looked at a UGF lately? UGF's have large slits (at least all of the ones I've seen) along them. UGF's are designed to have empty space beneath them so the PH can pull the water through the sand. The last thing you would want is fine sand that would fall through those slits and clog your uplift tube.
Like I said, not a flame. Just IMO and advice received, you need a large grain sand for an effective UGF (not supporting them though!) Who knows though, I could be wrong and received bum info. Wouldn't be the first time!
 
surfnturf

surfnturf

Member
I use a fabric over the filter plate before I put the sand in, no sand gets through and the fabric doesn't clog or break down. Some people even steal their wives nylons but I think you'd need a big wife to get nylons large enough:D If you go to the home improvement store, they sell a weed block material that is a polypropylene that has been needle punched. It works great. I soak it in hot water to remove any release agents or fungicides on the surface of the material before I use it in the tank. I have 7 tanks set up that way. BTW, you actually want a pretty small grain of sand, otherwise you will get detritus and sludge under the plate. I'm not suggesting that anyone try this on their tank, just telling you how it can be done. I does very good biofiltration, and keeps the water very clear, but don't do it.;)
 
surfnturf

surfnturf

Member
Well, that is optional Col. You can keep it as an undergravel filter, but there is a potential that you could have a problem when the power goes out and the filter goes anoxic (Hydrogen Sulfide). If you cap off the uplift tubes, then it functions as a DSB plenum system. It works very well in this instance, because the DSB populates with bacteria quicker and to a greater depth in the sand during the cycle. When you cap off the uplifts, those bacteria go to work in low oxygen areas of the sand bed to reduce nitrate. My point is that the UGF is very versatile, you can do a lot of different things with them, and it's erroneous to say that they are crap, you just have to be creative. I think using them with cc in a marine system is probably asking for trouble though. JMO
 
surfnturf

surfnturf

Member
Anyone reading this post, if you do this and all your fish die, your wife leaves you and your dog hates you, it's your own fault, I told you not to do it. Just saying that it can be done.;) :D
 
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