Are fleece rollers worth it?

[Gumbies R Us]

I have always had filter socks, but have been curious about owning a fleece roller. Are they worth the cost? Would you buy one again?

 

[MichaelReefer]

I went Fleece Roller and will never go back.... Replace the roll on my 150 every couple months. Made life 100x easier.

 

[cwerner]

They can be a bit finicky, but once they're dialed and plumbed properly I'm not sure there is a more effective mechanical filter for a fish tank.

 

[backbayreef]

Yes - I used to do socks & polyfilters but fleece roller is a game changer - never going back!

https://www.reef2reef.com/threads/backbayreef’s-450gal.1066683/post-14141362

 

[nautical_nathaniel]

My next tank will have an automatic fleece roller, 100%

I had a 3D printed manual roller that was also pretty useful but the fleece rolls were not a standard size and eventually became harder and harder to get, so I went back to a mesh filter sock.

 

[Blitheran]

I love my Clari Sea 3000. Set and forget.

 

[MegabiteOG]

Outside of the expense, everything about an automatic roller is 100% awesome if you’re looking for mechanical filtration.

 

[exnisstech]

Worth it to me but now I can't run mine because it doesn't fit the sump of my new tank so I'm going to give the nosoks a try. Rollers can strip the water so its good to keep an eye on levels for a while. When I first started mine I used to shut it off and let it overflow a few nights a week because N would bottom out. Eventually things settled down.
If it's in your budget and you don't mind spending money on fleece I wouldn't hesitate. I ran a reefmat and while I have no love for RS I love the reefmat and the app.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

What do you folks using them find they accomplish that would be different if you simply did not use one?

 

[backbayreef]

I have always had filter socks, but have been curious about owning a fleece roller. Are they worth the cost? Would you buy one again?

It's a "subscription model" to keep replacing those filter rolls. I went with https://preconfilter.com/ for custom made solutions, they are way cheaper and great customer service as well!

 

[backbayreef]

What do you folks using them find they accomplish that would be different if you simply did not use one?

My other tanks don't have socks/polyfilters/fleece rollers so it's annoying to see detritus floating around. The rest of the sump looks nasty and small reactor pumps would clogged due to detritus build-up.

 

[JonoH]

I swapped out socks to a fleece roller on my last tank upgrade...would never go back. I get 5-6 weeks out of one 30m roll.
Looking at how clear my water is, and how dirty the fleece is at the end of a roll, i'm not sure why you wouldnt run these...usless you had a very different sump set up I guess.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

My other tanks don't have socks/polyfilters/fleece rollers so it's annoying to see detritus floating around. The rest of the sump looks nasty and small reactor pumps would clogged due to detritus build-up.

I try to have particulates for filter feeders. How small of particles do these remove? Phytoplankton?

 

[Ryan - Serious Reefs]

What do you folks using them find they accomplish that would be different if you simply did not use one?

I use them on heavily stocked tanks that are fed multiple times a day. A large school of planktivorous fish or a clownfish harem would be the most common examples for me.

In those systems, the moment the filter roll runs out, nutrients skyrocket. I mean completely off the charts. When the fleece is working, it removes fish waste and uneaten food in real time, keeping nutrients stable.

Outside of those situations, I find roller filters to be extremely effective at starving my corals. :)

 

[BeanAnimal]

I have always had filter socks, but have been curious about owning a fleece roller. Are they worth the cost? Would you buy one again?

I can't speak with direct experience, as I have never owned a fleece roller.

I can't think of anything that would substantially differentiate them biologically from well maintained filter socks.

From that perspective I think the question comes to one of cost and maintenance. Consumables vs washing, etc.

I despised dealing with filter socks and would likely use a fleece roller if I ever decided to deploy mechanical filtration again.

 

[commod0re]

What do you folks using them find they accomplish that would be different if you simply did not use one?

I don’t like the maintenance interval for filter socks, it’s too short. Fleece roller eliminates sock squeezing entirely. On my previous tank a roll of fleece would last around 3 months and the only time I ever really had to touch it was when it needed a new roll. I want one for my current tank for the same reason

 

[backbayreef]

I try to have particulates for filter feeders. How small of particles do these remove? Phytoplankton?

Mine is 50 microns so I believe phytoplanktons are smaller (20’ish?) so should pass right through.

With huge angels & tangs, they eat & poop a lot so crap ended up in the rollers before getting picked up by the skimmer.