FILTER SOCKS - do you need them, alternatives and the great debate

[Arego]

Used to, since I widened my return to 1.25" my sump waterline rose an inch. The flow is so fast a sock can overfill in 24hrs and I'm not even going to try to keep up.

Granted I can go for higher micron, this is giving me an excuse to try no socks for 2-3 months so I can get an idea if it was ever doing anything in the first place for me.

 

[jsker]

Sign me up Can I get a subscription?

The socks are simple to make, one just need a sewing machine to make the sock quickly. Sockclub subscription hmmmm interesting

Just come down in November when I sew the next batch, we could knock out a couple hundred in 5 hours.

 

[a.t.t.r]

I try not to run any mechanical filtration beyond coarse sponges that allow lots of bypass. I like things to actually live in my water.

 

[damsels are not mean]

seems convenient, but single use and micro plastics blah blah blah

the irony of single use plastics that end up trashing the ocean as a way to keep a fish tank clear

 

[Tenecor Aquariums]

seems convenient, but single use and micro plastics blah blah blah

Not wanting to be the green police. This entire hobby is predicated on appreciating the ocean and its splendor. I have been in this hobby /business longer than some of you have been walking on this earth. Back in the day excavators and back hoes in South East Asia would break up live rock. Live corals would be chain sawed at low tide and kids on skiffs would dive with bottles of bleach into coral reefs to stun fish and scoop them up. This is why you can't buy corals anymore and "fragging" is a thing. The hobby has come a long way. Respect this planet. Yes, every little bit makes a difference.

 

[MyTankSux]

Not wanting to be the green police. This entire hobby is predicated on appreciating the ocean and its splendor. I have been in this hobby /business longer than some of you have been walking on this earth. Back in the day excavators and back hoes in South East Asia would break up live rock. Live corals would be chain sawed at low tide and kids on skiffs would dive with bottles of bleach into coral reefs to stun fish and scoop them up. This is why you can't buy corals anymore and "fragging" is a thing. The hobby has come a long way. Respect this planet. Yes, every little bit makes a difference.

I try my best to make my reefing about as eco-friendly as possible. I spend massive amounts on high end equipment (do this for most things) for the added reliability and electrical savings. Don't have to *purchase equipment and livestock multiple times. Spend less money on livestock dying due to inadequate conditions. Both prevent extra shipping (unnecessary use of fuel).

 

[Tenecor Aquariums]

I try my best to make my reefing about as eco-friendly as possible. I spend massive amounts on high end equipment (do this for most things) for the added reliability and electrical savings. Don't have to equipment and livestock multiple times. Spend less money on livestock dying due to inadequate conditions. Both prevent extra shipping (unnecessary use of fuel).

One earth. It's all we gots.

 

[Kuzurí]

When I first set up my Reefer 170 (just over 2 years ago now), I installed everything that it came with, this included a filter sock. Coming from the freshwater side of the hobby, I figured I would rinse it out every so often. As it turns out, I completely forgot about it until I watched a BRS video talking about how you should change them out every 3 days. At this point the setup was 1 year old and I didn't even remove the sock once up to this point. No nitrate issues (around 5ppm), despite hearing what I was creating was a "Nitrate factory". So I immediately removed it, to never install one again since I knew I could not keep up with replacing every 3 days. I 3-d printed an insert where the sock goes to prevent any noise, though I didn't really notice any, I figured it couldn't hurt.

As a result, my Nitrates spiked to around 80 within 2 months. Everyone was doing fine (fish and soft corals), so was patient with reducing Nitrates. So many water changes and skimmer tuning to no avail, the skimmer was stuck in the "boiling water" phase. I setup a refugium, but have struggled to get that going.

Fast forward to about 3 weeks ago and I started dosing NOPOX. Brought my Nitrates from 30 down to 3 (now I need to raise them, who would have figured haha). Skimmer looks great and smells terrible, so I know it's working.

TL;DR, I'll never use filter socks, since I won't keep up with replacing/cleaning every 3 days. I'll let the skimmer do its job and hope my refugium starts to pull its own weight soon.

 

[Tankkeepers]

Needed mabey but

Not as long as your removing what the sock would remove some other way

As that's what really matter removal of waste before it builds up and becomes toxic

 

[atoll]

Haven't used any kind of prefiltration for years, found I don't need it and in fact its probably does more harm than good.

 

[xxxenmsy]

我有顶部带有牙线的红海过滤杯。我的水族馆甚至不是红海，但我想它们的尺寸相当标准。超级容易。我只是用钳子抓住牙线，每隔几天更换一次。

• What does it look like? Can I take a picture

 

[homer1475]

I tried many years ago to run without socks. Hated all the fine particles floating in the water.

I have gone back to socks, and don't think I would ever run a tank without them.

 

[youcallmenny1]

I've given up trying not to run socks/filter roller. I reinstalled a Large Bubble Magus roller because the nutrients were spiking without this type of filtration. Way too much detritus floating around.

 

[Drewbacca]

Yes, filter socks help. And yes, I absolutely hate them. They're a hassle to change, a pain to clean and I've been looking into fleece rollers for the past few months.

The problem with my scenario isn't what I gain - but what I give up. I lose a gravity-fed ATO and have to permanently remove the filter sock/media holders. I also end up with a small unusable section of my sump where the overflows currently empty.

I had nothing for a while... but recently I've been using the mesh socks... they are Way easier to clean.. and dont have to mess with bleach or drying.. and it hasnt been tested yet but im sure they dont hold/catch quite as much.. BUT thats exactly what i want so the Visable stuff is caught and stopping detritus...but hoping a lil more micro stuff is going through to feed the chaeto & skimmer.

 

[Drewbacca]

I tried many years ago to run without socks. Hated all the fine particles floating in the water.

I have gone back to socks, and don't think I would ever run a tank without them.

Check out my reply next post down... been liking mesh so far.

 

[BanjoBandito]

STILL NO SOCKS, I AM ANTI-SOCKS. CHANGE MY MIND.

 

[ReefGeezer]

STILL NO SOCKS, I AM ANTI-SOCKS. CHANGE MY MIND.

Kinda like being anti-hammer and not having one in the tool bag.

 

[BanjoBandito]

Kinda like being anti-hammer and not having one in the tool bag.

In this hobby I just pound the nails in with my forehead. lol.

 

[ReefGeezer]

In this hobby I just pound the nails in with my forehead. lol.

Yep... lot's of forehead pounders in reefing. I have a few scars. LOL - I learned my lesson long ago though. I don't exclude tools that make my job easier... and certainly not those that keep my forehead pretty.

 

[PeterC99]

STILL NO SOCKS, I AM ANTI-SOCKS. CHANGE MY MIND.

You just answered your own question!!!