Reef Mat Vs MDF

[spearhead]

This is my 1st post so please be patient with my basic knowledge. I've been a fresh water aquarium hobbyist and I've been doing a lot of research and fact finding before diving into getting myself into a saltwater aquarium. I see Red Reef and other companies coming out with a reef mat which seems to work very well. However, Recirculating Aquaculture Systems (RAS) use a self cleaning mechanical drum filter instead in combination with other mechanical scrubbers that look more efficient and I wonder why it hasn't gained traction in the reefing community. Price wise perhaps it's higher in the beginning but long-term, it requires less maintenance. The only place I've seen a mechanical drum filter is with a German company called Tropic Marine. It's scalable too so I don't get why more hobbyists aren't buying into mechanical drum filters. Thoughts? Here's the video I found in Youtube of Tropic Marine.

 

[exnisstech]

Looks cool but there's a lot going on with the high pressure wash system and control unit. I would expect it to be out of the price range of most hobbiest if anyone even makes a unit small enough.

 

[spearhead]

They’re pricey. I saw a different brand for $2k but I don’t know if it’s rated for saltwater. Thanks

 

[BeanAnimal]

They are popular in ponds. I fiddled around with a few CAD designs and some concepts a long time ago and quickly decided that it was too much trouble. They may be viable on a larger system, but too much going on at small scale.

I think there is a thread somewhere with a larger discussion -- and a lot of pond examples.