The heck with it, im going sockless!!

[najer]

My latest upgrade is 18 months old now, I have never run socks.
I have a large refugium and I run 2 socking oxydators, my water is always crystal clear.

 

[Fr4nkthet4nk]

You guys need to watch BRS episode on filter sock. This is the link

 

[Charles Weller]

Factory implies production, filter socks don't "produce" anything, they collect what's already in your system. Change em more frequently, plenty of folks have success with them. I always buy a few every time I order from BRS, usually wash up to 20+ at a time, makes using them much less of a pain only having to wash maybe once a month at most.

I do the same thing and change mine every 4 days.

 

[Cory]

Theres two kinds of particles. Dissolved particles you cant see and large particles you can see.

Filter socks remove the large particles. If you dont remove them they end up in the tank, usually in the sand or rocks or sump. Then they degrade into no3/po4.

Protein skimmers remove 35% max of dissolved organics, which the same as filter socks if not removed will contribute to po4/no3.

The important thing is how do you remove the large paricles without a filter sock? It will accumulate requiring more po4 remover to compensate.

 

[ReefTec]

Me too, I run a lifereef system and am happy cleaning out my foam pads occasionally.

 

[Cory]

Fwiw i dont use a sock either, but my ats traps most of the dirt and gets removed with it.

 

[neverenough]

My system has 2 sumps so im hoping that most just settles in the first one that just contains my skimmer, then I could just siphon it out every week when I do my water change. My biggest concern is a snail getting in my skimmer pump.

Wouldn't changing a sock once a week accomplish the same thing more efficiently? Whether its rotting in a sock or rotting in the sump its still in the system. If it sits in your sump and rots for a week, then you siphon, what are the chances you get 100% or will some be returned to the system once it is disturbed? I tried going sockless once but I was also running a phosban reactor. The floss in the reactor became the only form of mechanical filtration and clogged every 2-3 days. Much more difficult to change than a sock so I guess it all depends on your set-up and maintenance.

 

[mr.wilson]

Mechanical filtration is arguably the most important form of filtration in a reef tank, as it circumvents the nitrogen cycle that gives us undesirable residuals like nitrate and phosphate. Having said that, socks suck! They collect particulate organic carbon (POC) and pulverize it into dissolved organic carbon (DOC). Very little detritus is actually exported through filter socks, no matter how often or thoroughly one cleans them. Many people are using mesh bags to make cleaning easier than 100-200µ filter socks, but they Arte even worse for converting POC to DOC. I prefer a passive (drilled) bucket with large pore sponge lined around the inside of it.

Drain the display tank into the centre of the bucket and allow the water to passively flow through the sponge to exit via the holes along the walls of the bucket. Once the lower portion of the sponge gets plugged up, the water progresses to exit through the higher holes. Eventually, if left too long, the water overflows the bucket (safely within the sump).

The passive sponge method allows for collection of detritus (POC) without dissolution into DOC. When you clean out a sponge, it exports exponentially more detritus than any form of filter sock. The bucket itself acts and a settling chamber where detritus can naturally settle without being forced through filter material, a drip tray, or basket and subsequently pulverized into DOC.

 

[Syntax1235]

Agreed. Socks suck. I don't use them. I keep a small cleanup crew in my sump to deal with detritus and vacuum it once a year. Nutrients run low in my system, filter socks would remove nutrients that my acros appreciate.

 

[N1Husker]

I use the nylon filter socks. The felt one clogged up too fast. I have 10 of them and when I have used 9 of them, I rinse them out and then throw them in the washer on a quick wash, no soap and do an extra rinse. Then I let them air dry. They work much better than the felt socks.

 

[mr.wilson]

You guys need to watch BRS episode on filter sock. This is the link

Approximately 80% of Nitrifying bacteria in a marine aquarium is found in detritus, rather than a filter media site. That means that frequent filter sock cleaning in the test limited biological filtration to a certain extent. It's hard to say if the lower nitrate is due to a reduction in organic matter (to be assimilated into nitrate), or if the nitrification process itself was retarded by frequent die off on nitrifying bacteria. Nitrifying bacteria develops in layers of biofilm, so it requires a somewhat stable environment in order to fully mature. Either way, nutrient export is important, and best carried out as early on in the process as possible while it is still in particulate form.

 

[mr.wilson]

Agreed. Socks suck. I don't use them. I keep a small cleanup crew in my sump to deal with detritus and vacuum it once a year. Nutrients run low in my system, filter socks would remove nutrients that my acros appreciate.

Good point. I use the giant green starfish (that eat fish) in the sump. Basically any non-reef safe invert is an efficient nutrient assimilator for the sump.

 

[BigJohnny]

Great video from brs, can't argue with those results

 

[Hammfamfish]

We started out with a cheap DIY trickle filter system with plastic pot scrubbers, carbon pads, quilting polyfill and skimmer. We eventually bought an Eshopps sump with the filter socks and also ran Marine Pure. We have since put the trickle filter back and run both but really hate having to deal with the filter socks so we are going to take out the Eshopps sump and go back to just our DIY that seemed to work better IMO. We use fairly thick layers of the polyfill and it does a good job catching a lot of the debris. If we need a little more help with clearing up the tank we take a water bottle, cut off the bottom, fill with loose polyfill and attach it to a pump and it is so much easier to throw away and just refill. This can be placed directly in the tank or in the sump.

 

[Kendrid]

I purposely clicked on this thread to post the BRS video. I was glad it was already posted and people are seeing it. While they are a pain to clean they do work.

 

[CodyRVA]

Well I can already see atleast one benefit, I fed my fish at 8 this morning, they are all still out actively picking particles out of the water column at noon!! In my mind all the extra time feeding is eliminating food that would have just been trapped in the sock for 4 or 5 days.

Sounds to me like you're over feeding...

 

[Mindi]

I ahve had my triple socked tank for only 4 weeks and already the need to clean them daily is deriving me nuts..! watching with interest

 

[gpwdr]

I have not used a sock in two years. The coral and filter feeders eat the suspended particles. The seven star serpents in the sump eat the detritus and the algae in the sump take care of the rest. Maybe every three months or so I siphon some detritus out of the sump.

 

[pelphrey]

Like someone else when I order from BRS I typically through a sock or two in my cart. I can go over a month on my sock stock. I actually have them in the washing machine now. It will be at least the middle of June before I have to wash them again. I take them out as needed and clean under the sink, then store until I need to wash them all.

It is worth mentioning that on my reefer 250 it has 2 socks. I run felt in the first sock and mesh in the second. Mesh I clean under the sink and replace, very simple. I would love to run sockless and I may try it at some point. I would hope my Nyos 120 skimmer and @SantaMonica RAIN2 will do the heavy lifting in the tank.

 

[Rjramos]

From my start in reef keeping in 1995, I have used and continue to use blue bonded pads. I cut pads to size and change them about 1x/wk. They definately collect detritus and get brown on the white side. Collecting everything including amphipods, copepods, mysis shrimp especially in their larval stage post refugium is not something I like. This is live Coral food I feel you take away when you run socks. I have never used micro Coral foods.