filter socks: Pros vs Cons

[gtbarsi]

How does this work? Put it in the washing machine?

Yes,

When H2O2 reacts it leaves behind water and oxygen, so there is no possible chemicals left on the sock that are toxic to your tank.
2 H
2O
2→ 2 H
2O+O
2

I guess you could also use it in a bucket soaking.

 

[bluewaterbruce]

Anyone using bleach to clean there socks try hydrogen peroxide, it is much safer and works well.

I agree with the peroxide. The bleach still leaves the junk in the fiber, its just white. The peroxide gets it out. I use 32 oz to 12 socks on the small load cycle in the washing machine. No bleach smell.

 

[bcfd144]

Yes. Keeps larger stuff out of my sump and tank. Also, since my skimmer is in the same changer my filter socks are in, its a back up to keep stuff from going into my skimmer pump.

 

[vetteguy53081]

It is the best and most effective entrapment I know of. Despite many complaints, I find EASY to clean.

 

[BoDiddley]

Yes, and I just started changing them out weekly. once a friend told me thats why my Nitrates were so high...waiting for them to overflow

 

[Adam10045]

Great info on the peroxide! I'll have to try that

 

[ritter6788]

No. I have enough to do without washing socks for my tank!

Seriously, I've used them before and didn't see any benefit to them on my tank.

 

[tyler1503]

What's the purpose of the washing machine and bleach? Isn't rinsing them in the sink with a good scrub going to clean them just as well?
Also, what does the bleach do? Besides make them nice and white

 

[billyhalloween]

Yes I do. I sew my own socks out of felt and I throw them in the trash after a few days. It probably costs me about 15 cents to make each one. I don't like the pain of cleaning them. I use filter socks so I don't have to clean my sump as often and they help m cut down on micro bubbles.

 

[valsterb]

I took mine out because i'm trying to sort out a phosphate problem. I would change mine every 3 days (could be the problem) and rinse out, soak in 6% hydrogen peroxide. Rinse again 3 days later and voila. Hydrogen peroxide is the way to go. No chorine. 6% is cheaper than 3%. It is used at beauty parlours for bleaching. I got mine through a pharmacy by the gallon, and used 4-8 oz (125-250ml) per gallon of agua (4L).

 

[mwminer]

I have 6 and helps keep big chunks out wash once every 2 weeks Pretty much have meat eaters not much for corals yet

 

[SPotter]

Yes. Because it pulls the detritus out of the water. Otherwise, where will it go except build up?

People that say that they are Nitrate factories are full of Bologna.

using filter sock will catch all the detrius and make your water cleaner, but have to wash the sock often. i wash my every 3 day + bleach every 14 day

I know some people who don't use any kind of sock or pad for filtering and rely on the skimmer. I just can even begin to think that's a good idea. They see it as more food for the corals. I see it as a bunch of wast settling behind and in rocks causing problems down the road. I feed my corals enough to not have to worry about them relying on fish poop and detritus. The less junk floating around, the better.

So you are saying that if I use filter socks I won't have any detritus settle in my tank because all detritus makes it down the overflow and into the sump????? I stopped using filter socks a long time ago and actually noticed less build up in my sump and better output from my skimmer.

 

[DeadheadSC]

This post is great advice. Use hot water!

 

[DeadheadSC]

I agree with the peroxide. The bleach still leaves the junk in the fiber, its just white. The peroxide gets it out. I use 32 oz to 12 socks on the small load cycle in the washing machine. No bleach smell.

Sorry, first post here. Great advice! Hot water!

 

[TJ's Reef]

I only use them occasionally when I do my tank maintenance to capture particulate matter. I also use them every 4-6 months when I clean/blow out my overflow boxes with a Turkey Baster to collect any gunk that has accumulated in them. I have noticed that since setting up 'Herbie Style' overflows that this is where most of the detritus ends up now.

Cheers, Todd

 

[JMLewis]

So you are saying that if I use filter socks I won't have any detritus settle in my tank because all detritus makes it down the overflow and into the sump?????

Of course all the detritus doesn't go into the overflow but when you blow off your rocks with a turkey baster at least it gives you a media to catch it. I used socks but got sick of changing them every few days but have since gone back.

All the settled detritus in the sump is much worse for the tank than what's in the sock. And I doubt you clean the detritus out of your sump twice a week...

 

[JMSKI333]

So you are saying that if I use filter socks I won't have any detritus settle in my tank because all detritus makes it down the overflow and into the sump????? I stopped using filter socks a long time ago and actually noticed less build up in my sump and better output from my skimmer.

If you don't have filter socks, where is that detritus going? Unless you blow off your rocks, vacuum your sand bed and vacuum your sump every week then there is detritus building up in your tank somewhere.

When I installed the socks, I cleaned out all the detritus out of my sump. It has been about a year and the sump is still detritus free. When I do a water change, I blow off some rocks and stir up a section of sand. As a result, all of this detritus goes into the water column with a majority of it going into my over flow. From there is goes into my filter sock and removed from my tank.

Unless I am testing wrong, my Nitrates are coming back as 0 and Phosphates at 0.02-0.04. I feel that filter socks and water changes help out a lot with that.

 

[ritter6788]

I'll bet all you filter sock users have sandbeds too!

Lol j/k

:behindsofa:

 

[gtbarsi]

Even if you blow off your rocks, vacuum your sand bed and vacuum your sump every week, the material has been sitting there breaking down and adding additional nutrients to your system all week. With filter socks you can relatively quickly and easily swap it (them) out every couple of days and break the nitrogen cycle that would have taken place with all of the material that gets caught in the socks. Same concept as your protein skimmer, but instead of targeting DOCs, filter socks target solids, that for the most part your skimmer would never successfully process, and are likely to gunk up your skimmer pump.

Changing socks should not take more than a couple of minutes every couple of days. If that is too much time then I suspect that there are plenty of other things you are not doing for your tank.

 

[JMSKI333]

Guilty! :third:

I'll bet all you filter sock users have sandbeds too!

Lol j/k

:behindsofa: