Huge diatom filter for crystal clear water

Cabinetman · Jan 10, 2018

I’ve been using one of these designed for a swimming pool on my 560 gallon fowlr tank and I couldn’t be more impressed. My water is always crystal clear. I basically change the diatomaceous earth out once a month and that’s about it. It’s the best thing I’ve ever added to my system to date.

https://www.amazon.ca/gp/aw/d/B000EVOM5Y/ref=ya_st_dp_summary?ie=UTF8&psc=1

NowGlazeIT · Jan 10, 2018

What pump do you run with it

Cabinetman · Jan 10, 2018

I got a jebao dcp or dct 18000 to feed it.

cracker · Jan 10, 2018

Do You use the diatom earth from the pool supply? If So, do You have concern over impurities or unwanted chemical etc? I also wonder what if any biological aspects of using this type of filtration. Always wondered about this. I do have an old diatom filter it's old & difficult to get started but does a tremendous job clearing water !

HippieSmell · Jan 10, 2018

Cabinetman said:
I’ve been using one of these designed for a swimming pool on my 560 gallon fowlr tank and I couldn’t be more impressed. My water is always crystal clear. I basically change the diatomaceous earth out once a month and that’s about it. It’s the best thing I’ve ever added to my system to date.
https://www.amazon.ca/gp/aw/d/B000EVOM5Y/ref=ya_st_dp_summary?ie=UTF8&psc=1

How much are filters and how difficult is the filter replacement?

Cabinetman · Jan 10, 2018

cracker said:
Do You use the diatom earth from the pool supply? If So, do You have concern over impurities or unwanted chemical etc?

The brand I used says 100% pure so I’m confident it’s ok. So far so good anyway. It’s been a few months.

Cabinetman · Jan 10, 2018

HippieSmell said:
How much are filters and how difficult is the filter replacement?

The filter itself seams to very by price on amazon quite a bit. I paid $93 plus tax for my first one. I ordered a second for my pool and paid $145 plus tax. To clean it I simply shut the pump off. Pump a handle up and down a few times to release the diatomaceous earth then open the drain valve and close the return valve that goes back to the tank. Then start my return and pump the contents out... the drain is at bottom and the diatom earth settles after pumping handle and it falls off the fingers that hold it. It’s pretty simple and only takes a few mins. Then I close everything up and once the pump is running I mix up a new batch of slurry of diatom earth and feed it into the return pump which coats the membranes again. Hope that makes sense

cracker · Jan 10, 2018

Sounds pricey but for a Monster tank your size, not so much !

Cabinetman · Jan 11, 2018

Really it’s a cheap filter compared to other gear...

HippieSmell · Jan 11, 2018

Cabinetman said:
The filter itself seams to very by price on amazon quite a bit. I paid $93 plus tax for my first one. I ordered a second for my pool and paid $145 plus tax. To clean it I simply shut the pump off. Pump a handle up and down a few times to release the diatomaceous earth then open the drain valve and close the return valve that goes back to the tank. Then start my return and pump the contents out... the drain is at bottom and the diatom earth settles after pumping handle and it falls off the fingers that hold it. It’s pretty simple and only takes a few mins. Then I close everything up and once the pump is running I mix up a new batch of slurry of diatom earth and feed it into the return pump which coats the membranes again. Hope that makes sense

It costs a hundred dollars a month in maintenance?

Cabinetman · Jan 11, 2018

HippieSmell said:
It costs a hundred dollars a month in maintenance?

No lol. It only cost a few bucks a month to replace the diatom powder. I loved this filter so much I bought a second one to run on my pool this summer coming.

HippieSmell · Jan 11, 2018

Cabinetman said:
No lol. It only cost a few bucks a month to replace the diatom powder. I loved this filter so much I bought a second one to run on my pool this summer coming.

Haha, ok. That sounds better. Is there a difference between pool grade and food grade diatomaceous earth, for our purposes?

How do you think this compares to something like a rollermat? I like mine, but I'm always on the lookout for an upgrade, lol.

revhtree · Jan 11, 2018

Hmm very cool!

S-t-r-e-t-c-h · Jan 11, 2018

Diatom powder is silica based, so I'd be concerned about running 100% of the time. I've had good success running diatom filters for short periods of time (a few hours at a clip) but would be concerned about potential for algae blooms with tank water constantly flowing over the media.

Again, I've never run full time, so can't say from experience, but that would be my hesitation...

HippieSmell · Jan 11, 2018

S-t-r-e-t-c-h said:
Diatom powder is silica based, so I'd be concerned about running 100% of the time. I've had good success running diatom filters for short periods of time (a few hours at a clip) but would be concerned about potential for algae blooms with tank water constantly flowing over the media.

Again, I've never run full time, so can't say from experience, but that would be my hesitation...

Is the media fully submerged, or does it act as a wet/dry filter?

S-t-r-e-t-c-h · Jan 11, 2018

HippieSmell said:
Is the media fully submerged, or does it act as a wet/dry filter?

It's not biological media; more of a very, very fine mechanical media (fine enough to filter ich). I've only ever seen it fully submerged; pretty sure that's how the filter in the OP is setup too.

HippieSmell · Jan 11, 2018

S-t-r-e-t-c-h said:
It's not biological media; more of a very, very fine mechanical media (fine enough to filter ich). I've only ever seen it fully submerged; pretty sure that's how the filter in the OP is setup too.

No, I understand that. You just made it sound like maybe it would create nitrates. A wet/dry filter does that because the bioballs are exposed to air.

Blue Spot Octopus · Jan 12, 2018

300 and 5 bucks now I guess someone is making good money.

Cabinetman · Jan 12, 2018

S-t-r-e-t-c-h said:
Diatom powder is silica based, so I'd be concerned about running 100% of the time. I've had good success running diatom filters for short periods of time (a few hours at a clip) but would be concerned about potential for algae blooms with tank water constantly flowing over the media.

Again, I've never run full time, so can't say from experience, but that would be my hesitation...

If anything I seem to have less LG blooming in the tank. I only clean My glass about once every week or two at best. I have absolutely zero hair algae

Cabinetman · Jan 12, 2018

Blue Spot Octopus said:
300 and 5 bucks now I guess someone is making good money.

It’s funny how it veries in price. I’ve only started Using Amazon in the last few months really. I added the first one to my cart and it stayed there for a few days and I got an email saying the price went down and it dropped like 20 bucks off of it. But then I deleted it and added it again and it did the same thing and I just kept doing that and eventually got it down to 145 bucks from 320. When I click on the link above my price is now $614 LOL

Paul B · Jan 12, 2018

I have been using a diatom since the 60s but I only use once or twice a year. Be careful about using it too often in a coral tank, that stuff you may see floating around is eaten by corals and they need it.