reverse flow undergravle filters for salt water tanks

[captainsmitty]

Ahoy there one and all.
I have found that in my fresh water tanks that the reverse flow UG filter worked really great.
I am now applying this concept to a new build which is a 37 gal tank which i am in the process of building. the new set up will have an external sump and a synergy skimmer. Was very interesting (more nerve racking) to drill the 4 holes in the glass.
Im going to use a rubble on the bottom as i do like the look of this and with the R.U.G. plate it should have a good flow to keep detritus out of the bottom.
So im looking to see if others have used this methoud. I know of one fellow on this forum who has been useing this set up for something like 40 years. Actually reading one of his posts got me to thinking about it and was why I am moving forward with the idea.
So lets here your input both pro's and con's.
Thanks
Captainsmitty

 

[Brew12]

Ahoy there one and all.
I have found that in my fresh water tanks that the reverse flow UG filter worked really great.
I am now applying this concept to a new build which is a 37 gal tank which i am in the process of building. the new set up will have an external sump and a synergy skimmer. Was very interesting (more nerve racking) to drill the 4 holes in the glass.
Im going to use a rubble on the bottom as i do like the look of this and with the R.U.G. plate it should have a good flow to keep detritus out of the bottom.
So im looking to see if others have used this methoud. I know of one fellow on this forum who has been useing this set up for something like 40 years. Actually reading one of his posts got me to thinking about it and was why I am moving forward with the idea.
So lets here your input both pro's and con's.
Thanks
Captainsmitty

The only con I can think of is that I believe you need to use a coarse gravel to make it work. This limits some of your livestock options but Paul B has proven that it can be used very successfully.

 

[Fritzhamer]

I had a setup like this on a 20 high with a Skilter 30 years ago or so. It wasn't bad if I recall but I ended up ditching the ug filter. The thought process back then was that you needed all the crushed coral both to buffer the water and for surface area for bacteria to grow on. Live rock was hard to come by back then. It was mostly dead coral skeletons and in some cases tufa rock.

We now know that bacteria will colonize everywhere, even on the glass. As for the ug filter, think I still had some dead spots even with it being reverse flow. The crushed coral still began to accumulate detritus and when I eventually pulled it there was tons of mulm under it. I imagine in became a nitrate factory but I didn't test for nitrates back then.

This setup is totally a blast from the past. I say try it just for the experience of some reefing history. Even pickup a Skilter if you can. It would make for a very cool tank in my opinion.

Since you'll be running a sump though you might be better off fast forwarding to the Berlin method that took root after this methodology fell out of favor.

 

[Mark Gray]

Yes it can be done llo up Paul B's thread on how to make a tank last 40 years great very long read I am following a lot of his stuff I feed a lot of the same love live black worms and will be trying mud soon

 

[Paul B]

I use this size gravel. In my tank I use dolomite but I am not sure you can still get it. This set up requires yearly stirring of the gravel where you can reach then suck out detritus.