Anyone have ideas for making a good biological 5-gallon bucket filter?
Anyone have ideas for making a good biological 5-gallon bucket filter?
PBJHOOPS
I think a shower filter could be made with 2 buckets stacked, one on top of the other. The top bucket would have many 1/4" holes drilled at the bottom to allow the water to drain to the bottom bucket. The bottom bucket would have a 1" - 1.5" bulkhead with pipe attached near the bottom of the bucket to return to the pond. Fill the top bucket with your favorite bio media...k1, ceramic media, etc. All that's left would be to have a spray bar at the top of the filter.
Forget about the bucket. Bite the bullet and buy one of these canister filters. What I like about these is that it's plug and play and forget about it. What you have to do though is get rid of the plastic media that comes with it and replace that with ceramic balls, bags of carbon, small pieces of very porous rocks. Stuff it in there as the more surface area for bacteria the better. The pre-filter that lays overtop is the only thing you have to touch and clean periodically but even if it plugs up, there is an overflow pipe and believe it or not filtered water still comes out of the outlet. This filter is also small enough has a low profile that it can be covered with a winter cover. After it cycles it will have high nitrates at first then over time nitrates will down as long as you change your water regularly.
Good luck.
https://www.amazon.com/TetraPond-Cho...ra+pond+filter
Time you enjoy wasting is not wasted time. ---- Marthe Troly-Curtin
KoiRun on YouTube, latest video:
https://youtu.be/72iiuRXY2Wk
I also think a trickle filter is your best bet for a good simple bio filter. Here's an old thread I remember
that had some inventive ideas... they all used Cermedia as that was part of the contest but any
good media could be substituted:
https://www.koiphen.com/forums/showth...Judging-Thread
Good Ideas. I am working on a plan now. Something like this https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4BZ6zyQIf60
PBJHOOPS
https://www.koiphen.com/forums/showth...ghlight=Filter
Because sitting it on treated wood is less than optimal, it is just as easy to put one or two holes on one side of the bottom bucket and sit the bucket on the side of the pond where the water is directed right into the pond. You adjust the number and size of holes based on the output from the pump.