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Has anyone used an automatic roller filter such as Clarisea in their sump?

Forever Fishtank

Seedling
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27 Nov 2020
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16
Location
Toronto
I am new to planted tanks with sumps (have set up several with canisters over the last 4 years and have 3 on the go right now). Since I love sumps in my reef tanks, I thought I’d try a planted tank with one. For reefs, automatic roller filters are the way to go. Have people used them with planted tank sumps? Do they work well? My main worry is that since planted tanks generate a lot of debris, the roll may get used up far too quickly, making it a very expensive choice. I’d love to hear your experiences. Thanks in advance.
 
I had a sock on the down pipe, can’t say much debris was caught, now its just on if I have done a prune, as it was just catching shrimp

seen a micro trummel drum filter, where some one has made a very small version of a pond filter, that would probably be better than the loo roller, how expensive is a new roll?
 
I had a sock on the down pipe, can’t say much debris was caught, now its just on if I have done a prune, as it was just catching shrimp

seen a micro trummel drum filter, where some one has made a very small version of a pond filter, that would probably be better than the loo roller, how expensive is a new roll?
Thanks for the insight. It sounds like there shouldn’t be that much debris except at trimming. The rolls are about 20 pounds each. They are supposed to last for 2 months. So the idea is that you change your filter 6 times a year as opposed to 150 swaps of the socks. And I know from my canister filters that I am terrible about cleaning sponges. Which was the source of my worry - when I do get to clean the filters out, they are filthy. But I do it once every month or two. Perhaps, spread out on a daily basis there isn’t that much.

Trommel drum filter sounds interesting but how it would be different from a mesh sock. Would the rotation add some filtration that I am overlooking?
 
they only spin when cleaning, they are now a very common pond filter here, a pressure wash happens when the thing works out its dirty and blasts the muck off and is then sent to the drain or the flower bed. its a a mechanical solids filter that is then normally followed by a biological filter, using plastic media kept in suspension by boiling with air.

the roller filters seem to be liked by those that have them, so if the sumps big enough why not , can you slow the speed it pays out to get more from a roll?
 
I think it depends on your reasons.... a well planted tank does not need much in the way of additional biological filtration as the plants themselves will be doing a fine job.
I am a huge fan of sumps, I keep mine very simple but of course if you enjoy fiddling and using the latest technology just for the fun of it then that is cool too.
 
The canister filters I use on my tanks (Oase 600/850) have a fine sponge pre-filter that I wash out weekly. They trap a huge amount of debris - literally the water runs black every time I wash the sponges out.

Whilst I agree that a heavily planted tank likely needs little additional biological filtration, I believe it most certainly benefits from substantial mechanical filtration, otherwise all that biological debris remaining in the tank and filter system.

When I was looking to design a sump for my future 1500mm tank I did look very seriously at the Clarisea style roller pre-filters - the only thing that put me off at the time was the physical size of the units for the flow rates I wanted, but beyond that they seem perfect for a very low maintenance system.

Even if you don’t go for one of the roller pre-filters, I would recommend using the fine fleece style filter socks as a pre-filter, and cleaning them every week, and prevent all that solid organic waste remaining in the tanks and biological sections of your sump filter.
 
The canister filters I use on my tanks (Oase 600/850) have a fine sponge pre-filter that I wash out weekly. They trap a huge amount of debris - literally the water runs black every time I wash the sponges out.

Whilst I agree that a heavily planted tank likely needs little additional biological filtration, I believe it most certainly benefits from substantial mechanical filtration, otherwise all that biological debris remaining in the tank and filter system.

When I was looking to design a sump for my future 1500mm tank I did look very seriously at the Clarisea style roller pre-filters - the only thing that put me off at the time was the physical size of the units for the flow rates I wanted, but beyond that they seem perfect for a very low maintenance system.

Even if you don’t go for one of the roller pre-filters, I would recommend using the fine fleece style filter socks as a pre-filter, and cleaning them every week, and prevent all that solid organic waste remaining in the tanks and biological sections of your sump filter.
In my current two tanks I have Oase filters as well. And you are right in that there is so much debris that I actually have a second set of pre-filter foam that I swap with the dirty ones weekly. I soak the dirty ones overnight in water after rinsing them in the sink to remove most of the gunk. I was worried that much gunk would eat up the rollers. However, I found a good Black Friday deal and took the plunge. I’ll post again in a few weeks when I set up the new tank to replace my existing ones to report my experience.
 
My floss gets dirty so quickly within 2-3 days its dark brown.
I feed once every 2 days and each time enough food for only 1 min-ish. IMG_20201229_152122.jpg
 
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