alternative to Diatom filter

I have as yet not been succesful in locating a diatom filter for periodic cleaning of my reef tank

I did get a cannister filter, which I packed with filter matting and carbon
and have run that 3 times thus far after power heading the rock work etc

but its not been an ideal solution, simply because I feel that to many of the smaller particles are passing right through the filter matting

Idea

25 gallon plastic bucket with 10 gallons of new salt water already in it
100 micron filter sock
power head rock work and even sand bed (its less than 4 months old and less than 1 inch deep)
turn off all flow
allow disturbed detrius to settle
syphon tank through filter sock into the 25 gallon bucket
pump water back from bucket into DT
monitor levels on both in case pump is faster or slower than the syphon
and interupt either as required

this method I feel with give me a better succes rate at capturing the small particles that my wrasse constantly stir up
and also give me a water change of sorts at the same time.

I will be trying this at the weekend
unless anyone says - "stop, thats a crazy idea"

Steve

 

sounds like an interesting idea and might be crazy enough to work.

 

ive been wanting a diatom filter as well i havent seen one sence i worked for meijers 20 years ago them things worked well i had to do the nightly cleaning when i worked there ill subscribe alternatives would be cool

 

Sounds similar to something I used to do. Mine was 100% siphon-based.

5 gallon bucket with a hole cut in the lid and hose siliconed into the side near the bottom
1 micron filter sock model FB1 Aquatic Eco-Systems: Aquaculture Supplies - Filter Bags With Poly Ring Mouth
J-Tube from a HOB overflow pushed into 1 inch tubing
1 chair

The plastic ring from the Micron filter sock holds the filter bag to the plastic surrounding the hole in the lid of the bucket
Put the bucket on a chair so it's higher than the sump but lower than the tank
Put the hose in the sump
Start a siphon with the other hose, put one side in the filter bag, hang the J-tube on the side of the tank
Set a timer (1 micron bags filter so small that you want to make sure it doesn't overflow.

 

3 positives and no negatives thus far is a good sign

thanks everyone
good idea on the bucket with hole in, as I was going to use spare wavemaker magnets to hold the filter sock (which has a plastic collar) to the 25 gallon tub, but as the tub has a lid, I could cut a 3.5 inch diameter hole in in and drop the filter sock into the hole, and it will rest on the collar
cut a 1 inch hole on other side, and have the return line back to tank from there

Steve

 

Aquarium Diatom Filters at AquariumGuys.com

The vortex diatom filter is what you're looking for. I've done the filter sock vacuum technique on my FOWLR a few times when the substrate was too dirty. It worked OK, but the filter sock doesn't catch enough debris to warrant saving the water. It's easier to siphon out the dirty stuff at water change time and just replace it with fresh.

 

Have used a pump plumbed into a Rainfresh whole house filter in the past with either a 5micron or 1 micron cart.
Back when I line bred Angels (the FW type)

Worked well.

 

If it's 1 micron it will

 

thanks barbianj - thats the exact model I have been looking for
just not available near where I am located
I do 5% changes every week, but am conscious I am throwing away a lot of water for a small amount of captured dirt - a 5 gallon bucket fills very quickly and does not give me enough time to cover all the areas I want to cover

so my idea is to leave this continous running for a few hours
whilst remaining near by in case of imbalance of flow rates between syphon and return pump
what I would do, is use the return end as a blower, basically hand in tank and probe all the rockwork, behind the reef etc, whilst leaving the syphon going through the sock
then once I have covered everywhere, fix the return and then use the syphon end as a hoover to collect all the debris disturbed
I believe doing this, my ratio of collected dirt to water wasted should increase significantly

Steve

 

That's true, I didn't use a 1 micron. In any case, I think you would be better off vacuuming rather than blowing everything into the water column. Use a Python style for the gravel and a 1/4" rigid tube for in the rocks. I did that, increased flow to the sump, and run a filter sock and no more problems. That was on the FOWLR tanks, much dirtier than the reef.