What do you guys think of this filter advice??

[Brutuscz]

I read this on www.skippysstuff.com . I was curious as to what everone here thinks. I have used this type of filter effectively in the past..but I did clean it regularly. Opinions from the pro's please!!! I added a picture of their filter for reference.


DO NOT EVER CLEAN THIS FILTER! Wow, did we really say ever = never = not at all = let it alone, etc. WE SURE DID. Here is the story.... Skippy's Beautiful Ponds & Gardens is a small mom and pop operation in Taylor, Michigan. We got into ponding when someone said "hey this looks like a nice place for a pond" and someone else ran for a shovel. That's all we knew about ponds, the rest is history, basically we made all the mistakes and therefore now call ourselves experts. Right, but anyway here is the story we want to tell. After a bunch of mistakes and through trial and mostly error we came up with this design and all seemed to go well, i.e.: clean and clear water. That was what we wanted so we just let well enough alone. A season went by and we got busy or in truth ignored the filter, therefore did not clean it. One season ran into the next and after 7 years of not so much as touching the filter we maintained clean and clear water. Then one day some knucklehead said anybody clean that there filter contraption lately? Real brainer here... when everything was going just fine we decide to break the Cardinal Rule "If it is not broke do not fix it." Off we go... The filter media was a nasty, slimly, gunky, yuky... get the picture? BUT after removing the media (click here for the best media to use) Guess what we found in the bottom of the tank? If you answered Jimmy Hoffa you were wrong. What we found was a fine layer of sand about 1/2 inch thick. What was happing is the filter was doing exactly what it was designed to do. That being (short version) the media was trapping the organic matter, holding it long enough for the beneficial bacteria (click here for the best bacteria to use) to decompose it back down to mineral matter i.e. (the sand) and then releasing it to begin the biological process all over again. 4 Keys to making this filter work and it really does work... the dirtier the better!

[PapaBear]

Turning Turds into Sand ... I wonder if you leave it in there long enough if it will turn into glass
All Joking aside, Ok, maybe not ALL joking... it is a pretty decent vortex/settlement chamber with a reasonable amount of biomass capacity. for a low load pond it would work fairly well, but I'd be for avoiding the "never clean it" part.

[Nancy M.]

ROFLMAO
I think I will run right out and buy some of that there best filter media... and throw out the crappy Jmatt that we use.

[koikiller]

i have a 100 gallon stock tank..i wanted to turn it into a filter just like that one

[jnorth]

I'd use the stock tank part and get something else to use as media...like maybe a sheet of matala on top of a bunch of springflow....and oh yeah I'd also install some drains in the bottom to get the "sand" out.

[Brutuscz]

I actually bought about 3 cu-ft of scrubber pads. They look different than theirs..and are similar in texture to J-Mat. I have used nylon scrubber pads in the past..I will try these new ones which are more dense. My question is...what is that sand? Are they correct...or did some dirt end up in the filter? I am definitely curious.
In the saltwater reef hobby..we intentionally have a 2-3inch sandbed to grow anaerobic bacteria. This acts to remove nitrates. Would this simply harbor aeromonas and pseudomonas in our pond applications?

[mitten]

As bad as it is to know that Skippy is "home town" for me, a real regional source of pride , and as bad as it is that the website is cited occasionally by somebody who thinks there might be some worth to this whole category of crappy filters bearing the name Skippy, it's worse to remember the dumbass frogs on the website.

Use Rubbermaid 100's? Sure. But please turn on your brain before you do. Which part of "never clean" are you comfortable with?

The sand is supposed to be the end product of the mineralization of waste. I have seen the guts of a Skippy built by and installed by Skippy hisseff. Not sand, folks, not sand.

By the way the city of Taylor's last name is Tucky. Sorry, Sweet Mulberry.

[koiczar]

Brutuscz

Seeing as how you posted this question, inquiring minds would like to know - what do YOU think of it?

Mike

[Brutuscz]

Well...I did build their 150gal rubbermaid setup on my last pond. I used it as the last stage in a 3 part system. I modified it a great deal though...used spring flow under the grating...then poly flo matting to catch fine particles before the waterfall. I made a bottom drain and cleaned it regularly. Replaced the poly flow every month as well. Also had 2 filters before it. So...it was good in my usage. The thought of not cleaning a filter is like having a dog pooping in a pen and never cleaning it!! Some living creature is going to get sick for sure.
I do think scrubber pads are excellent for bio filtration...large surface area..and cheap.
Sooo...what do I think? A good homemade filter if you modify it and clean it regularly. Follow those instructions exactly, and you have yourself a pond with a ticking time bomb.

I still don't get the sand thing....what is that at the bottom?!?! Detritus..or the minerals they state?

[Brutuscz]

Here is a picture of it running at my old pond (moved to my new house in october). I have 2 other filters behind the bamboo fence.