Pre-filter - DIY

[Nepen]

Hi all,

Since the last time that my waterfall filter overflowed (my quilt batting filter got dirty and let the intake water passed slower than it came), I decided that I will have to adjust how I filter my water.

Many many ideas away and I decided to make a pre-filter -- the kind that I put my pump in and have the filter around it (then I can take away the quilt batting filter from my waterfall and only have the bio filter there -- should take away the overflow problem)

I went and buy the basket from the dollar store and made my home made pre-filter, put tons of quilt batting in there and after one night of it, my water got so clear (It was clear but got cloudy from constant rain over the weeks). So I decided to make a proper one with a nicer looking basket (my husband complained of how my dollar store basket looks in the pond)

Went to Wal-Mart and got a nice plastic container, part black, part clear (Made in Italy!!!! since when does Wal-Mart has anything made from anywhere but China?). I drilled holes in it (didn’t think it was a big job until it took me 3 hours to finish!!) and now ready to put in the filter.

the question is - I want to put in a 'coarse' filter first, then the 'fine' filter second, so it doesn’t get clog too fast (the one I put in on Sat already very very dirty) - which 'coarse' filter should I use? I saw Sissy mentioned furnace filter, will something like this work? http://www.amazon.com/Precisionaire-HR30240-30x240x1-Hamm-Filter/dp/B000BVMWT0/ref=pd_sim_sbs_hi_5

Is the furnace filter coarser than quilt batting?

any recommendation please!!
Thanks,
-A

PS. can you also recommend pond vacuum too please!!

 

[HTH]

Why not setup the batting in the falls so that when it clogs the water goes around it and over the falls instead of running over? It is what I would do. If the media you are putting around the pump clogs you will loose flow and biological as well as mechanical filtration.

If possible one wants filter media located where it can be easily cleaned.

To answer your question it is like sanding. We go from course to fine with mechanical filtration. That keeps the course bits from clogging the fine filter and the two used together should take longer to plug.

 

[Nepen]

Thanks Howard.

The reason I want to have pre-filter is becasue the set up before, the batting was in the waterfall and when it got clogged, the batting acted like a dam and the water overflow. I have a small waterfall set up, that was the only place I could put the batting. And you are right, I want to do the coarse then fine filter, but I dont know which is the 'coarse' I should use.


My basket is full of holes very close together, so the water flow in pretty easily, for my 620 mpg pump (probably more like 420 mpg from other review of the pump)
The pre-filter will be easily clean and change, my pond is small and not deep. I can easily grab it.

I already plan for when we are on vacation that I will only use 'coarse' filter (in the pre-filter) so I dont have to worry too much about it getting clog. But if I still use the filter in the waterfall, I'll have to worry about the water overflow/clog batting.