Cartridge filters - mechanical and biological pond cleaning

The cartridge filters are filters that mechanically and biologically filter the pond water. Thanks to a simple functional principle, this filter can also be easily built by yourself. At the beginning, however, I would like to point out that cartridge filters clog up very quickly if too many dirt particles find their way into the filter with the water. You may want to see more how long do koi fish live

Cartridge filters can be filled with a pump or operated with a gravity feed. The water that is pumped or run into the filter by gravity enters a chamber. In the filter chamber, the pond water runs into the filter cartridge. It is then fed back into the pond either via a pump or directly. Filter cartridges consist exclusively of foam. They are available in different sizes and lengths. The fine foam forms a large surface. This large surface cannot be seen from the outside of the cartridges. To illustrate - if 35 filter cartridges are packed together for a filter, they result in a filter area of ​​around 7 square meters.

The bacteria settle in the individual pores and multiply. They take over the breakdown of harmful substances into non-toxic compounds. In order for this to work smoothly, the cartridge must have an even flow and the bacteria also need enough oxygen for their metabolism. If both are given, the bacteria can continuously convert toxic degradation products such as ammonia or nitrite from the water. The bacteria take up to 8 weeks to form an effective carpet in the filter. So that the filter gets going faster, then it can be inoculated with starter bacteria.
In addition to the degradation of the substances, the finest suspended particles also remain in the fine foam, so that the cartridges not only perform biological filtering (magazine: biological pond filtering) but also mechanically filter the water.

The problem with the rapid clogging due to too many dirt particles can be eliminated by placing an effective prefilter in front of the cartridge filter, such as a drum filter or sieve filter. These filter larger dirt particles out of the water so that they can no longer get into the cartridge filter and clog it. With such an effective pre-filter, the downstream cartridge filter rarely needs to be cleaned. So that the cartridge filter can work effectively, the water should not flow through it too quickly. A maximum flow of 250 to 300 L / h is recommended for a filter cartridge of 10 x 10 x 50 cm. It is advisable to be able to regulate the flow through the filter. The flow can then be optimized depending on the requirements.

It is recommended that the cartridge filter is installed on a solid surface, possibly even on a concrete surface. This filter will have an enormous weight in full operation, which is why a firm stand is extremely important. A soft, insecure stand can lead to the filter tipping over or breaking apart due to the water pressure.