"Sock or No Sock" That is the question...

[trippcsi]

Back in the day a wet dry system with bio-balls (drop'em in and forget it) was considered the hot setup for a marine tank even for the reef tanks that were becoming ever more popular. Now everyone or most (including myself) is switching to the wonderful, always needing cleaning Filter Sock. My question is this. Is there a better way (less maintanance) to achieve the removing of the larger waste particles? Has anyone just stopped using the sock all together? I'm tired of changing it out and I'm looking for alternate forms of initial scrubbing.

[surfjeepzx]

I run a filter pad in the last chamber prior to the return pump. It's not as restrictive as a filter sock in that it does allow particulate to pass yet it does catch a lot of detritus. It still requires cleaning twice a week or so. I made the pad frame from some plastic a/c grid. Slide it out and hose it off, re-install.

[daveb1979]

im taggin along for this!

[UWUALineman]

I have not ran one in over 2 years until this week. I went from a 120 SPS to a current 210 SPS. I woud consider my tanks to be successful with just overskimming. I feed heavily as well and within these past two days I have been somewhat surprised by all of the waste/solids which the sock has removed. I can't see myself running this consistently but I believe I will run them periodically. Not a fan of constant maintenance.

[montrose]

I've got an all-in-one. You should see all the detritus in the bottom of my "sump". I'd kill for real sump with a filter sock. I'm probably going to pick up a media tray so I can run some filter floss and carbon and I'll happily clean that sht every other day at this point.

[evoracer]

Running a refugium with chaetomorpha just before the return acts like filter floss. Chaeto traps a lot of debris that gets consumed by the fauna living amongst it. However for water polishing a sock is the best bang for your buck solution IMO.

[skimmy]

if your running a reef, normally you want all those particles and detritus that the sock would otherwise remove...
but when I clean the tank or do a WC I throw the sock on to catch the extra crap for an hour or 2 then remove it.

[NyReefNoob]

well i ran the first 8 months of my current tank without them because i hated changig them every 3 days and didnt have any problems, after doing a large wc and sump clean up and all the debris i pulled out i decided to start running a sock again, and i do have a large foam pad on my overflow that catch's alot of the stuff but my sump bottom was covered with debris

[daveb1979]

UWUALineman,
So would the octopus nw-150 be considered overskimming on a 40g? Would i have any need for a sock or would the skimmer keep up with the debris? My skimmer is rated for a 150. I run bare bottom and i run alot of flow about 2300gph with only about 300gph thur the sump.

[Toadally]

I don't use a sock. I have a foam filter block right before the return to catch the large particles. Before cleaning once a week, I use a turkey baster in the tank and sump to move particles off the sand and rock. Once the water column is clear I clean the sponge. I feel that running filter socks catch too much of the good stuff your corals and fish need. jmo

[daveb1979]

Originally Posted by toadally

i don't use a sock. I have a foam filter block right before the return to catch the large particles. Before cleaning once a week, i use a turkey baster in the tank and sump to move particles off the sand and rock. Once the water column is clear i clean the sponge. I feel that running filter socks catch too much of the good stuff your corals and fish need. Jmo

that dose make sense.

[tegee]

I use a sock and have concerned taking it off line. But it simply catches too much detritus for me to remove. IMHO you are going to need something: i.e. foam block, filter floss, sock, etc. I have settled on a sock and simply have (10) of them. Change when needed throw in a old salt bucket and clean all of them at once to save time & energy when washing. Hobby sucks sometimes with maintenance, etc but you have to do it.......

[Brian DeGolier]

I have done both ways, and I feel that the sock is the most beneficial, despite what Sprung and Delbeek write. I have about 24 of them, I change out about 4 days, I wash them out thoroughly by hand, and am amazed at the amount of detritis that comes out. I let them dry out in the garage, when it's time to wash them, I fill up the 5 gal. bucket with hot water, let them sit for a day to really loosen up the stuff and put in the wash machine on hot/cold with a capful of bleach, do not use detergent.
One note, I feel as my chaeto grows more quickly without the sock, when the water cascades into the refugium, it has more bubbles and the chaeto seems to like it better. when I go on vacation, I do not use the sock as it will clog up and the water will overflow.

[jmking33]

Daveb.....I too have a 40 and I was using the octo extreme with the purple pinwheel. It is way overskimming. I took it out 4 months ago and have been doing water changes (10gl a week) and have been seeing great growth with my softies/zoas/palys. They like dirty water anyways. I also pulled the sock from my sump. JMO...I think if you have the hard corals you should be skimming and using a sock.

[trippcsi]

Thanks for all the input. It is of course the maitanence part that I'm trying to reduce. I agree the sock removes much unwanted crap. I just was hoping with the large amount of verts corals and fish most could be used up in a more natural way. My water is crystal clear however and would probably not appear as clean without.

Thanks

[Reefer08]

If you plan on not running filter socks then plan on having a shop vac to suck up all the detritus that settles on the bottom floor. The only downside of running filter socks is that they need to be changed out after 3 days or else they will contribute towards a nitrate problem. Ive done both routes with and without filter socks and I can definetely notice the improved water clarity after running them.

[Toadally]

Originally Posted by Reefer08

If you plan on not running filter socks then plan on having a shop vac to suck up all the detritus that settles on the bottom floor. The only downside of running filter socks is that they need to be changed out after 3 days or else they will contribute towards a nitrate problem. Ive done both routes with and without filter socks and I can definetely notice the improved water clarity after running them.

Actually using a shop vac and sucking out the sump every so often is not a bad idea.

[hounddog01]

I have used socks for over 6 years. They do a great job cleaning the large particles that would otherwise settle in the bottom of the sump. I only change my socks once a week when I clean out the skimmer. I feel the crap left in the bottom of the sump that never gets cleaned out promotes more nitrates than not changing the sock every 3 days. I run a 10 gallon fuge on my 180 with cheato and my nitrates are 0. It is heavly loaded with 3 blue and 3 yellow 1 pBrown tangs with other fish. Never had a problem...