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Retirement and forum shutdown (17 Jan 2022)

Hi,

John Howell who has managed the forum for years is getting on and wishes to retire from the role of managing it.
Over the years, he has managed the forum through good days and bad days and he has always been fair.
He has managed to bring his passion for fish keeping to the forum and keep it going for so long.

I wish to thank John for his hard work in keeping the forum going.

With John wishing to "retire" from the role of managing the forum and the forum receiving very little traffic, I think we must agree that forum has come to a natural conclusion and it's time to put it to rest.

I am proposing that the forum be made read-only from March 2022 onwards and that no new users or content be created. The website is still registered for several more years, so the content will still be accessible but no new topics or replies will be allowed.

If there is interest from the ITFS or other fish keeping clubs, we may redirect traffic to them or to a Facebook group but will not actively manage it.

I'd like to thank everyone over the years who helped with forum, posted a reply, started a new topic, ask a question and helped a newbie in fish keeping. And thank you to the sponsors who helped us along the away. Hopefully it made the hobby stronger.

I'd especially like to thank John Howell and Valerie Rousseau for all of their contributions, without them the forum would have never been has successful.

Thank you
Darragh Sherwin

DIY/Cheap filter media

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10 Nov 2014 12:42 #1 by LemonJelly (Johnny Cowley)
Does anyone know know of any cheap or DIY alternative to buying filter media? I currently have a filter running with plastic pot scrubbers in it, but are there other options?

"The only thing that burns in Hell is the part of you that won't let go of your life; your memories, your attachments. They burn them all away. But they're not punishing you.They're freeing your soul."

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10 Nov 2014 13:14 #2 by JohnH (John)
Replied by JohnH (John) on topic DIY/Cheap filter media
Like yourself LJ I use the plastic scrubbers and also as a substitute for floss I get the el cheapo pillows from Lidl, Aldi and Tesco (when on special offer) and use the filling from those.
Many years ago I did try cutting up washing-up sponges cut approximately into 3/4" cubes then put them into mesh bags (the sort of bags which onions used to come in and now things like satsumas get sold in) but with the metal crimps cut off and merely knotted. Indeed, these bags can also be used as a coarser media too.
There are a few suggestions to be going along with - no doubt you'll get some more practical suggestions bye and bye.

John

Location:
N. Tipp

We're just two lost souls swimming in a fish bowl - year after year.


ITFS member.



It's a long way to Tipperary.

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10 Nov 2014 13:23 - 10 Nov 2014 13:24 #3 by LemonJelly (Johnny Cowley)
If I spend more than a tenner a year on filter floss, I'm obviously being too profligate with it ;)

I'd love to find an alternative to ceramic/sintered glass media but I have a feeling if there was one, everybody would be using it.

"The only thing that burns in Hell is the part of you that won't let go of your life; your memories, your attachments. They burn them all away. But they're not punishing you.They're freeing your soul."
Last edit: 10 Nov 2014 13:24 by LemonJelly (Johnny Cowley).

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10 Nov 2014 20:08 #4 by LemonJelly (Johnny Cowley)

If I spend more than a tenner a year on filter floss, I'm obviously being too profligate with it ;)

I'd love to find an alternative to ceramic/sintered glass media but I have a feeling if there was one, everybody would be using it.


They use ceramic clay beads for pot plants! Boil 'em and they sink! Can anyone think of any reason using them would be a problem?

"The only thing that burns in Hell is the part of you that won't let go of your life; your memories, your attachments. They burn them all away. But they're not punishing you.They're freeing your soul."

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10 Nov 2014 21:15 #5 by bart (Bart Korfanty)
One needs to be careful with those ceramic pot plant media (ceramex, keramzyt... ). I'm using that myself and i swear by it. I found proper product which is neutral. Some of them will leach hardness into the water. It's not always an issue tho ;)
Basically it all depends what clay mix was used.
The structure is very porous and they sink over time. Not a problem in external filter.
I'm using natural lava gravel as well. Extremely porous and chemically neutral.

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10 Nov 2014 22:12 #6 by LemonJelly (Johnny Cowley)
I've been reading up on clay balls this evening and the prevailing advice seems to be that you can use it, with caution. I think I'm going to give it a try. It's a far cheaper alternative to the likes of JBL Micromec etc.

"The only thing that burns in Hell is the part of you that won't let go of your life; your memories, your attachments. They burn them all away. But they're not punishing you.They're freeing your soul."

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11 Nov 2014 01:42 #7 by alan 64 (alan)
running micromec in my filter over a year now and I think it was 15 euro or something like I don't think filter media is expensive so just make sure what u experiment with is safe as it could cost u in the long run

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