PLENUM'ED SAND BED

[bar]

any one use the NATURAL NITRATE REDUCTION -
PLENUM'ED SAND BED FILTRATION ?

does it work for you ?

 

[Anonymous]

Most of us (I'm not currently one of the "us" in "us") use DSB's instead of going to the trouble of making a plenum. Still gives you natural nitrate reduction, but it's even more natural, in part because it mimics nature even more closely than does a plenum, and also because you don't have to screen off the different substrata. It seems that it's a much easier, simpler way to go.

 

[Len]

NNRs are out of favor because they're more trouble then they're worth. There's also been a lot of stories told of horrible NNR tank crashes over time. I can't say with confidence if this is a common occurance, but I've heard it enough times to know this must scare many folks away from this type of system. SM is right: a deep sand bed works with the same principle, only more "naturally." Noted author Rob Toonen has said the same.

 

[AllenF]

I do have a great deal of anerobic pockets beneath my 4 inch DSB in the form of a 2 inch layer of crushed coral.
So far so good.
I dont think Ill ever experience such a crash though because over time the argonite will seep down and "seed" the pockets...which means instead of possible large areas for gases to build up and crash the system...the areas will eventually be filled with the sand and the much smaller anerobic areas typical of a regular DSB.

Just my .02 cents.

 

[jorcutt]

I used to be a HUGE plenum fan, but must now agree that I have no way of determining whether it's really any better than a DSB. I did have mine for 6 years though with fantastic results before moving to cali and giving it to a friend. (he just moved it recently, btw. That's the 6th time its been moved intact and still no problems with any form of a "crash"). If you go DSB instead, I'd still recommend screening off the bottom half, though.

 

[Bryan Thompson]

My plenum works. Here is a photo of the tank.

Here is a link on how I built it.

http://www.blowfishaquatics.com/plenumfilter.htm

Hope this helps.

Bryan