Five (5) Gallon Bucket Koi Pond Sponge Filter
Anyone can have CRYSTAL CLEAR water in 12-24 hours if the system is at or under 1,200 gallons and you make the foam filter as described here exactly. You have to move enough water, UPWARD to the surface, and you have to use the EXACT water clarifier I am specifying. Then, you will be stunned.
When does this matter MOST? When fish are sick, and your quarantine is cloudy and even smells of fish-mucus or death.. CLOUDY water is a bacterial bloom, or simply uncollected microscopic particles of decaying food, fish mucus, or other unpalatable organic material. In a quarantine you won’t have a mineral or sedimentary haze.
BIOSEEDING is crazy helpful but bioseeding one of the 5-Gallon filters is heavenly. Do yourself a favor and make one of these BEFORE YOU NEED IT.
One of the key advantages of this tutorial is that the filter is not conceptual or theoretical. I’ve made a half dozen of these filters and my only bitch about them is when I have to break them down for cleaning. But that’s hard to avoid with most filters.
What you need to make 5-gal filter:
- A hole saw of 1+ inch (Hole saw kit, for 1″ to 1-12″ holes)
- A drill
- A Weber lower charcoal grill grate (10.5″ look for stainless for less $) (Weber) (Stainless)
- Open cell foam 1″ thick or more, for discs at 11-5 to 12″ diameter. (To make 10-11″ discs.)
- A submersible pump. (Vivosun for cost versus reliability)
- A sharp, serrated blade to cut the discs with.
Pump should be rated to move half your pond’s volume per hour.
Choose a 10.5″ round grate and stainless is nice for not rusting.
How much water can one of these filters filtrate?
- I’ve used ONE of these in a pond at 1,100 gallons.
- I used an 800 gal per hour Vivosun submersible pump.
- I used one of these in a a 400 gallon stock tank with a 75 pound snapping turtle. The problem was the turtle knocking the bucket around, tipping it over, letting it pull air and float.
- I’ve used one of these on 100 gallons and another one on 600 gallons.
- I used two of them on a huge 2000 gallon white HDPE polyethylene water storage tank from tractor supply with Pacu and RT Cats.
What is the Secret Sauce or Best-Part of these filters?
If you have one of these in place and running and there are cloudy water issues, or if your pond has cloudy water issues and YOU BUILD ONE OF THESE – Use some Tetra Pond Clarifier and the water will be like GIN in less than 36 hours (Under most cases of reasonable loading and a history of the pond not being filthy).
