How do you know if it is nylon?

nerdyguy83

nerdyguy83

AC Members
May 11, 2006
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Erie, PA, US
I am building a filter for a 35 gallon RES tank. (A little undersized, but we will upgrade when we need to. Space is an issue at the moment, and Cairo is still small.) I have heard you can use nylon scrubber pads for filter media. Most scrubber pads have a lack of labeling on them because they are kind of self-explanatory in the dishwashing context. How can you be sure they are nylon? Is nylon the only material you should use, or will any plastic that won't break down useable? I found some mesh ball type pot scrubbers at the dollar store which would be cheap and would have a lot of surface area, but they don't look like nylon. Should I just get the Scotch-Brite scrubber pads? What to do, what to do...
 
When I was using canister and wet/dry filters I used poly-fill for pillow exclusively for mechanical/bio media. You can get a big bag of it in Wal-Mart's fabric department for like $3, probably enough to last for a year or so. As for nylon scrubbing pads, I don't know what to tell ya.
 
I've found only two types of scrubbing pads: metal and plastic/nylon. Metal is a no-no, the plastic is good. AFAIK it's nylon, but if it's some other kind of plastic, it doesn't bother me. I also got mine at the dollar store.

Scotch-Brite pads are too dense for bio-media.
 
One other thing to be aware of is that some pot scubbers or sponges may contain some form of mildew inhibiting agent which can be toxic to fish. Chances are though that if you go with cheapest stuff you can find it will be safe.
 
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