Preventing babies from going in filter.

[auxout]

Is there an easy way to prevent baby fish from getting sucked up into the filter?

I was thinking of making a pvc/screen tube so they can't get sucked in. something like this.

Has anyone done something like this or whats the easiest thing to buy to put over it. Looks aren't really a concern mainly it just has to work and not impede flow.

Well my ascii interpretation sucks so I fired up paint to make my picasso.

 

[Sumpin'fishy]

Nice artwork! It would be easiest to just place a Prefilter that you can buy online or at fish shops over the intake tube. You can also just make one like I did by adding a large sponge over the intake. I made one from a large sponge block (like an AquaClear replacement sponge) and cut it into 1/4's. It now is about 1/4 inch wider than my intake (on each side) and I just used a knife to cut a center hole into it. When I first did this the sponge would slowly clog up and impede water flow, and I got air in my canister filter. I got an idea from this forum to drill many tiny holes around the bottom 2" of the intake so that all the water didn't get sucked into one area (you should be fine with your current filter though). It has been working fine for about 2 months now.....no slow in water flow!

HTH