Repost: Nylon for DIY media

[nerdyguy83]

I'm reposting this because no one is talking in the DIY forum:

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...

 

[Sploke]

You can use pretty much any type of plastic as long as you get the ones that aren't impregnated with soap. Another good option is lava rock, I have used that in several DIY filters for turtles. Its about $3.50 a bag at Wal-Mart, cheapest place I've found it yet.

 

[nerdyguy83]

The problem with lava rock that I have read about is that I becomes too dirty to be effective after a while, and the only way to clean it is with a power washer.

 

[Sploke]

In my snapper pool, I have a diy filter made with a 5gal bucket of lava rock. Its been running for over a year. I have not cleaned it out, just vacuuming the tank, and its still effective.