[johnny313]

I have a 40B with shrimp. so far, nothing has gotten into the filter. now I have babies all over the tank. I do have a sponge on the intake now but it may be too big. what does everyone use?

here is the tank now... you can see the white sponge on the back wall i use now.

​

 

[Bahugo]

Fluval edge prefilter for cheap-local

Shrimplab stainless steel prefilter for a few bucks more-online

 

[GeToChKn]

Fluval edge prefilter for cheap-local

Shrimplab stainless steel prefilter for a few bucks more-online

I've tried lots of different sponges and have to agree, so far the fluval edge ones seems to be the best.

 

[johnny313]

thanks

 

[freph]

Do note that the Fluval Edge sponge prefilter will not properly fit 13mm intakes (not mine, at least).

 

[Bahugo]

Do note that the Fluval Edge sponge prefilter will not properly fit 13mm intakes (not mine, at least).

Can I ask what you mean? is it too loose and falls off? I use mine on a fluval 105 which has 13mm intake pipes, I actually pulled (with a little force) over my intake strainer which is larger then the pipe because when I had it on the pipe without the strainer it would collapse on itself and cause the flow to almost completely stop (after some wear and tear on the prefilter, it didn't start having that issue till a month or two after I got it and it lost some of its rigidity). Just go slow and you can generally squeeze it around a larger object (with respect to the size, don't expect to fit it on a 3" diameter pvc intake pipe lol) just be careful and go slow so you don't rip/stretch it.

If it's too big for the pipe you can always zip tie the top or something like that too the pipe.

 

[freph]

Pretty much just too big. I'm running an Eheim 2215 and Aquatic Magic Lily Pipes (intake and outflow). The sponge filter itself is just too big for it unless you use zip ties is what I meant.

 

[madness]

The Filter Max pre-filters are always an option (though they are big and bulky looking).

 

[radioman]

I used a fluval prefilter but had to use fishing line to tighten it. It also seemed to clog easily...this was probably because I had it on a red sea nano filter which isn't that powerful to begin with.

 

[Gamejunkey]

Those car wash sponges from Walmart are cheap and they work pretty well on my aquaclears. It's about $2 for the big green sponge, which usually makes 4 intake covers. The pores are small enough to keep baby shrimp out, and they only clog up every week or two. Just a few squeezes in the sink and it's good to go again.

 

[jasonpatterson]

I wish I could remember who suggested it, but someone on here cuts their fluval prefilters down so that they are substantially thinner than they come out of the box. I tried it myself and it definitely seems to have cut down on the clogging problems that they can have. The downside is that they aren't terribly pretty when cut by hand.

 

[MrFusion]

johnny313 - What you have is fine. I use the same kind of sponge in my tanks with HOB and never had a problem. Anything else is just wasting your time and money.

Fluval edge prefilter for cheap-local

Shrimplab stainless steel prefilter for a few bucks more-online

The stainless steel prefilters are pretty much worthless. They don't diffuse the flow like a sponge prefilter and will pin and likely kill your babies if your filter is strong enough. It doesn't take much. A big ugly block of foam is by far the best option.