Question

[RavieReefer]

What is the best way to clean a sock filter? I had read somewhere (I dont remember where) that this person rinsed off the debris, then soaked it in bleach water for a period of time, then washed (in clothing washer) in hot water/(? with bleach) no detergent. What do you guys do? :-

 

[tuberider]

That's about what I do, although I usually skip the rinsing stage and go straight to a hot water bleach soak, then into the washer with two rinse cycles along with the wash/bleach cycle.

 

[alve]

I throw them in a bucket with water and once I have several I put them in the washer with bleach and extra rinse cycle (I do run the washer empty first to get rid of any soap left behind). Then hang them up to air dry.

 

[RavieReefer]

How much bleach do you use? The soaking/bleach washing/clear water rinse X2 is enough to clean out the clogged fibers of the sock, or does it seem to clog a bit sooner than a new one?

 

[tuberider]

I have some I've been using for quite a while without any problems, they can get a little nappy looking but they still do the job.

 

[bayareaquarist]

[quote author=tuberider link=topic=5301.msg65854#msg65854 date=1227543781]
go straight to a hot water bleach soak, then into the washer with two rinse cycles along with the wash/bleach cycle.
[/quote]

I would recommend a soak like the Purigen (Seachem) brand filter media suggests if your going to be using bleach with any aquarium product. Using a dechlorinator to remove chloramines after the use of bleach...just my 2 cents~!


Purigen

copy/pasted:

Directions

Rinse before use. Use in a fine mesh filter bag. Each 1 L treats up to 4,000 L (1,000 gallons*) for up to six months. Exhaustion is indicated by a pronounced discoloration of the beads to dark brown or black.

Regeneration: Soak in a 1:1 bleach:water solution for 24 hours in a non-metalic container in a well ventilated area and away from children. Rinse well, then soak for 8 hours with a solution containing 2 tablespoons of ChlorGuard™, Prime™, or equivalent dechlorinator per cup of water. Rinse well. For freshwater use, soak for 4 hours with a solution containing 1 tablespoon of buffer per cup of water (Discus Buffer™, Neutral Regulator™, or Acid Buffer™). Original color and full activity should now be restored and Purigen™ is ready for reuse. Caution: some slime coat products may permanently foul Purigen™ and render regeneration difficult. Do not reuse if odor of chlorine is detectable. In case of doubt, soak beads in small quantity of water and test for residual chlorine with a chlorine test kit.

 

[tuberider]

A spin in the dryer takes care of just about everything.

FWIW, I bleach plastic plants, decorative coral, rock etc. and use Prime to dechlorinate, I've done it on site several days a week for almost 20 years and never had a problem.

 

[bayareaquarist]

[quote author=tuberider link=topic=5301.msg65869#msg65869 date=1227549751]
A spin in the dryer takes care of just about everything.

FWIW, I bleach plastic plants, decorative coral, rock etc. and use Prime to dechlorinate, I've done it on site several days a week for almost 20 years and never had a problem.
[/quote]


Wait I'm confused...So you DO dechlorinate plastic plants and the like but not your filter socks??

I would imagine the dryer (and the washer) introduces all kinds of elements, organic and non that we wouldn't necessarily want in our tanks...any reasoning behind using the dryer??

 

[alve]

I don't dechlorinate my filter socks. Once they are washed and had an extra rinse cycle I just hang them up to air dry. Once they are completely dry any leftover bleach would be gone. When I was doing some reading about this on RC long time ago I believe it was mentioned that any leftover bleach evaporates.
So far I have never had any issues.

 

[bayareaquarist]

When chlorine "evaporates" it leaves behind one caustic element and one other element that our tanks dont need. Sodium Hydroxide (NaOH) -being the caustic and table salt or Sodium Chloride (NaCl). The white powdery substance left behind is a combination of the two.

Both of these elements affect precipitation with these two specifically impacting PH and precipitation values...not to mention the rise is salinity from The NaCL...I just don't like taking chances so I rinse, rinse, and re-rinse anything I clean with caustic chemicals~!

 

[tuberider]

[quote author=bayareaquarist link=topic=5301.msg65888#msg65888 date=1227553332]
When chlorine "evaporates" it leaves behind one caustic element and one other element that our tanks dont need. Sodium Hydroxide (NaOH) -being the caustic and table salt or Sodium Chloride (NaCl). The white powdery substance left behind is a combination of the two.

Both of these elements affect precipitation with these two specifically impacting PH and precipitation values...not to mention the rise is salinity from The NaCL...I just don't like taking chances so I rinse, rinse, and re-rinse anything I clean with caustic chemicals~!
[/quote]

To each their own.

I rely on the extra rinse cycle like Aldie, again never had a problem on any of my tanks that use socks, go figure. Actually when I worked for a service company before I started my own, my boss would routinely dump coral back into tanks while they still reeked of bleach. Back then we used Genesis to dechlorinate, if he felt there was a little too much residual, he'd just throw a little Genesis int the tank ;D

 

[RavieReefer]

Cool, either way, I feel better about putting the filter socks in a bleach water solution and not have to dispose of them.

Thanks All!

 

[Raddogz]

I use two rinse cycles, and hang the filter socks out to dry for a minimum of 24hours before using them.