Changing / cleaning filter socks

W

William Lutman

Active member
So how often do you change filter socks?

Looks about weekly for me if I use a new sock, which leads to my second question

How do you clean your filter socks so that they work for more than a day or two?

Thanks
 
mine get switched out every week to two weeks depending how dirty it looks in the washer with bleach and let them dry completly ridding the bleach no issues here if there are lots f gunk inside ill rinse off before putting in washer o i should say they actually get washed twice second wash is just water i have two for reef and one for the fish only
 
I rinse mine out in the sink, and then soak them in bleach and water for a few hours. I rinse them one more time, and let them hang dry and they are good to go.

I change mine weekly... when I'm not being lazy!
 
I run mine about a week before I change. I put them into the clothes washer with bleach and run them on hot....with multiple rinse cycles. The key is then to let the dry completely. Air dry them...don't put them into the dryer.... I have about four of the small diameter and four of the large... I use the large ones on my 72 bow....and the small on my 92 bow... When I get to my last clean set.... I invert the dirty ones and toss them into the washer. I then let them dry for a couple of days.

Key point here..... don't let the wife see you put them into the washer.... She will freak out... :rofl:

This works well for me....and allows me to get good use of filter socks for my systems....
 
I just use bleach no soap my wife loves when i use the washer the way she looks at it its a 50% shot ill break it and then she can get a new one lol
 
I use oxy clean and soak them in a plastic bin...then I place in the washing machine and turn on a cycle without detergent.....the wife also does not enjoy this when she finds some snails in the washing machine
 
In washer with Oxy clean, fill a bucket with RO and add prime, soak for a day and let dry out....which reminds me I need to change mine out!!
 
lunacris said:
mine get switched out every week to two weeks depending how dirty it looks in the washer with bleach and let them dry completly ridding the bleach no issues here if there are lots f gunk inside ill rinse off before putting in washer o i should say they actually get washed twice second wash is just water i have two for reef and one for the fish only
Click to expand...

+1 exact way I do it
 
Jasimek said:
I use oxy clean and soak them in a plastic bin...then I place in the washing machine and turn on a cycle without detergent.....the wife also does not enjoy this when she finds some snails in the washing machine
Click to expand...
My wife would probably kill me if she found snails in the new front loader.
 
Correct me if I'm wrong here but the purpose of the sock is to catch all the particulates before they break down into nastier things. So if you are only changing your socks out once a week then all those things( poop and left over food) have a chance to start breaking down into nitrates and phosphates and whatever else they might break down I to right? So in my opinion they should be changed out Once a day kinda like dirty underwear. Now I admint I only change mine out about once every other day or sometimes every third day but that's cause I only have about 7 socks and I clean them out every other week if I had more I'd be more Inclined to change them more often. Because if you let it sit for a week won't all that matter start decaying and and polluting your tank?
 
I think the skimmer will pull out whatever gets stuc to those socks anyhow. I just don't see a point of the extra complication.
 
+1 on the wife killing me for washing "dirty" tank stuff in our washer haahaha.. there is always a day she does errands though so i get to sneek some cleaning in haha. i have 4 filter pads that i rotate every week. I transformed a wet/dry sump into a regular sump, i took the bio balls out and threw rock in there instead
 
You must log in or register to reply here.
Back
Top