Question: Theoretically....Wouldn't this work?

Okay so I have two ten gallon hang on back filters filtering a ten gallon.

Why do I have to use cartridges for these filters when couldn't I just
use a mesh drawstring bag (they sell them at pet stores for next to nothing)
and put that inside of the filter with my choice of filter media?

1. It would give more surface area for bacteria to grow
2. It seems like it would filter better because you could add more filter media
3. Cheaper, reusable (depending on your filter media)
4. You can use your own choice of filter media. Ceramic, bio-balls, charcoal, etc.
I'm sure there's more pros but would there be any cons?
5. Easy to pull out and rinse off.

I've seen other filters where they have like a layer of sponge, then bags of media to filter through. Why wouldn't it work just the same with these cheap hang on back filters?

Thinking of cutting sponge rectangle to fit where cartridge would fit
then before that step would have two bags of a combination of ceramic, charcoal,
or other media choice. Sounds solid to me

Any thoughts, suggestions, ideas would be appreciated.
I'm going to try it because it sounds like a great idea unless someone gives me a good
reason why it wouldn't work.

Thanks :-]

i don't see the point in carbon filtration, unless we're talking about very specific types of filtration. but for broad filtration, I don't think carbon is really that useful. But hob's can definitely be customized. Here's what I do

Have 1 hob filter on my ten gallon tank, haven't changed the water in months(guppy/cherry shrimp tank), and my nitrates are always below 20. The roots are a good biological media, and the plants themselves remove ammonium/nitrate.

What a great idea! What kind of plant is that and would the plant I choose need to be aquatic or just a regular plant? This is a good idea :]

And I agree, I have never seen much of a difference using charcoal but some recommend it.
I only use ceramic and sponge in mine and works good for me but then again that is what I use
for my canister filter.

p.s. that is actually what I am housing in my tank right now, guppies and some ghost shrimp and a cory cat for now. still can add a few stock to the tank but making sure it is established a little more first.

I'm using a mixture of pothos/peace lilly. The tank is also heavily planted with aquatic plants, but for filtration purposes I've found that marginal plants do a little better job filtering a fish tank. I made an actual plant filter out of the plants, and had a few spares, so i thought I'd throw them in the hob filter, and it's worked amazingly

Yes plant filters work great! also there is no reason why you cant create your own "bag". Cartritges are a waste of money in my oppinion. I created my own filter, with a powehead pump, some tubing, and a plastic container i fill with whatever media i want. It works fantasticly because i chose a large container and stuffed it full of media. There are holes in the bottom where the filtered water trickles through. Biological filtration is what matteres the most with axolotls, and plants provide that extemley well without having to cycle... they just suck up the impurities. If you were creating your own filter cartridge, make sure you provide lots of surface area for bacteria. I find cermaic noodles good.

Yeah I have a 4ft x 1ft x 1ft tank for my axolotl and it's got a decent amount of plants in it but I need
to get some more. This 10 gallon tank is actually housing some guppies and ghost shrimp for now and
I was trying to think of better filtration for them.

Carson: I was wondering more about the planted filter. Is there some sort of web site that talks more
about it in depth? I am wondering how the plant survives in only water with no soil. Wouldn't the roots rot or does it have to be a certain type of plant? haha. Sorry, but you've sparked my curiosity and I want to do it now but need more info so I don't botch it.

you need to get marginal plants that survive by having their roots in water, but have their leaves above the water. I'm not sure if there is a specific website for it, but if you search ripariums, you should get plenty of info. If you get a marginal plant that was originally planted in soil, ,the roots will rot at first, but will grow aquatic roots after 2-3 weeks.
Here's the thread I made about it when I originally heard about this, and the thread also has a link to where I heard about it
http://www.caudata.org/forum/f46-be...ups-filters-substrate/75767-plant-filter.html
Using ripariums are just handy for axolotls, because you can put extra light on them, without having to worry about your axolotl, and they get much larger than most aquatic plants. For instance I have a pothos vine in my ten gallon that's about 3-4 feet long now, which I bet is a huge nitrate suck.

Thanks for the information, found a few websites that talked briefly about it so I went and bought a golden pothos for $5 and trimmed some off of it under the nodes and so we'll wait and see if they grow roots or just end up dying ha. As far as clippings go I'm wondering if I shouldn't add more clippings to filter, like 3 or 4 instead of just one. Hope I can get this to work for me because it'd save energy and seems way more efficient with time and money. I also think it looks really pretty. Thanks for the info!