Thread: Drum filter replacement

ive got the profi 55/40 .Very happy .Works flawlessly .You can pick a used 45/40 up for around £1700

In all fairness I think profi are now made in Doncaster

I have a burtons BD700. It’s been running for about 4 months now and so far has been great. No real complaints and I’m happy with the quality.


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I’ve ruled out the Profi now as I’ve realised I had problems with the owner previously when I lost 4fish and he didn’t give a hoot and was only worried and aggressive about the review I’d left online!

Ive had Oase drums for the last decade, they’re very good with excellent customer service but probably more expensive than others brands on the market - but you do get a good warranty etc. Add on bio chambers perhaps undersized…

re youre green water problem - stupid question I know but you do change your UV bulb(s) every 6 months / year?

other issue might be that your turnover rate thru the UV is too low or is under sized depending on daily amount of sunshine your pond is exposed to.

Bulb changed every year. Given the cost of electric I actually only have it on at the same time as the shower (spring to early Autumn). I think you may be correct on the flow rate through it though. Faulty parts replaced on drum, cleaned out bio riser chamber and I’ve turned the pump up to about 16k an hour. I’ll run it like this for a while to see what happens to clarity and if the parameters change (which have been good). I think I may treat myself to an amalgam UV.

Originally Posted by DiabloDave

Bulb changed every year. Given the cost of electric I actually only have it on at the same time as the shower (spring to early Autumn). I think you may be correct on the flow rate through it though. Faulty parts replaced on drum, cleaned out bio riser chamber and I’ve turned the pump up to about 16k an hour. I’ll run it like this for a while to see what happens to clarity and if the parameters change (which have been good). I think I may treat myself to an amalgam UV.

before you spend money on a new UV I would run the pump at full throttle through the UV for a few months during May and June - way cheaper if it works than a new amalgam.

dont forget the traditional 50w tube uv bulbs should be changed every 6 months not every year if in constnt use

good luck

Originally Posted by WaterRhino

before you spend money on a new UV I would run the pump at full throttle through the UV for a few months during May and June - way cheaper if it works than a new amalgam.

dont forget the traditional 50w tube uv bulbs should be changed every 6 months not every year if in constnt use

good luck

it's amazing how long the amalgam UV's last, year 3 on the same 40watt tube for mine
the amalgam replacement light still shows green too...

I have a QK35 on a 4000 gallon pond and have had gin clear water since installing even during summer when I feed heavily.

I have 2 20,000 vari pumps running on this at 80% as well as 40watt amalgam, bio chamber with 200litre of hel-x and k+ media and shower.

Not had any issues with QK35 as not missed a beat for 2 years.

Hope this helps.


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Originally Posted by Dom G20

I have a QK35 on a 4000 gallon pond and have had gin clear water since installing even during summer when I feed heavily.

I have 2 20,000 vari pumps running on this at 80% as well as 40watt amalgam, bio chamber with 200litre of hel-x and k+ media and shower.

Not had any issues with QK35 as not missed a beat for 2 years.

Hope this helps.


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That’s great to know. I’ve spent quite alot of my time today phoning over half a dozen different retailers about drum filters and every single one recommended Oase as being at the top of all their lists. I’m really surprised by this and at the moment I can’t justify the expense. I’ve been thinking very seriously about the QK35 as it would definitely be able to handle the flow rate I’ll put through it and potentially save me money on reduced rinse times too.

Envious you can run two 20k pumps, I’ve just worked my usage out today at 7.5kW per day on the pond alone. That’s more than everything else combined in my whole house which is given the size of my house is surprising!

Originally Posted by Twhitenosugar

If you're reconfiguring your filtration set up, how about installing an airlift to pump the water instead of using a conventional pond pump?

It will save you a fair amount in the long run in terms of running costs and also not having to fork out for pond pumps every 5 or so years. Plus it will only involve a bit of 4" pipework and digging a narrow hole?



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I keep seeing post about airlifts but I’m so old school I’m not sure where I’d start tbh. I’ve also got a really annoying neighbour who’s caused me endless stress because of complaints about the pond because of water splashing into it (I have two 1.5” returns and both are under water). Would it be noisy? What is the average size air pump that would be needed to shift say:-
15k LPH
20k LPH

Thanks,
David

Originally Posted by Twhitenosugar

Tbh I was wary about whether they'd work, but they definitely do. I know of at least nick, ukzero, John, slickbe and myself (there may be others) on this forum who have successfully used airlifts on their ponds, so be assured they definitely do.

In terms of noise, I'd say the noisest part is the air pump, if you can dampen that down, then it is very quiet. I put my air pumps in a wham plastic box, drilled some holes to let air in and lined the box with celotex insulation. With the box sat on concrete blocks, I can't hear my pumps from outside of the shed.

Also you can create a sound muffler (e.g. A 4" disc of jap matting) that can plug into the top of pipework on the air vents of the airlift to dampen any sound out.

In terms of air pump, you'd need an air pump that is 40 - 60lpm for the air lift - it doesn't have to be huge, which is what makes them so efficient to run.

It's hard to say what flow you will get as there are so many variables. But to give you an idea, a put a hi-blow 40xp pump on mine and the flow was more than my solum 16 drum could handle. It was dropping the water level so much it kept washing. At a guess, I'd say a decent 40lpm pump can do somewhere in the region of 14k - 24k lph flow.

If you have a moving bed you'll need extra air for that. I use a hi-blow 80xp for my air lift and moving bed (210l of k1) and it works fine for both, you just need a manifold to control how much air goes to the air lift and bio filter.

In terms of the airlift, you essentially making a really tall u bend out of 4" pipe on the pipework after your filters. It needs to be between 1.5 - 2m deep (the deeper the better). Then you shove an air stone down the ubend closest to the pond and the rising air will draw water from the filters, up through the bubbles and then at the top of the u bend it will flow into the pond (pond returns need to be under water but close to the surface). You need to let the air escape, so you need to put a swept T (or 2 if you have the space) on the pipework between the airlift and pond.



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Thanks for the detailed reply. When I get time I’ll do some research h to see if I can find design and photos of what others have done. No point in reinventing the wheel!

Still need to decide what I’m going to do with the filtration system given if I go that route I’ll have to start adapting the rear of the Draco bio too….

Originally Posted by Twhitenosugar

No problem. I'm happy to help out with any questions you have, and I'm sure the others will be happy to chip in too.

When you say you'll have to change the back of the bio filter, is that to convert it from a 2" outlet to 4" outlet?

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Yes - the filter has two 2” outlets, but thinking about it, I’m not sure it’s possible to alter the Draco as it has an outlet chamber in it to stop the media from being sucked out.