Swiss Tropicals block tower filters

[LizStreithorst]

I need some new sponge filters. Some of mine are 20 years old. I understand that everyone is upset with the ATI Hydro Filters. I've been looking at the Swiss Tropicals block tower filters. Does anyone have experience with these or suggestions of what might be better to use?

[brewmaster15]

Supposedly The ATI issue is resolved Liz. Cant help on the swiss tropicals ones.. never used them but their sponges are high quality material

[LizStreithorst]

It this the base that I want? https://www.jehmco.com/html/hydro-sponge_filters.html

[Vanman]

Those Swiss Tropical filters look really good. I might have to try some. I am sure they are better than the cheap filters from Amazon that I am using. Which foam would be best in a discus tank?

[LizStreithorst]

YOu'll have to ask Swiss Tropicals, Gary. The larger ones were pretty expensive. I decided to go with the ATI ones. I just want to be sure I get the ones that have the correct base.

[Vanman]

I have been using these for a little over a year. So far so good. I suspend them as it makes it easier to siphon the bottom of the tank.

https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B07234RMMT/ref=ppx_yo_dt_b_search_asin_title?ie=UTF8&psc=1

[LizStreithorst]

I have some of those and IMO their just so-so. I'm going with the API ones as soon as I can find the ones with the newly corrected base. Al says that the weighted base is the one that everyone was complaining about.

[Vanman]

Maybe I need to get some API filters.

[LizStreithorst]

That's what I'd do. BTW, I just bought a Swiss Tropicals divider for my 90 gallon with my 2 pairs of Discus. It's the only thing that will work. $72 plus tax. Gulp. There stuff is the best, but you have to pay through the nose for the best.

[Vanman]

Liz,
What did you find was just so so about the Amazon filters?

[fljones3]

That's what I'd do. BTW, I just bought a Swiss Tropicals divider for my 90 gallon with my 2 pairs of Discus. It's the only thing that will work. $72 plus tax. Gulp. There stuff is the best, but you have to pay through the nose for the best.

Liz, have you gotten this and if so, your thoughts? I just ordered today a sponge divider, along with 2 cube filters. Pricey but look very well made.

[LizStreithorst]

The sponges themselves sit too close to the bottom. They accumulate a bunch of crud which lessens their overall water filtration. Since you suspend yours, it would not be a problem for you. My filters sit on the bottom.

[LizStreithorst]

Liz, have you gotten this and if so, your thoughts? I just ordered today a sponge divider, along with 2 cube filters. Pricey but look very well made.

Not yet. Pat has lots of experience with them, though. Let me know what you think of your new cube filters when you get them.

[anewbie]

I have a lot of swisstropical sponges; they are not cheap and i'm not sure they are any better than any other sponge but they work well and i never had a complaint (other than being expensive with expensive shipping). here are the things i've used:
3x3 and 4x4 cube filters (basic sponge filters that are a square - i actually like a 'corner' sponge filter i got on amazon that is square on one side and rounded on the other for my 10 but use the cubes in everything from 20 long to 600 (all numbers gallons).

I have a tower filter 10ppi 4x4x8 that i use as a prefilter on an fx6 and i will say it outlasted by a wide margin various prefilters i got on amazon (so that is a plus for swisstropical) the problem with the sponges i purchased on amazon is they would compress and fall apart - this very large prefilter i got from swisstropical has lasted a year and only needs to be clean once every 3 to 6 months). Also this guy was cheap $10 but of course shipping by itself would be painful but with a larger order is not bad.

I have corner matten filters on my 29s (3) and 40b (1). I ahve simple matten filters (just a block of foam cut to the correct size) on my 2 65s.
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I have two sumps sock full of swisstropical sponges - what happened here is that i had a sump that used socks and the socks get clogging every week which was too much of a workload so i replace it with sponges which means i only have to clean them once every 3 to 6 months. On the one hand i rather only clean once every 3 to 6 months on the other these are large sponge slices and take a bit of work to clean.
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Now for the negatives - in some cases my uplift tubes clog pretty fast - i can't compare them to other uplift tubes in these cases because i don't have them but the fundamental design can lead to blockages if the little holes in the tube clog - this happens mostly with my blackwater aquariums - and i ahve a *lot* of blackwater aquariums. It only happens on the matten uplift and not the sponges which makes me think it is related to the peat i have behind them (in filter bags but smallest particals can escape).
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I just placed another order yesterday so yea i will still use him but price is an issue for the price weary. Of course if you have a discus the cost is nothing
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[LizStreithorst]

lol I told a friend just the other day that I'm a poor person with a rich person's hobby. Of course, I wasn't poor back when I got my Discus. I was able to work back then so I would throw all my money on Discus.