[Bunbuku]

I'm the process of getting ready for my rescape and cleaned out my Eheim Ecco 2234. According the the instructions for the order in which media should be arranged from bottom to top is: coarse blue media> Substrat Pro> fine white media (or carbon pad).

I got to thinking, wouldn't it make more sense if the media was this way instead? coarse media>fine media>biologic filter>optional carbon pad. As water enters the mechanical media, large/small particulates get trapped, so that the Substrat Pro would be less likely to clog over time.

Looking around the web I found that ADA Japan has the same concept for their high end Super Jet filters http://www.adana.co.jp/aj_web/na/basics/basics_04.html

Has anyone ever tried this arrangement?

 

[Diana K]

In general the coarse mechanical then finer mechanical media come first and second.
Chemical media come next. (Carbon, peat, Purigen, whatever)
Bio media is often last.

You might put very fine mechanical media (such as polyester floss) after peat moss or other chemical media, (some types may tend to shed a little bit of dust at first) or after the Bio media. I have tried changing the position of this (I use quilt batting) and have not found a significant difference.

 

[Bunbuku]

When its set it up according to Eheim's instructions, I had to rinse out the bio media and replace the fine filter every month to maintain flow on my tank once it was established.

I will give this arrangement a try on my new setup and see how it works out.

 

[Diana K]

If your fine media is plugging up that fast then that is how often you will need to deal with it. Every tank is different.
I can rinse and re-use the quilt batting several times before it mats up in a way that makes it no longer useful as filter media.