An under gravel will chiefly function as a biological filter, but larger debris can naturally also become trapped in the substrate. In this type of filter, water is forced through the substrate at the bottom of the aquarium by an air lift or power head attached to an air lift. To make sure that the filter functions properly, the aquarium keeper will usually place the gravel on top of a perforated surface. The actual filtration is performed by bacteria that colonize the surface of the each pebble or corn of sand. The smaller the particles, the more surface area for the bacteria to colonize. An under gravel filter should therefore not be constructed using large-sized gravel. When you select between the various air lifts and power heads, you should keep in mind that very rapid currents are undesirable in an under gravel filter.
The under gravel filter is inexpensive, but can be hard to clean, especially for the inexperienced aquarium keepers. If a lot of debris becomes stuck among the gravel, it will seriously hamper the filtration process. You can reduce the risk by attaching a sponge at the water intake. This way, the water will be mechanically filtered before it is forced through the under gravel filter. Remember to clean the sponge regularly.
Another way of preventing clogging is to employ so called "reverse-flow under gravel filtration". During this type of filtration, a power head is used to push water up through the gravel. Under gravel filters are most common in freshwater aquarium, but they will work well in marine fish-only aquariums too unless the aquarium is heavily stocked. A reef aquarium will typically need more powerful forms of filtration than the under gravel filter, since reef creatures tend to be extremely sensitive to poor water quality.
Fluidized bed filter
Fluidized bed filters are often used in planted aquariums. Unlike many other types of filter, they will not make carbon dioxide escape from the water. This filter is similar to the under gravel filter, but is comprised of small sand particles instead of gravel. Both the under gravel filter and the fluidized bed filter are biological filters that require bacterial colonization to work, and since sand particles are smaller than gravel there will be more surface area for bacteria to colonize in a fluidized bet filter.
Another difference between the under gravel filter and the fluidized bed filter is that the later one is more compact and has a more powerful water flow forced through it. In the fluidized bed filter, the sand will be tumbled around quite violently and this will make the water highly aerated. This in turn will provide the bacteria with plenty of valuable oxygen. This powerful water flow means that this filter rarely clogs up, and you do not have to spend a lot of time on maintenance work. If clogging does occur, it must be solved immediately since an oxygen deprived fluidized filter is unhealthy for the aquarium.
There are several types of ready made fluidized bed filters to choose among, and you can also create your own do it yourself filter. This filter can be placed inside the aquarium or hung outside the aquarium like a power filter. If you make your own fluidized bed filter, you should keep in mind that it will need a very strong water pump to work.
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