Aquamats

[Paddlefoot]

Has anyone tried using this material in a sump? I had some pretty dramatic reductions in sting algae and nitrates in a koi pond using them. They did take a couple years for them to fully mature but they seem to work. The fish love playing in them and they are great spawing material. I just dont know if its practical in a smaller setting. Their website is
www.aquamats.com

For what its worth I used to have ammonia spikes during spawning and nitrates around 25-30mg. Now I get no ammonia spikes and Nitrates in the single digits.

[o.c.d.]

Removes 80% phosphate and 90% nitrates and ammonia in 36 hrs,wow sounds to go to be true.If you already have some I'd be testing them out for sure.Were they expensive?

[mfp1016]

Sounds like one of those things that works really for five or six years and then the dreaded crash happens. Just my speculation.

[Paddlefoot]

I forget exactly what I paid for them but were about $100 a unit. They are not really made for a tank environment.
I have never tested for phosphate in the pond but the algae reduction was dramatic. Prior to installing the mats my 100gpm waterfall would be choked with string algea every 7-10 days requiring a stiff brushing and occasional pressure washing. Last year I cleaned the falls just once between April and November. I have 4 mats in 3000 gallons which adds 20,000 square feet of effective surface area. For a tank application the ballast would have to be cut off and the mats trimmed to size. It would require a larger sump than I have. The mats I have are 3 years old and show no signs of degradation.