Duckweed Guard for HOB Filters

[Mr.B 2,535]

A lot of people are interested in keeping duckweed in their tanks. Some see duckweed as a way to remove nitrates from the water, while others just want to raise a tasty snack for their goldfish. The main complaint that people have about duckweed is that it gets sucked into the intake of the HOB filter, and subsequently clogs the filter One of the as a main complaints Here’s a handy little tip for preventing that from happening.

I took a piece of airline, about eight inches long, and formed a loop. I used a piece of a chopstick to connect the two ends like this.

Next, I took some fishing line and tied one end to the guard, and the other end to a suction cup so that the guard wouldn’t just float around the tank.

Put the guard around the intake pipe of your HOB and stick the suction cup far enough away that it holds the line tight so that the guard stays where you want it. This is the end result.

This method has worked well for me. I have to make sure the water level stays pretty constant, otherwise the duckweed starts slipping past the guard.

I grow my duckweed out in a betta tank and feed it to the goldfish from time to time. You could try growing it in the tank with goldfish, but I don’t think it will last too long.

Hope this tip helps. Good luck! J

This post has been promoted to an article

Edited April 18, 2012 by Mr.B

[ShawneeRiver 2,720]

Great tip, Mr. B! I am definitely going to try this. I have duckweed in two smaller tanks, and it always gets sucked down.

[shakaho 6,313]

Thanks for posting. This works great.

[dnalex 13,633]

What a great tip! Thanks, Dan!

[shellbell4ever 1,381]

what a cool tip Thanks

[number20121 2,663]

Awesome! I wish I had seen this before I had duckweed. It all got eaten by the filter

[jhortensius 101]

This is great! Thanks!

[Cricket32 0]

Love this! I put duckweed in my tank all the time. I get it from a nearby pond that is over run with it and just rinse it. Mostly my fish eat it all but I worry about the pieces that end up in the filter. I'm gonna give this a try. Thanks

[Cricket32 0]

Love this! I put duckweed in my tank all the time. I get it from a nearby pond that is over run with it and just rinse it. Mostly my fish eat it all but I worry about the pieces that end up in the filter. I'm gonna give this a try. Thanks

[goody 0]

where can I buy Duck Weed?

[goody 0]

Where can I buy Duckweed?