# Cotton as filter



## Formzero

does adding up cotton on overhead filters filter cloudy water?


----------



## Left C

Cotton is a plant fiber and it will decompose over time. You may can use it over the short term.

Filter floss is a synthetic material and it might not decompose. If you find polyester floss, it is man-made and it might not decompose either.


----------



## Formzero

they say some cottons consist of polyethylene, is that true? and can alter water parameters?


----------



## lipadj46

Formzero said:


> they say some cottons consist of polyethylene, is that true? and can alter water parameters?


cotton is made out of cotton and will rot. You can get polyester quilt batting from a department store and that will work. Just make sure it does not have a flame retardant on it.


----------



## vicky

In US English, cotton is a specific plant, or the fiber from that plant. Filter floss is a synthetic material. Fiberfill or batting can be made from synthetic or cotton or even wool, or blends of these. Some may be suitable for a filter and others may not. If you are not sure, wash or rinse well before using, and test a small amount. Polyethylene is a synthetic material, generally inert, I think, that is made into many items - but it is not cotton.


----------



## cino

Which came first, the cotton or the cloudiness? Anything that came from the earth eventually returns to the earth. Yes, cotton will decompose, filter floss won't and filter floss is likely cheaper than cotton anyway. It is always best to use products made specifically for aquariums.


----------



## Diana K

I use polyester floss, purchased as quilt batting from a fabric store. 
It cuts into sheets, not a cloudy mass, and can be arranged in layers, or just one sheet thick. It can be fluffed up into a cloud-like mass, though it settles back down into the original sheet. The sheet is dense enough to catch fine debris, yet coarse enough to permit plenty of water flow. Two thicknesses is about all the average filter can work with, though. I use a single thickness in most HOB filters, a double thickness in canisters. 

The cotton balls that I am familiar with are too dense to use as aquarium filter media. They offer too much resistance to the flow of water even before they get filled with debris. You would have to pull the cotton balls apart into thinner media, and you might not be able to make the new shape an even distribution of fibers. 

Better to get the polyester sheets to begin with, and cut to the size that fits your filter. 
It can be rinsed and reused several times before it starts matting.
It is cheap enough.
One quilt has lasted me many years, and I have not even used a quarter of it.


----------



## Formzero

sorry for the delayed in my reply, i was kinda out of town..yes, the cloudy came first then i tried using cotton (the cheapest facial cotton i could get) yup, it works..i tried to look up on the content, it says natural cotton, 90% cellulose and 7% water, the 3% are some fat contents, etc which are minors. ^_^


----------



## ray-the-pilot

cino said:


> Which came first, the cotton or the cloudiness? Anything that came from the earth eventually returns to the earth. Yes, cotton will decompose, filter floss won't and filter floss is likely cheaper than cotton anyway. It is always best to use products made specifically for aquariums.


 +1
From the chemist's perspective, cotton is a biodegradable natural fiber. It is unsuitable as a filter material because it will decompose and lose all its filtering properties and possibly add to the bio load (cloudiness) of your tank.

Traditionally hobbyists used fiberglass in their filters because it is completely inert (ie made out of glass). This works well but glass fibers get into your tank (not a real problem) and the air (not good for your lungs).

Today, aquarium hobbyists have followed the pharmaceutical industry and have switched to polyester "cotton." This is a synthetic product made to mimic natural cotton. Physically it looks and behaves like natural cotton but it is almost completely not biodegradable. That means you can keep it in your filter a long time and it will not break down.

I wouldn't use anything that wasn't designed for aquarium use as there are a few different polyester cottons that contain bad extractable compounds. These could be hazardous to your plants and fish.


----------



## Justindew

Diana K said:


> I use polyester floss, purchased as quilt batting from a fabric store.
> It cuts into sheets, not a cloudy mass, and can be arranged in layers, or just one sheet thick. It can be fluffed up into a cloud-like mass, though it settles back down into the original sheet. The sheet is dense enough to catch fine debris, yet coarse enough to permit plenty of water flow. Two thicknesses is about all the average filter can work with, though. I use a single thickness in most HOB filters, a double thickness in canisters.
> 
> The cotton balls that I am familiar with are too dense to use as aquarium filter media. They offer too much resistance to the flow of water even before they get filled with debris. You would have to pull the cotton balls apart into thinner media, and you might not be able to make the new shape an even distribution of fibers.
> 
> Better to get the polyester sheets to begin with, and cut to the size that fits your filter.
> It can be rinsed and reused several times before it starts matting.
> It is cheap enough.
> One quilt has lasted me many years, and I have not even used a quarter of it.


+1 For quilt batting have to make sure it is not the one that they add the anti microbial stuff to though.


----------



## bubbleboy

Ummm I dont think cotton or poly will necessarily fix cloudy water... I think you need to figure out what made the water cloudy in the first place.. is it algae? Silt? Bacterial bloom? Seachem makes a product that helps coagulate the silt. Algae, well we know what will kill that. Some freaky bacterial bloom can be fixed with an antibiotic or a few drops of formaldehyde (but destroys the good bacteria in the process). A healthy tank never needs mechanical filtration, only biological. So my advice, figure out what is making the tank cloudy before you worry about what to use to take the "cloudy" out mechanically.


----------



## Abe

I found that plastic kitchen scour balls work wonderfully. I got a 6 pack of them for a dollar at the dollar store. Make sure to get the ones that weren't chemically treated, obviously. You may have to cut them to size. They fit perfectly in my AquaClear 20 and 30.


----------

