If you want to put a power head on an UGF then you'd set the intake on the riser tubes of the UGF.
The UGF base plate can be thought of as a kind of false bottom for the aquarium substrate. So it draws water down through the gravel (which is placed on top of the UGF plate), along underneath the base plate and then up the riser tubes and back out into the aquarium. Typically UGF's use airstones pushed down in the riser tubes. The air extruded from the airstones goes up the risers and draws water up along with it - and back out into the aquarium. The result is that the waste material in the aquarium becomes trapped in the gravel above the UGF plate. The idea behind it is that the beneficial bacteria in the gravel bed decompose the waste matter and neutralize it.
The powerheads just add more push and increase the flow. Instead of airstones using air bubbles to draw water up and out the risers, now it's the powerheads that suck the water up and out through them. Basically the same biological filtering principle is still in effect.
So you said you didn't know what a powerhead was... it's basically an electrical, submersible pump. The intake is on the bottom of the unit and it draws the water up into a chamber then an impeller forces the water out at 90* from the intake (so out the side of it). When it's placed on the the top of the UGF's open riser tube, the outlet port will jet expel the pumped water out along the surface of the aquarium.
How deep is your the water in you tank? If it's not that deep you might have to cut the risers so that the top of the powerhead is under the surface of the water........
I'm not really sure how an UGF would work in the setup you're describing because usually the base plate is the same size as the tank and will cover the entire aquarium bottom...... There's no land portion in your tank?
Another thing is that UGF's need time for cultures of beneficial bacteria to grow to the point where they can "consume" waste. The first nitrate / nitrite cycle is usually 8 - 10 weeks.... Also if your water dragon's feces are big, that UGF may not be able to handle that kind of waste even with a full complement of beneficial bacteria. It's not a very efficient filter. It was designed for fish waste not reptile waste.
You don't give details on how you intend to set it up but it doesn't sound like this would be a filter you'd want to use with a water dragon.
|
Linear Mode
