The
plastic lighting grid had to be cut to shape so that it would fit into the
tank. We also cut a hole in the middle for the center post. The
center post is stabilized with a base plate. We didn't screw or glue the
base into the filter tank because after it's assembled the plastic grid
and lava rocks hold it up sturdy. The drilled holes at the bottom of our
center post are also visible. These holes must be drilled just at the
bottom so that they are under the plastic grid.
We used quite a few bags of lava rock to fill the filter. Because of the odd shape of the
Rubbermaid stock tank, the pads at the top must be cut carefully to fit snuggly
in the filter. If there are any gaps between them and the
sides of the filter, the dirt could flow around them back into the
pond.
The filter pads were cut from a roll of material called Blocksom Filter
Material. It is a 1 inch thick material constructed of
all natural coconut fibers with a green latex binding on a polyester net
backing. Although there are many filter
materials available, we found this product easy to use and very
effective. We purchased ours from an excellent company called Aquatic
Eco Systems, Inc.
