One of the most crucial components of an aquarium tank is the filter. Aquarium tank filtration systems eliminate damaging chemicals and contaminants from your pet fish's home and keep the quality of the water. All aquarium filters will work properly only if they are uncontaminated and so it is necessary to replace or clean them often. They are extremely vital as the life of your fine-looking fish that gracefully adorns your tank depends highly on the water quality. Popular brands you find in most aquatic shops, to suit all sorts of aquariums. They are essential three types of aquariums filters obtainable on the market today. Let us review them, one by one.



Mechanical Filters

A mechanical filter works by trapping dirt and grime particles that are suspended in the aquarium water, fibrous pads placed inside the filter itself. With time, obviously these particles will start to collect in the filter and clog it, and prolonged presence of these particles will prove poisonous to the fish, so this type of filter system should be changed often. Mechanical filters have pads that are mostly made of polyester. These pads can also come in a variety of materials such as foam sponge, wool and pressed fibers. You can go for one of the various models offered by a variety of companies either internal or external filters.

Chemical Filtration

The most common kind of chemical filters are the charcoal filters. This type of filter has activated charcoal which is useful at taking away most common contaminants from the aquarium water. Charcoal filters function by letting the activated charcoal soak up all the unsafe substances floating in your tank's water. One more common type of filter utilized in home tanks is the carbon filter; these filters are very good at eliminating big quantities of contamination and function very well when used together with mechanical filters. But it is vital to keep in mind that any type of filter will only work well when it's clean. It is necessary to test the filter from time to time and replace its components when they get too filthy.

Biological Filter Systems

Biological filters also called Bio-filtration systems are undeniably the most efficient filters for your tank. This is mainly due to their ability to filter out chemical particles that are too tiny for other filtration systems to take out. We are referring to pollutants so tiny that you need to use a powerful microscope in order to see them. The way these filters work is by permitting the "good" bacteria to flourish inside the aquarium; these bacteria consume and process the waste products of the fish converting hazardous waste in to risk-free by-products allowing for the right chemical balance in the water. This is very important to the healthiness of the fish in the tank.

So What is Best

Depending on the nature, usage and volume of your aquarium, you can opt from a diversity of sizes and shapes of filters. A regular selection is to use a box corner filter made from plastic that can enclose all the diverse filtration systems used in aquariums. Some other familiar forms of filters are gravel filters that are located below the gravel base of an aquarium. These are connected to air pumps and canister filters that dangle from the side of the tank which includes a built-in pump that is connected to a sealed container that entraps waste and floating filth.

It is also very essential to keep in mind the type and size of your fish when you choose a filtration system for your tank. Especially in the case of an aquarium with small or baby fish, sponge type filters are essential as they safeguard the little ones from getting sucked up into the filter. A good combination of the filter systems mentioned will ensure you have good water quality and a healthy environment for your live stock.