The closed loop repurposed to clean the sand

[rickcasa]

Any way to repurpose a closed loop into something more functional?

I've got plenty of flow from my 4 MPs and 2 Moceans so I was thinking of connecting a large canister filter to aid in sandbed cleanup duty. I hate vacuuming and in my current quest for ultimately automating most things, this is the one task I desperately need to devote some brain cells towards. The poop just doesn't get forced up high enough to be drawn to the overflows.

I dont need it constantly running (I dont want a nitrate factory), maybe automated to run 3 hrs a day synced with Vortech's nutrient transport mode...or esp after I stir up the sand a bit.

Is there a DIY out there like a sealed box of socks (lol), or a better product than a canister of sponges that's robust enough for this task? I figure I can reverse the flow so that the 4 nozzles at the sand level can be fitted with strainers and suck the detritus to a filter and forced through what is now the intake. Can I get away with cleaning the filter only once a month? Running full time or intermittently?

My 180 is a year old, looking great, but I refuse to vacuum 3" of sand. Old tank syndrome is where I'm headed.

Back up plan is to just reverse the flow of the DC pump and out to the house drain for a more traditional semi-automated vacuum/water change system.

[hillegom]

I don't know about the closed loop.
What I want to comment on is your canister filter. If you leave detrius in the cannister more than 4 days/week, it will decompose and send the nutrients right back into the tank. Thats why people clean their filter socks regularly.
The other camp doesn't use filter socks and they let the detrius decompose anyway and let the skimmer pick up the DOCs
I run a small HOB with a filter and clean it out every 3-4 days. Nutrient export.
It takes me about 5 min.
There is a lot of ways to do detrius and I am sure someone else will chime in

[SoloSK71]

Get a huge clean up crew and no more old tank syndrome.

Charles