Filtreau Excellent Combi Drum 30/50 – Pump Fed

Filtreau Excellent Combi Drum 30/50 – Pump Fed

A larger drum for a pump-fed combi installation

The pump-fed Excellent Combi 30/50 brings a larger 500 mm drum and integrated biological sections to ponds where dirty water is pumped into the filter. It is an alternative to a gravity-fed filter pit, but the installation still needs a substantial base and a well-planned return to the pond.

This version has a maximum throughput of 35,000 litres/hour, not the 50,000 litres/hour of its gravity-fed counterpart. That distinction matters when choosing a circulation pump, especially if more than one pump supplies the filter.

Automatic cleaning before biological treatment

The drum’s 120-micron screen removes solids from the incoming water. Restriction at the screen changes the water level, triggering the controller to turn the drum and run the built-in wash pump. The rinse carries waste away through a separate discharge rather than through the media chambers.

The biological sections then provide space for moving and fixed media. Beneficial bacteria process ammonia and nitrite once established, while the included 80W high-output UV-C helps control suspended algae. These stages complement each other; clear water alone does not prove ammonia and nitrite are safe.

Media options with a clear purpose

Choose Hel-X for the moving-bed section and Japanese matting for the separate static area. The air pump is an additional item and needs to deliver adequate air at the chamber depth. An under-aerated, overfilled bed is less useful than a sensible media quantity kept moving evenly.

The optional arrangement for this model contains 100 litres of Hel-X and 3 m² of matting. Our loose matting add-on uses our high-quality Japanese matting sheets measuring 1.2 × 1 m. One or two sheets are an exact quantity of uncut material; two total 2.4 m² before trimming and therefore do not represent the whole 3 m² configuration.

The matching 30/50 cartridge-and-media package is a separate choice when stock permits. If you are planning a shower, compare the 30/50 trickle add-on and its own flow limit before routing the return through it. The whole filter flow need not pass through every optional stage.

Pump output and return capacity

Select the pump on its delivered output after lift and pipe losses, then allow the return to carry that water without backing up. Avoid reducing a large filter outlet into a convenient small hose. Valves should provide control and isolation without leaving the return accidentally throttled during normal running.

Pump-fed model data

Leaving room to look after it

Plan a service aisle beside the 1,510 × 1,117 × 995 mm body and space above it to open the lid safely. The quartz and lamp need an unobstructed removal route. Wastewater should drain where it can be inspected rather than disappearing into a pipe that is impossible to clear.

Follow the Excellent filter instructions for commissioning and monthly inspections. If your pond already has bottom drains feeding a filter at pond level, compare the gravity-fed 30/50 instead of adapting the wrong version after delivery.

Related equipment and advice

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• View the full Filtreau range
• Browse Filtreau drum filters
• Read our drum filter guide
• Compare all drum filters
• Choose a variable pond pump
• Choose a Charles Austen air pump
• Pressure pipe, valves and fittings
• View Filtreau UV-C units
• Find replacement UV lamps and quartz sleeves