The present invention is a method of using crumb rubber from recycled tires as a filter media. The use of crumb rubber as a media differs from conventional sand or anthracite filters in several ways. The crumb rubber media is compressible which allows the porosity between rubber particles to decrease through the filter bed. The crumb rubber media compresses as headloss increases, allowing for better effluent quality late in the run. The crumb rubber media allows greater depth filtration. The crumb rubber media can be used at high filter rates, greater than 20 gpm/ft². The crumb rubber media performs similarly to other traditional filter media in respect to turbidity and total suspended solids removal. The crumb rubber media properties are closely tied to media size and shape, with smaller media providing better effluent qualities and larger media allowing longer filter runs at higher flow rates.