so, answer me this.....

[h2what]

if everybody on this thing dumped exactly 5 gallons of our trash water from water changes into the ocean at the same exact time would it overflow??what would happen?. prolly nothing though

 

hahaha...i kid i kid

ok now the real question . if a given idiot. (figuratively speaking hear) was cleaning his filter media,then the phone rings, and rings it does, over and over again kinda like that one song. the unsuspecting bystander comes back only to find all the filter media has dropped into a bucket of bleach and water that was probbly being used to mop the floor.

i cleaned,i mean he cleaned (the idiot) the filter case which was all that was left of the filter which was deemed usable.

 

so to make a long story short does "he" have to cycle the damn tank over again, its my newest and only been setup for almost four months now.

 

-ideas would be much appreciated-

 

1

[matthewruno]

I'd just get new filter media, or replace it with some macro algae or live rock.

[neanderthalman]

you don't need to cycle your tank, nor do you need to replace your filter media. All of your filtration can be done biologically in your LR. Sponges and whatnot become full of organic material, and release loads of nitrates into your tank. Try using your HOB as a mini-refugium. Put small peices of LR rubble into it, give it a little itty bitty light, and put some chaeto in it for nutrient export. Carbon and Chemipure are unnecessary if you establish a proper ecosystem.

[fishy610]

Easy answer: Get new filter media or throw your tank out of the window. $5. Snip.

 

Besides (i keep repeating myself, i know, i know): You do not need any filter media in your reef nano! A filter/sponge will become biological in no time and will become a nitrate factory. I is safe to run for a day or a few days to clean out any gunk that is floating around, but with proper and well-positioned water flow, you wouldn't need a filter anyway.

[BKtomodachi]

Fishy610... I find alot of what you say to be incorrect, or partially correct.

 

Yes, you do need filter media in your nano. Whether its live rock, HOB, DSB, whatever, you pretty much need it.

 

You know what else? Nitrate will be made in your tank at the same rate, whether in a sponge, or wherever else your detritus goes. Thats why I like daily rinsed sponges... to remove the gunk. Also, skimming can get many organics out before they even have the opportunity to be made into nitrate.

 

Again, you need a filter. Most people use live rock.

[fishy610]

No, you don't need a filter... BK, you're totally wrong. Sure, there are a million different setups, but you defintitely don't need a HOB filter or canister filter. Every book that I have read about reefing and many threads in here and on reefcentral can back me up.

 

I don't have one and many, many others in here don't have one as well. My water is crystal-clear and never needs a sponge. Sure, if it works for you and you rinse your filter religiously, then there's nothing wrong with it, but to spread the rumour that a sponge/filter is necessary is just incorrect.

 

The deitirus gets blown off the rocks with a turkey baster and the gravel gets vacuumed and sucked away with water changes. All a filter adds is excess biological filtration, filtration that is naturally done by your live rock (so you said yourself, because you don't want nitrifiying bacteria in your sponge, but rather in your substrate and rock).

[BKtomodachi]

..... you need a filter. Most people use live rock as theirs.

 

I think you're just not understanding that live rock IS a filter. It IS the media.

 

You gravel vacuum?

 

Also, I dont remember preaching that everyone needs a sponge. All I said is what I LIKE.

[fishy610]

Oh, okay..misunderstanding. Sure, LR is your filter. I have taken that somehow for granted.

 

I meant you were talking about HOB, canister, etc... The initial poster asked what to do if his filter pad (not LR) would hit some bleach, that's why.

 

Yep, I gravel vaccum very lightly, because i got lulled into a fairly shallow 1.5" sandbed that was responsible for excess nutrients that linger more towards the surface and leech into the water. Caused a nasty algae growth.

[janasleah]

So fishy, since you were lulled into the shallow sand bed....would you recommend bare bottom or DSB?

[fishy610]

I actually do like my sand bed and don't really mind to gravel anyway, but if I had a choice I'd probably go for a DSB, just because it looks more natural and leaves more choices to aquascape. The biological implications of the various depths seem a bit overrated, but I am sure many disagree.

 

The latest fashion, so I heard, are reefs without any substrate at all. While this might look very stylish, it just looks very unnatural and scores with me the same points as a plastic spongebob blowing bubbles in a freshwater tank.

[FAC_WNY]

"The latest fashion" is how reef tanks began. Barebottom was the original way to run them before this sandbed nonsense started (and we see where it's gotten us).

 

As far as unnatural goes...that really only applies in the very beginning of the setup...after time, just like every other surface in a well-run tank, things get covered in coralline/corals/etc. The benefits of BB are myriad, but the most obvious two being that you can really crank up the flow to all parts of the system and that you can remove detritus before it can get "trapped".

 

Cheers,

Fred

[fishy610]

Ha, i didn't know that. Thanks for the info, Fred!