tang27 Posted January 5, 2003 Share Posted January 5, 2003 i have heard people take out the bio-media out of their filters why do they do this and what effects does this have.also can i do this with a seven gallon nano Link to comment
cjm033 Posted January 5, 2003 Share Posted January 5, 2003 the reason most people dont have media in there tanks is because they do more bad than good ,alot of the time they cause high high nitrites or nitrates (like in bioballs),its ok to put carbon in once in a while because that will help clear up the water but if its left in too long itll eventually be more bad than good, and about your other question yes you can take the media out in YOUR powerfilter,Chris Link to comment
tang27 Posted January 5, 2003 Author Share Posted January 5, 2003 so ur saying that i dont need anything in the media box even when im cycling the tank.i also dont need a fuge or anything.all i have is a zoo med power sweep 228 power head i also have a 7-gallon aga with a 32-watt pc 50/50 bulb retrofit .so i dont need any filter except for the occasional carbon block to clear the water. i just dont want to mess anything up. im talking about the hang on the back filters. Link to comment
cjm033 Posted January 5, 2003 Share Posted January 5, 2003 you can do a refugium if you want thatll help,i also forgot to add in the last post that its good to put floss or a filter pad in the hob filters to catch particles of food and other things but make sure that if you do the floss/filter pad that you clean the pad/floss and replace it every few weeks. i say that the hob is a fine idea because itll help keep unwanted food particles out of the water and it gives you a little more current, if you have any more question or need anything clarified just ask,Chris Link to comment
tang27 Posted January 5, 2003 Author Share Posted January 5, 2003 all right im currentlyrunning a regent hob could i just by foam pads or do i have to get another filter?what would i be able to do with a 50/50 32 watt pc on a 7 gal. also does the atinic have to have a seperate switch. Link to comment
cjm033 Posted January 5, 2003 Share Posted January 5, 2003 the hob is fine with the filter pads. as for lighting you could do softies and lps,and no you dont need a separate switch for the atinic,Chris Link to comment
newreefers Posted January 6, 2003 Share Posted January 6, 2003 I have a hob filter and use 100 micron filter fabric, I bought a couple of big sheets and cut it down and now have about 50 pads. I change them every 2-3 days. I save the dirty ones in a bucket and when I run low I wash them in the washer with bleach and reuse them. been doing this for a long time with good results. Link to comment
tang27 Posted January 6, 2003 Author Share Posted January 6, 2003 who much light is needed for sps Link to comment
tang27 Posted January 6, 2003 Author Share Posted January 6, 2003 also i wanted to know how to make a current with the zoo med power sweep 228 i have seen people on line using them just wondering Link to comment
smfyr241 Posted January 20, 2003 Share Posted January 20, 2003 I have a 12 gal. eclipse.....have been running the bio wheel and media pads w/ carbon in them......so take these out and use a filter floss and rely on the live rock to do the work? Will something happen if I take all of this out now? Link to comment
jburke30 Posted January 21, 2003 Share Posted January 21, 2003 Originally posted by smfyr241 I have a 12 gal. eclipse.....have been running the bio wheel and media pads w/ carbon in them......so take these out and use a filter floss and rely on the live rock to do the work? Will something happen if I take all of this out now? The question you need to ask yourself before you remove these things is: Am I having any problems with them? If not I would leave them in until you're sure you don't want them anymore (just make sure you keep up on the maintenance with them). I would always recommend that you use some type of mechanical filtration (filter pads or sponges in the HOB) just to take out large particles. However, if you leave those ####-encrusted pads in the HOB for too long then they can (and probably will) cause you problems in the long run. In my opinion, you can remove the carbon without any major issues immediately, though it's not a bad idea to use it every so often to clear up the water (most people worry about the carbon removing trace elements from the water, and while this may be true it's probably not as big of a deal as some people make it out to be). The bio-wheel, on the other hand, could be more problematic. If you really want to remove it I would make sure that your bio-load is small so that you don't encounter a re-cycling event in your tank. If you feel the bio-wheel is causing you nitrate issues look into some denitrification strategies before you make any decisions. The high nitrates, if there, are there for a reason (and not just because of the bio-wheel), and more than likely it's because of bio-load and lack of denitrifying activities. In any event, keep the mechanical fitration in place regardless of what you do, and be prepared to adjust your bio-load if you do make a change. Link to comment
smfyr241 Posted January 21, 2003 Share Posted January 21, 2003 thank you for the info......I have decided to go with losing the carbon and putting in some filter material. Bio wheel will stay.....and im thinking of adding a skimmer / prizm. I found out i have been feeding too much...twice a day frozen brine...and liquid filter food for my feather dusters once a day...way to much. Link to comment
jburke30 Posted January 22, 2003 Share Posted January 22, 2003 Originally posted by smfyr241 thank you for the info......I have decided to go with losing the carbon and putting in some filter material. Bio wheel will stay.....and im thinking of adding a skimmer / prizm. I found out i have been feeding too much...twice a day frozen brine...and liquid filter food for my feather dusters once a day...way to much. Um, yeah. That's seems a bit excessive =). You can reduce the waste from the brine shrimp by using a coffe filter to strain them before you feed. For your feather dusters you can also use a hard airline tube to get the food directly to them (works for coral also). Good luck. PS: Once you see the #### that your skimmer pulls out of your seemingly clean water you'll never go without one again =). I'm totaly sold on these things now (and I have a crappy one!). However, dosing the tank with Iodine is often recommended with a skimmer (it's said that they remove this trace element). Link to comment
printerdown01 Posted January 23, 2003 Share Posted January 23, 2003 Hey tang you have a PM. Just for commentary I have been running a bio-wheel for over a year and a half now on a 12 gallon without any problems. Also never leave the marineland GAC packets in your eclipse or penguin for more than 3 weeks! After this period of time the carbon will begin releasing whatever bonded to it back into the water. You will see the effects in your tank. It won't cause it to crash or anything, you will just see a little algae; easy to fix, just replace the packet. I think they run about $2, so cost is not an issue. Link to comment
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