Should I add ceramics
- Thread starter turkoman
- Start date
These bags with lava rock
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01HT6OM1A/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B01HT6OM1A/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o03_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I would get as much media as possible. In my wet dry I have bio balls then below them I have 25lbs of ceramic rings, followed by 12lbs of sintered glass balls. You can never have enough filtration IMO and with how much rays cost spending a little more for the media shouldn't really matter.
Also it wont be fluidized and airstone cannot move the ceramics as they are to heavy. The extra oxygen will help more BB colonies form I believe so it will still be beneficial as wll as when the bubbles break the surface the oxygen then moves to the bio balls which helps as well.
Also it wont be fluidized and airstone cannot move the ceramics as they are to heavy. The extra oxygen will help more BB colonies form I believe so it will still be beneficial as wll as when the bubbles break the surface the oxygen then moves to the bio balls which helps as well.
I have been changing out all my bioballs. I have gone to these:
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B072BKTHL4/ref=yo_ii_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I add an airstone under this media to help the bacteria. It really improves the filtration.
Get rid of the bb and run more of thismedia or ceramic rings.
https://www.amazon.com/gp/aw/d/B072BKTHL4/ref=yo_ii_img?ie=UTF8&psc=1
I add an airstone under this media to help the bacteria. It really improves the filtration.
Get rid of the bb and run more of thismedia or ceramic rings.
I used these from Walmart. One package made 3 giant sized media bags. And they were $0.94 each.
If you don't have an airstone under the bioballs I would recommend adding one. Bioballs do a great job of breaking streams of water down to drops of water greatly increasing the surface are of the water. You want fresh air rising up through the bioballs while the water drops down through the bioballs. Besides increasing the O2 exchange the fresh air will also maximize the growth potential of the bacteria on the bioballs.
I doubt you need ceramic rings in your sump, bioballs are very efficient at maximizing the effect of beneficial bacteria. BUT extra bio media never hurts!
I doubt you need ceramic rings in your sump, bioballs are very efficient at maximizing the effect of beneficial bacteria. BUT extra bio media never hurts!
Bioballs are designed to break down streams of water into water drops to increase the surface area of the water. The greater the surface area of the water the more gas exchange you will have between the water and the air. "I" would not replace bioballs with ceramic media. "I" would leave the bioballs where they are and put the ceramic media underneath the bioballs. The incoming water will find continous flow paths through your ceramic media and not be broken down to water drops greatly DECREASING the total water surface area... this is the reason bioballs are designed the way they are.
In my opinion submerged bioballs are a waste and ceramic media is MUCH more effective in a submerged environment. In an air/water exchange environment like a trickle filter bioballs are much superior to ceramic media because of their mechanical properties of breaking down streams of water into water drops.
My bioballs were submerged. I was using them wrong.
Sorry I missed that they were submerged. It looks like they are above the water line in your picture. My mistake!
