Bio>Lava<Ring?

[sAroock]

I have a pond fountain and I'm doing the DIY canister floating around on the internet. Ppl put different thing in but im deciding between:

- x1000 44mm Bio Balls
- 25kg Ceramic Rings
- 25Kg Lava Rocks

Economically the Bio balls is on top. It will be all submerse, and water will be pushing up in a cylinder..

?

 

[Freezekougra]

aren't bio balls bad submersed?


"Bio-Balls

Surface area/cu.ft.:100-175

Upsides:fair surface area,shaped for maximum aeration,can be purchased in bulk,often for a fair price if shopped for online.One of the best things you can put in the wet/dry section of your sump.

Downsides:can be pricey if your too lazy to shop around.I also hear Pot Scrubbies work at least as well as bio-balls in the wet/dry chamber,though I have not personally confirmed this.Effectiveness supposedly greatly diminished when submerged.

Overall:The media most people use in the wet/dry section of their sumps, followed by scrubbies in a close second."
http://www.monsterfishkeepers.com/forums/showthread.php?t=88677

 

[nfored]

Bio balls shouldn't be submerged, go with lava rock if your going to submerge it.

 

[BlackShark11k]

go with ceramic rings, lava rock has very little surface are.

 

[LoganBlade]

Jumping on this one. Ok I plan on making a sump. Is the lava ok if I have lot of it. Could I mix in a bit of the Ceramic. Price seems high on ceramic for a qty. My plan to use the lava in first chamber. A filter dripping over the bio balls in a dry section. that dripping into more filtration material. I then plan on put in a plant section "refuge?" including freshwater clams. then in last chamber the pump. Like most I want to do the best with least expensive material.

 

[nfored]

I use Lava rocks, as do many many other members on this form. It has less surface area for sure, but that goes back to the discussion of how much bio media do you actually need.

 

[jcardona1]

i would go with ceramic rings. lava rock clogs easily and ends up being just plain rocks.

 

[knifegill]

This is the first I've heard of bioballs needing to be above water to function best. How much more efficient are they when above water? I thought most sump designs had the scrubbies submerged?

 

[jcardona1]

This is the first I've heard of bioballs needing to be above water to function best. How much more efficient are they when above water? I thought most sump designs had the scrubbies submerged?

both scrubbies and bio balls are more effecient when theyre not submerged. if you want to submerge your media, ceramic is the way to go

 

[knifegill]

Okay. But lava rock doesn't have enough surface area to be worth wet-dry duty? Why is ceramic not recommended for wet-dry? I am assuming these questions are in line with the topic. If not, I'll start a different thread or search...