biological filtration
- Thread starter NgaNasty
- Start date
There's such a thing as too much to the point where your beneficial bacteria colony can't use it all... you don't have an infinite number of beneficial bacteria, they grow only to the size of their food source.
But too much in the sense of it being negative? Not really.
But too much in the sense of it being negative? Not really.
basically i have a odyssea 4 chamber canister filter. i am going to pick up a magnum 350 and fil that with just mechanical. my plan for the oddyssea is leave the top chamber with a layer of pad and fill the other 3 chambers with ceramics. this is in a 55g
Too much biological filtration or too much filtration in general depends on what you find acceptable. The only real harm you can do to your stock is by creating too much flow, but the greater danger is to your wallet. 
You don't need nearly as much filtration as the prevailing attitude on MFK might lead you to believe. If you have 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite in your water, you have enough biological filtration. Any additional filtration on top of what will keep your water parameters in check is excess. I am very much in favour of a comfortable amount of excess and redundancy of equipment, 'just in case'.
The two filters you propose using on the 55G would be a very comfortable excess when filled with just about any media you like. If you have an issue with one, the other should be able to handle filtration by itself for however long it takes to sort the problem out.
You don't need nearly as much filtration as the prevailing attitude on MFK might lead you to believe. If you have 0 ammonia and 0 nitrite in your water, you have enough biological filtration. Any additional filtration on top of what will keep your water parameters in check is excess. I am very much in favour of a comfortable amount of excess and redundancy of equipment, 'just in case'.
The two filters you propose using on the 55G would be a very comfortable excess when filled with just about any media you like. If you have an issue with one, the other should be able to handle filtration by itself for however long it takes to sort the problem out.
Nope, because the extra bacteria just die off. You only have as much bacteria as the amount of ammonia and nitrites in the water. Without food, the colony of bacteria can't keep growing, so even if you have a lot of biological media, it won't all be colonized.
However, it is a good idea to have more media than you need, so if for whatever reason the amount of ammonia and nitrites produced should rise unexpectedly, the bacterial colonies have room to expand.
However, it is a good idea to have more media than you need, so if for whatever reason the amount of ammonia and nitrites produced should rise unexpectedly, the bacterial colonies have room to expand.
well the reason im asking is cause my oddyssea isnt keeping up with my oscar. the water doesnt smell and my water params are great but my water isnt clear. i know how to set up the magnum right but thats just mostly a water polisher.
NgaNasty;4716283; said:
If your water tests are proving ok then it is mechanical filtration that is your problem. A lot of people forget that sponges will act as biological media too. Just treat them like you would dedicated biological media and clean in old tank water and do not let it dry out while you are cleaning the filter.
I run a sump and I have nearly got rid of all the bio balls I put in there because I don't need them, I bought them thinking I did but I am now using the extra space for sponge and micron pad.
Also if you have good water flow to circulate your water properly then items in your tank, even the tank walls, will act as biological media.
^ I agree with Dave 100%.. Ma nature comes with biological, not mechanical. Proper mechanical should be of more concern (especially with an oscar)
These threads always end the same though. Some guys trying to defend purchasing 12 FX5's for a 180 gallon and calling it "monster", all the young kids jumping on the band wagon. The guys that know better rarely speak up because it's not worth the fight. This tank has ZERO commercial biomedia. WC once every 3 weeks for mineral replenishment.
These threads always end the same though. Some guys trying to defend purchasing 12 FX5's for a 180 gallon and calling it "monster", all the young kids jumping on the band wagon. The guys that know better rarely speak up because it's not worth the fight. This tank has ZERO commercial biomedia. WC once every 3 weeks for mineral replenishment.