I have 220g cichlid aquarium with 2 fx5's running about a couple of years now. My water is not as clear as I want it to be I'm thinking it has to do with the biological media. Both fx5's have biomax on the bottom two trays and carbon on the top one. Was thinking adding pot scrubbies and getting rid of the carbon. any advice on how and what medias to put in my filters?
Biomax versus other Biological Media
- Thread starter jomeza83
- Start date
I'd get rid of the carbon and use more biomax. Add some filter floss to the top of the fx5s to polish the water. It'll remove the little particles that sneak through the biomax. Only down side is that it clogs fairly quickly
Pot srubbies like bio balls are best when used in a wet/dry state (Surrounded by air with water trickling over them). Biological media is made to provide a platform to grow nitrifying bacteria on. If you have high Ammonia or Nitrite levels you need more bio media. Bio media isn't going to do much for cloudy water. For cloudy water you need better/more mechanical filtration.
You need water polishing pads to clear up the cloudiness. I don't know what media is available for FX5's but if they have water polishing pads available that is what you need.
If you aren't able to clear up your water with water polishing pads in your FX5's you should look into a Magnum 350 or DE (Diatom) filter. A Diatom filter is just about the ultimate I know of for water clarity.
You need water polishing pads to clear up the cloudiness. I don't know what media is available for FX5's but if they have water polishing pads available that is what you need.
If you aren't able to clear up your water with water polishing pads in your FX5's you should look into a Magnum 350 or DE (Diatom) filter. A Diatom filter is just about the ultimate I know of for water clarity.
This is too vague. If a cloudy appearance is due to a unicellular algae bloom, then only a micron filter will remove it, but there are better options for removal. If the cloud is an over abundance of heterotrophic bacteria (ammonia bloom) then all the mechanical in the world won't fix it, only a larger bacteria colony via more bio media, or more beneficial bacteria. Only if the cloud is a particulate cloud, will mechanical filtration really clear it up.
As said above, ditch the scrubbers, and go for a bio media. I'd go for either Eheim's Substrat pro, or Seachem's Pond Matrix. Both are higher in surface area than the fluval biomax.
