yep it was definitively a relief to see the walls insulated and done. Ive only had the nitrate filter for about a week, so its not cycled yet, but it grows bacteria from a daily vodka feeding. Its basically the same as dosing a tank with vodka except its contained in the filter, Ive vodka dosed before but using this filter seems allot safer and you have the option of feeding it each day or up to every 4 days. I have had very good success with a smaller unit on my 180 gallon. My nitrates are always zero and I can honestly go allot longer without a water change, but i still do regular water changes, with this filter and my light amount of fish in the system I plan on doing about 25% water changes every 2 to 2.5 months.