What bio media do you use and why?

[Jayday]

topic:

 

[kno4te]

Lava rock. Cheap and it works.

 

[tlindsey]

Sponges, Bio balls, Plastic scrubbers, Bio max.

 

[Bigfishnut]

K1 fluidized media...self cleaning, super efficient, looks pretty cool rolling around in the sump

 

[Gourami Swami]

I've got a bunch of ceramic media and brown emeim bio-things that have come with various filters over the years. They seem to work fine for me. Lava rock is a good choice if you need cheap effective media.

 

[J. H.]

Playsand. It's cheap and has more surface area cubic inch for cubic inch then anything else.

 

[pescado209]

pumice stone . paid about $20 for 50lbs. should be enough to run both sumps I plan to build.
all other tanks, 40g x4 20g x2, are going back to sponge, HMF for simplicity and cheap operation.

 

[Jozi81]

K5 fluidized media, other stuff with more area is out there, but nothing beats the movment and bumps that removes all the dead bacteria and leave place for vital ones.

 

[Fish Tank Travis]

Bio balls and ceramic media. They are easy to bag up in mesh bags and toss into the sump. This also makes them easy to remove and rinse out. They are also cheap. However, I wouldn’t hesitate to use lava rock in the future. I don’t car to use any of the expensive stuff considering how simple the task is. I could see myself running some K1 at some point though.

 

[Castlk]

Anybody using Seachem Matrix, Eheim Substrat-Pro or Marine Pure? If so what is your opinion of them. I'm interested in the Eheim Substrat-Pro but heard the Seachem Matrix and Marine Pure has alot more surface area, any thoughts?