bio balls in overflow

[rudyr03]

my nitrates are at 20...my question is i have bio balls located in my over flow that the water trickles down into my sump....would removing these bio balls lower my nitrates

 

[drummereef]

Probably. Why do you have them in there? Sounds like a flood hazzard.

 

[rudyr03]

when i bought the tank they were in there so i just left them...so i should start removing them like a handfull at a time over the course of several weeks

 

[drummereef]

Yes, if you have enough live rock to support the bio load. Do you have at least 1lb/gallon of rock?

Also, do you have any other bio media, sponges, floss, or other mechanical media in the sump/filtration?

 

[rudyr03]

i need to get more rock first .....by my set up is like this i used to have a wet dry but it came with three compartments so one of the compartments i removed all the bioballs and added some cualerpa so the water comes down from the overflow into the first section with the bio balls then flows under to the 2nd section where i have my cualerpa and some cheato then flows over to the 3 section where i have my protien skimmer then it goes to my return

 

[drummereef]

Ok. The bio balls in your sump are also causing some nitrate issues I'm sure. If you can get your hands on some live rock it would be the best way to go. Make sure it is fully cured, or cure it in rubbermaid containers yourself, before you add it to the tank. Then once things are set up, go ahead and slowly remove all the bio balls from the system over the course of a few weeks. This will allow the live rock to take up the bio load.

 

[rudyr03]

i have like 80lbs of live rock and sadly enough i only have a clown fish in a 150 wit some snails and hermits...i had a devastating accident bout a month ago when one of my anenomes got stuck in the suction part of the powerhead and pretty much shredded it and all my fishes died except for the clown......enough with the sad stories lol..if i have 80lbs of live rock and some of it is branch that looks nice.. can i add some base rock to complete it or its not going to be pourious(check spelling) enough i can get cured base rock for 3.00 a pound compared to other live rock thats twice that

 

[drummereef]

That sucks, sorry to hear that. Depends on the base rock. Marco rock is very nice base rock. But, even though it is base, it will cause a cycle. There is dead organic matter in all the little crevices in the rock that will breakdown when added to the system. Cycling/curing it outside the tank is the best option.

 

[rudyr03]

yeah i know im going to have to cure it but can i buy the remaining 70lbs from marco rocks and i would be fine just cure it and add it to my tank ....how much time before you think it becomes live and starts acting like a filter

 

[drummereef]

Yes, that would be fine. Hard to say how long it will take to become totally eficient. If you add your fish slowly (1 at a time) over the course of a few weeks I'm sure there wouldn't be any problems.

 

[rudyr03]

ok thanks alot for your patience lol

 

[drummereef]

No problem. I hope it all works out for you. :thumbsup:

 

[rudyr03]

ok thanks alot for your patience lol

 

[drummereef]