BioBalls

[Seawizard]

I am starting a 125g fish with live rock /maybe some corals that are compatible with the fish I plan to keep. I am following orders from a higher power(my wife). She has informed me that after 12 yrs that that SHE has decided that I will try my hand at a marine tank once again. I have had freshwater tropicals for approx 15 yrs and have tried at a marine tank, but with my ultimate failure after 1yr I gave up and continued with FW. Now I will try my hand at it once again. Am planning on a 55g wet/dry that I will make my self. (Yep, I have a few tanks and will convert a 55 to a wet /dry.) Am wondering how many bio balls to use in the chamber, I have now approx 2gal with more on the way. Any help, advice, tips, will be appreciated. I caused the deaths of enough fish with my last attempt. I just want to do it right this time.

 

[Godoftheseas]

well i figure i might as well take this one. Pretty much everyone on here will tell you to not use any bioballs as they will catch debri and become nitrate factories which will lead to a tank failure. Instead your best bet is to make them a fuge to grow macro algea. There are many instructions on here for making one that will be the best set up for good water quality.

Also good luck with your setup.(or should i say your wifes setup jk)

mike

 

[AngeloM3]

^^^ I agree

Unless you plan on a tank without LR.... bioballs will make ANY tank crash!

Their old "technology" and shouldnt be used in SW tanks.... unless you dont have any LR in the tank!

 

[kgross]

A wet dry filter works very good at 1/2 of the nitrogen cycle, which is why they are good for fish tanks and bad for reef tanks. The end result in the filter is nitrate, which i not good for any type of a reef tank. What I would suggest you do, is either decide to go light on the fish and do a reef tank or atleast fish only with live rock, and then you will not need the wet dry filter, or give up on the idea of any corals and do the wet dry. I"m not saying you can not do corals with a wet dry, just that it is not the best filtration system for a reef type tank.

Kim

 

[Pbrown3701]

yes - do yourself a favor:

Ditch the bioballs and wetdry and invest in 3-5lbs of Live Rock per gallon of tankwater (oh, and a good skimmer). That is all you really need.

 

[jaze36]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7995833#post7995833 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Pbrown3701
yes - do yourself a favor:

Ditch the bioballs and wetdry and invest in 3-5lbs of Live Rock per gallon of tankwater (oh, and a good skimmer). That is all you really need.

Isn't 3-5 lbs/gal a little much, I would think you would want to be between 1-2 lbs/gal. I know it depends on the type of live rock you get, but if you have very porous rock I don't think you would have much room for anything else.

Yes get the best skimmer you can afford, and steer clear of the bioballs. You did a good thing finding reef central, read up on current set up, a lot has changed in the last decade and you will save yourself a lot of future frustration. Good luck.

 

[Seawizard]

Thanks for the info! I am trying to do it right, I just have to do a little at a time. The boss said that she wants me to take the time to do it right I've asked her what she wants in the tank, and the only thing she says is small fish. Me, personally I would like to have a natural setup with a mixture of both, but I also know that some corals are not fish freindly and vise/versa. So any advice, comments, tips, help, is appreciated. As I said I know a little about marine (very little) and think that I can use all the help I can get!