Fitration

[gareth.hubbarde]

My 300 litre tank has no sump, it has internal filtration column which can house different types of media (almost a small sump, pic attached ) built in I believe juwel call it bioflow 3.0. As I have no sump so can only go for a hang on a skimmer along with live rock and this mini sump do you think that will be OK?

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[billdogg]

I would consider changing out most of those sponges for more biological or chemical (carbon). The sponges will quickly collect detritus that will then break down and contribute to nitrate/phosphate issues. The way around that would be frequent cleaning - at least weekly, and that will soon become rather tiresome. You'll begin to put it off longer and longer until out of nowhere, algae will become king of the tank.

I say that from the perspective of someone who kept a 60g cube for 22 years. No sump. Just a HOB biowheel and a canister which is functionally the same as the setup you show. It became a PIA soon enough, and I battled algae issues frequently.

 

[Uncle99]

Wow, I have not seen that, in the reef setup, that would be a nutrient hotel!

Great advice from DaveK.

I finally whacked the last HOB myself about a month ago.
Not required...it was hard to let it go......did kept the water clear of marine snow.

But add more rock and supercharge your filtering capabilities.

 

[gareth.hubbarde]

I would consider changing out most of those sponges for more biological or chemical (carbon). The sponges will quickly collect detritus that will then break down and contribute to nitrate/phosphate issues. The way around that would be frequent cleaning - at least weekly, and that will soon become rather tiresome. You'll begin to put it off longer and longer until out of nowhere, algae will become king of the tank.

I say that from the perspective of someone who kept a 60g cube for 22 years. No sump. Just a HOB biowheel and a canister which is functionally the same as the setup you show. It became a PIA soon enough, and I battled algae issues frequently.

Thanks, at the moment that filter is empty except for filter floss to help get rid of dust from the new sand. During the cycle I will add stuff to it, I have bio pellets that go in a reactor, would they do ok in a mesh bag in there? The guy at Lfs did recommend live rock rubble, I'm always concerned that a pile of rocks just collects crap. Should I run a bag of cRbon in there too? I understand that gets rid of toxins etc? Coukd probably run a bag of phosphate removing stuffike rowaphos. This is after the tank has cycled.
I will be getting more live rock as I can afford it. Getting 10kg this week hopefully. I added pure bio balls to help bacteria grow will throw a prawn in tomorrow to kick start things.
I appreciate all the advice please keep it coming.

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[billdogg]

Regardless of what you put it in, it will require cleaning often. Use a sponge at whichever end is the intake to catch the bulk of the gunk and rinse it every few days for best results. What's nice about a setup like you have is that you can run anything in there you want. I use carbon 24/7/365 and have since I started over 30 years ago. Phosphate removal media can be useful, but should not be used unless you test and there is too much. 0.0 is not the goal with PO4. All creatures need a little phosphate for basic metabolic processes so aim for ~0.03 or so. Using a Salifert test, that means just a touch of blue.

Live rock rubble or other similar media is a good choice. All you'll have to do to keep it clean is to periodically rinse it in a little tank water.

 

[gareth.hubbarde]

Thanks, it's very helpful. Going to start testing for ammonia tomorrow and monitor over next couple of weeks. Will throw a shrimp in to help it along, (frozen shrimp) lol.
Your input has been fab though.

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[billdogg]

Anytime. Happy to help.

Feel free to PM me if you need to. I tend to check in on RC at least a few times a day

 

[RioReefr]

IMO, I think you should get rid of 4,5, and 7 sponges. As others have stated, they will just trap nutrients and pollute the tank.

I have an AIO tank with the a custom-caddy where the over-flow goes. I have a 200-micron filter sock which collects uneaten food and crap. I replace this out every 1-3 days. Next in-line after that is GAC (changed out weekly).
#6 looks like SeaChem Matrix rock. I used to have that in my overflow chamber but also found it trapped garbage so I removed it. Each additional bio-filter you add impedes the overall flow of the tank which is vitally important. You should really strive to have very good flow throughout your system and having all those filter pads hinders that.

 

[gareth.hubbarde]

IMO, I think you should get rid of 4,5, and 7 sponges. As others have stated, they will just trap nutrients and pollute the tank.

I have an AIO tank with the a custom-caddy where the over-flow goes. I have a 200-micron filter sock which collects uneaten food and crap. I replace this out every 1-3 days. Next in-line after that is GAC (changed out weekly).
#6 looks like SeaChem Matrix rock. I used to have that in my overflow chamber but also found it trapped garbage so I removed it. Each additional bio-filter you add impedes the overall flow of the tank which is vitally important. You should really strive to have very good flow throughout your system and having all those filter pads hinders that.

Thanks, only thing In there at moment is fine filter floss, just to help with sand dust. This will be the case during cycle. After that will put carbon in under the fine floss so that most crap is caught before going down. Will probably run a bag of bio pellets too. I have good flow through the tank with a pump either end plus the main filter pump. So I'm not worried about that, also going for about 30kg of live rock eventually, most of that should be in early next week. Half in there at the moment.

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