Matrix (and siporax) questions, to keep from derailing Sahin's thread.....

[Johnyman]

Hello guys, let me tell you my experience with Siporax.
I started a new tank in the beginning of 2015 with 3 liters of siporax, after i put my first fish, i noticed the nitrate started raising for >50ppm! I had a cyano outbreak because of the imbalanced (Zero phosphate and >50ppm nitrate). To solved the problem i started dosing vodka+MB7 and after 2 months nitrate was between 5ppm and 10ppm, but i wasn't satisfied and i knew that siporax was producing part of the nitrate issue...so after debating and read many articles, I washed 1/2 of the siporax with RO water and bleach. After two weeks after placing the siporax the nitrate started to drop and now i clean 1/4 of my siporax every month and my nitrate is 0,2 ppm.

 

[Giovanni]

do any of you run this along with carbon/gfo?

gfo

 

[nemodan]

Wrong posting

 

[Ontheway]

Hello guys, let me tell you my experience with Siporax.
I started a new tank in the beginning of 2015 with 3 liters of siporax, after i put my first fish, i noticed the nitrate started raising for >50ppm! I had a cyano outbreak because of the imbalanced (Zero phosphate and >50ppm nitrate). To solved the problem i started dosing vodka+MB7 and after 2 months nitrate was between 5ppm and 10ppm, but i wasn't satisfied and i knew that siporax was producing part of the nitrate issue...so after debating and read many articles, I washed 1/2 of the siporax with RO water and bleach. After two weeks after placing the siporax the nitrate started to drop and now i clean 1/4 of my siporax every month and my nitrate is 0,2 ppm.

Can you please describe the conditions the siporax sitting in? Like where is it in sump, before/after protein skimmer, any filter socks, container material etc.

 

[Johnyman]

Sure!

I dont use filter socks, I put them in a basket suspended in the last division of the sump near the return pump, i know i dont have any type of detricts in the siporax because when i clean part of them i can´t see none.

 

[Giovanni]

Sure!

I dont use filter socks, I put them in a basket suspended in the last division of the sump near the return pump, i know i dont have any type of detricts in the siporax because when i clean part of them i can´t see none.

I like that it is suspend off the bottom. How do you keep algae from growing on them?

 

[Johnyman]

I like that it is suspend off the bottom. How do you keep algae from growing on them?

I don´t do anything. Although i have a light for my refugium near it, i never had problems with algae in that sump division, so i never care for it.

 

[Superpuma]

I've just added 5litres of Siporax to my 500litre (125gallons) display, l have it in a reactor with 300litres/hour going through it, l hope it will assist in reducing nitrate.
Sera's webpage recommends 200-400 litres/hour flowrate through the stuff, in a reactor. If you have Siporax in eggcrate in your sump and you have a 5000 litre/hour return pump you'll surely be getting more than 200-400 litres/hour through your Siporax?

 

[Ontheway]

Sure!

I dont use filter socks, I put them in a basket suspended in the last division of the sump near the return pump, i know i dont have any type of detricts in the siporax because when i clean part of them i can´t see none.

Following are just my opinions on your situation.
When you clean and then bleach part of them, I think you are creating free estate by wiping out formers. New colonizers are using nitrate for other purposes then filling the oxygen need. This may help, in case of already-low nitrates scenario. If your siporax container is freely moving in water, imo, there is very little chance for establishment of anaerobic denitrifying bacteria. Therefore your siporax cage appears mostly using the nitrate consuming potential of aerobic nitrification bacteria.

 

[nemodan]

Following are just my opinions on your situation.
When you clean and then bleach part of them, I think you are creating free estate by wiping out formers. New colonizers are using nitrate for other purposes then filling the oxygen need. This may help, in case of already-low nitrates scenario. If your siporax container is freely moving in water, imo, there is very little chance for establishment of anaerobic denitrifying bacteria. Therefore your siporax cage appears mostly using the nitrate consuming potential of aerobic nitrification bacteria.

The anaerobic Bacterias will growth in the internal pores/chanels where very low or could be almost nothing of O2 exists.

You need to clean, from time to time, all these type of porous material to avoid a total blockage of water circulation where the anaerobic bacteria leaves.

The small movement of a cage like the one of the picture will not affect any bacterial colonization (aerobic and anaerobic) .

My opinion.......

 

[Ontheway]

I am currently running a denitrator filled with siporaxes. Orp prob connected and after 4 days of waiting, mv value is around -90 yet. For denitrification, recommended value is between -150 and -200. Thats why I have concerns on degree of anaerobic activity in such an open system.
On the other hand, movement of cage will certainly introduce more nitrates to bacteria colonies on or around siporax beds, and this is necessary for nitrate removal.

 

[gus6464]

What you all using to seed your siporax?

 

[nemodan]

What you all using to seed your siporax?

Post #7 of this thread !!

I add those Bacterias every month.

Cheers
Daniel

 

[Johnyman]

What you all using to seed your siporax?

Like i said in my first post, I dose vodka+Microbater7

 

[Johnyman]

Following are just my opinions on your situation.
When you clean and then bleach part of them, I think you are creating free estate by wiping out formers. New colonizers are using nitrate for other purposes then filling the oxygen need. This may help, in case of already-low nitrates scenario. If your siporax container is freely moving in water, imo, there is very little chance for establishment of anaerobic denitrifying bacteria. Therefore your siporax cage appears mostly using the nitrate consuming potential of aerobic nitrification bacteria.

My opinion is that when i bleach part of the siporax (I never clean all of them once) it starts a new production of bacteria, aerobic and anaerobic (Sera brand says that the two kinds of bacteria can fix in the siporax if we give them the best condition to do it). And because I´m doing this every month, every month it produces a large bateria colony, so a large consume of nitrate and phosphate.
I saw a different paradigm with the brazilian guys, many of them use A LOT liters of siporax, even they don´t clean it...they produce a lot of bacteria in their system so they also can control the nitrate level efficiently.

So for the 3L of siporax make any impact in my 350L reef tank (90G), I must clean part of it to continuous producing a huge population for the nitrate consuming.

Sorry if my english is bad, hope i can transmite you my opinion...

 

[Giovanni]

the anaerobic bacterias will growth in the internal pores/chanels where very low or could be almost nothing of o2 exists.

+1

 

[Ontheway]

My opinion is that when i bleach part of the siporax (I never clean all of them once) it starts a new production of bacteria, aerobic and anaerobic (Sera brand says that the two kinds of bacteria can fix in the siporax if we give them the best condition to do it). And because I´m doing this every month, every month it produces a large bateria colony, so a large consume of nitrate and phosphate.
I saw a different paradigm with the brazilian guys, many of them use A LOT liters of siporax, even they don´t clean it...they produce a lot of bacteria in their system so they also can control the nitrate level efficiently.

So for the 3L of siporax make any impact in my 350L reef tank (90G), I must clean part of it to continuous producing a huge population for the nitrate consuming.

Sorry if my english is bad, hope i can transmite you my opinion...

I understand your opinions very well.
I placed a very small aquarium (8liters) into the sump and filled it with 6 liters of siporax. I let water fill it and overflow into sump back. Then 10 days later, cut the connection with filling water and its just waiting there filled to the top with aquarium water, for more then a week. There is no nitrate difference between aquarium and siporax cage, up to now. Still waiting.

I tried to translate some brasilian forums to understand whats going on, but may be wrong forums, could not find photos etc showing their systems.

Thats true, a lot of siporax certainly helps, then whats the advantage of using siporax instead of live rock?

 

[EvMiBo]

I have bin running the spheres for quite awhile well over the recommended amount and have not noticed any reduction in No3. Started carbon dosing and pulled no3 from 50 to 10 in 3 weeks I think carbon was the missing link.

I'm late to the party, but the spheres aren't supposed to reduce NO3. They combat ammonia mostly. The 8x8x4 blocks house the anaerobic bacteria that pulls down NO3.

 

[M007]

I understand your opinions very well.
I placed a very small aquarium (8liters) into the sump and filled it with 6 liters of siporax. I let water fill it and overflow into sump back. Then 10 days later, cut the connection with filling water and its just waiting there filled to the top with aquarium water, for more then a week. There is no nitrate difference between aquarium and siporax cage, up to now. Still waiting.

I tried to translate some brasilian forums to understand whats going on, but may be wrong forums, could not find photos etc showing their systems.

Thats true, a lot of siporax certainly helps, then whats the advantage of using siporax instead of live rock?

Intersting experiment but I don't think Siproax sitting in stagnating tank water will yield any positive results.

 

[nemodan]

Thats true, a lot of siporax certainly helps, then whats the advantage of using siporax instead of live rock?

The ratio to surface area and the high porosity of the material that will allow a bigger anaerobic bacteria population. This last is the reason why it is sold as a way to reduce NO3.

A bunch of siporax and Matrix will replace LOTS of live rock and will be MORE efficient.

All this discussions about flow , if I place it here or there, if 100, 250 , 500 or whatever Gallons per hour is good or bad.......etc.

It doesn't matter the flow and how dirty is your water, there will be a degree of flow and dirty accumulation from the outside to the inside of those "cages or Media Reactors" with siporax or Matrix.

I have Matrix in media reactors and in the media rack of my tank (RSM 250). It gets all different types of flow. From 640 GPH to 300 GPH and I never care if this was good or bad. The external stones get that flow, but goin internally there will be lower and lower and lower flow. The same for the tank dirtiness. I do not have any mechanical filtration. The external stone will be the dirtiest.

I washed once in 8 months my Matrix during a WC. And they are working very well.

I seed bacterias every month to avoid a shift of type of bacteria in the system.

I feed my 20 fish, in a system with a total volume of 100 G, 4 frozen cubes plus some flake food once per day. My NO3 are 0.5 ppm.

I do have too a lot of Macro Algae for the Phosphates (0 ppm).

40 G breeder with Macro and you can see 2 out of 4 Media Reactors with Matrix. They have MAX 1200 PUMP (~280 GPH each).



A FTS (65G) to have an idea of the bioload that is being supported (nutrient export) with the Macros and the Matrix (20 fish total between DT and Fuge + lots of corals).



Cheers
Daniel