No Balls?

[Seaworthy]

Why does everyone say to not use bio balls? I saw some cool ones with carbon inside. I would think the extra area for bacteria would be like putting live rock in your sump. Is there a good reason to not use them?

 

[bosscrab]

They build up slime that can cause nitrates to spike. The LR is doing what the bio balls would.

 

[drummereef]

It's the wet/dry type of filtration that doesn't allow for anerobic bacteria to do it's thing. That's why they are inefficient at breaking down nitrate. The carbon inside the bio-balls is just asking for trouble. Unless you plan to open and refill each one monthly then don't even think about it. Just get at least 1lb/gallon of live rock in your tank to serve as the primary bio filter and all is good. Just say no to bio-balls.

 

[coast2coast7390]

personally i dont like the ones with carbon or foam in them because that media has to be replaced eventually...if you are going to get ones with media in them go with the ceramic beads

 

[fatdaddy]

I think that they just work too well. They quickly breakdown waste to nitrates before the skimmer has a chance to remove them from the system. They are fine for a dense fish only tank where ammonia is an issue, but for a reef tank, they aren't necessary and can lead to excess amounts of nitrates.

 

[Gary Majchrzak]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=10254969#post10254969 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by bosscrab
They build up slime that can cause nitrates to spike. The LR is doing what the bio balls would.

no slime needed for spiking nitrates! (Clean) bioballs are designed to quicly convert ammonia and nitrites to (less harmful) nitrates. Liverock certainly does a heckuva lot more than bioballs because it provides an area for anaerobic bacteria to reduce nitrates.

IME if you don't use any liverock in your aquarium and you use bioballs the money you saved on rock will be spent on more frequest water changes. Go price out artificial salt.