What filtration media should I use for fry tank?

[RedAnt78]

For my fry tank I am going to use a 10gal that is separated from the HOB filter by a divider. What media should I put in the filter? Phosban, carbon, purigen...etc?
Thanks for any info!

 

[rayjay]

I don't use a filter or biofilter preferring to do water changes instead.
As they get older (3-4 months), I use rock as the biofilter.
IMO the tank and any content need to be frequently wiped down to remove the bacterial slime that coats everything the water touches.

 

[vlangel]

I don't use a filter or biofilter preferring to do water changes instead.
As they get older (3-4 months), I use rock as the biofilter.
IMO the tank and any content need to be frequently wiped down to remove the bacterial slime that coats everything the water touches.

rayjay, my baby seahorses are now almost 10 weeks old and are putting a strain on my main aquarium system, as evidenced by my nitrates raising from 0-5ppm now to 10-20ppm in spite of daily 5 gallon water changes. I am moving 12 of them into a 20 L with a small HOB pump and a little live rock. What size water change would be appropriate and how often in your opinion?

 

[rayjay]

Well for me, I never check nitrates or anything other than s.g. and temperature and ammonia in fry, adults or even reef tanks.
You can have excellent readings for everything you could possibly test for and still loose stock due to water quality because you can't test for everything. (no test kits for and not knowing WHAT to test for)
I also never keep fry in systems connected to adults or other fish/corals.
With that in mind, I can't really give a difinitive answer for you, but if it were my tank I'd be still doing the wipe down of all surfaces and changing all the water about every 2-3 days. IME, the bacteria problem is one of the biggest causes of fry failures.
How are you protecting the fry from the intake of the HOB?

 

[vlangel]

I will have them corralled by a tank divider at the end opposite of the HOB pump. Am I better if I am changing that much water just using a sponge filter? I have one that is cycled.
I knew that about bacteria and not being able to test for it and I have been diligent with water changes, wiping down all the surfaces and bleaching anything that can be bleached. However a raising nitrate level, although no indication of bacteria, is an indication that my water is not as good as it has always been. Perhaps I have just been very lucky keeping my fry attached to my main aquarium and hopefully when I move them they will be better off as well as my main system. It'd be ashame to lose them now as they are really cute. They all color up when I come with food and a couple have cirri all over their head.

 

[rayjay]

I use open ended air lines in all my tanks, fry or adults.
As I want water quality to be at it's best, especially for the fry, I don't mind changing total water each time I do the wipe down every 2-3 days.
As for the nitrates, you've only had the seahorses now for about 3 months, and that is a ball park time for deteriorating water conditions in the display tank to begin showing (some a little before, some later) and it may be due in part to the fry in there, but I'd be concerned the husbandry isn't sufficient for the adults perhaps, and that conditions are still going to deteriorate after removing the fry.
It would certainly be wise to keep an eye on things like you are doing, but maybe consider doing better husbandry in finding/removing trapped and unseen detritus with larger water changes.
If there are mechanical filter pads, clean them out about 2 times a week.

 

[vlangel]

I use open ended air lines in all my tanks, fry or adults.
As I want water quality to be at it's best, especially for the fry, I don't mind changing total water each time I do the wipe down every 2-3 days.
As for the nitrates, you've only had the seahorses now for about 3 months, and that is a ball park time for deteriorating water conditions in the display tank to begin showing (some a little before, some later) and it may be due in part to the fry in there, but I'd be concerned the husbandry isn't sufficient for the adults perhaps, and that conditions are still going to deteriorate after removing the fry.
It would certainly be wise to keep an eye on things like you are doing, but maybe consider doing better husbandry in finding/removing trapped and unseen detritus with larger water changes.
If there are mechanical filter pads, clean them out about 2 times a week.

OK, thanks, I will look for ways to improve husbandry in the display tank. I love the natural look of a seahorse tank with macros and coral but now I can understand why some seahorse keepers go with a bare bottom tank with artificial plants.
Does the sponge filter trap bacteria and that is why you use open airline tubing?

 

[RedAnt78]

So if I change ALL of the water every few days I won't stress the fry too much or shock them?

 

[rayjay]

Well I've been doing it for a lot of years now.
Mind you, I store the fry in some of their water until I've cleaned the fry container and then I use new water, matched for s.g. and temperature, to refill the fry container AND to mix with the old water the fry are temporarily in, just in case there might be some slight variation in the match. Then I transfer the fry back to the fry container.
While I'm now using tanks and a muck bucket for erectus fry, in my H. reidi rearing days I used up to 12 four litre wide mouth jars for their first 2 1/2 to 3 months before transfering them to tanks.

Raising H. reidi Fry

 

[vlangel]

I use open ended air lines in all my tanks, fry or adults.
As I want water quality to be at it's best, especially for the fry, I don't mind changing total water each time I do the wipe down every 2-3 days.
As for the nitrates, you've only had the seahorses now for about 3 months, and that is a ball park time for deteriorating water conditions in the display tank to begin showing (some a little before, some later) and it may be due in part to the fry in there, but I'd be concerned the husbandry isn't sufficient for the adults perhaps, and that conditions are still going to deteriorate after removing the fry.
It would certainly be wise to keep an eye on things like you are doing, but maybe consider doing better husbandry in finding/removing trapped and unseen detritus with larger water changes.
If there are mechanical filter pads, clean them out about 2 times a week.

I looked at my seahorse display tank critically and pondered what might be trapping detritus. I gave my cheato a good shaking and a lot came out of it. Also I blew with a turkey baster in the caulerpa, (I already do the rock work weekly). I use fliter floss in the HOB pump and changed it weekly but now I think I will put floss in before I shake the cheato and baste the rock and caulerpa and then remove it immediately after the water change. That way it can catch floating particles but nothing will degrade there. I will do the same with the filter pads in my sump. With the babies in another tank, the daily water changes and trying to diligently remove detritus hopefully my nitrates will come down plus I will know that these practices should diminish bacteria as well. I will test again in a week.

 

[RedAnt78]

Very good info! So if I put the fry in a 2 gallon bucket of their own water and maybe add around a liter of the new water just to make sure they can get used to the new water, then clean the 10gal fry tank, add the new water in and then just put the fry in... and that should be good?
-vlangle, I have started looking more at my adult display as well, I took the red gracilaria out because it was holding too much junk

 

[vlangel]

RedAnt78, it takes a while to re-train all we used to do with prior tanks and think about our seahorse tank in a new way. I am kind of 'an old dog' so it's taking me a while to learn new tricks. LOL

 

[RedAnt78]

Ha! I know right! I've had reef tanks since 06 and this is so new and different... which makes it fun too!

 

[vlangel]

Today I tested my nitrates in the main system after moving the fry to a 20 gallon grow out tank. They were around 10ppm, down from 10-20ppm a week and a half ago. I had hoped for better but it is an improvement. I figure I am changing more than 40% of the water every week in my adult seahorse tank. Hopefully my nitrates will come down even more and these big water changes will ward off the chance of bacterial infections. I am changing all the water in the 20 gallon every 4 days and wiping the surfaces every other day. I will be glad when these little guys are grown. That's 10 gallons of salt mix every day and even with buying the salt in bulk it's adding up.

 

[rayjay]

40% a week might be a bit much.
Nitrates don't cause bacterial growth.
What does dirty the water causing bacterial problems can't be tested for by the hobbyists, even though it may sometimes be synomonous with higher nitrate levels.
I have no problem with your nitrate level as far as a seahorse tank goes as I'm unaware that it can cause seahorse problems in itself.
As I mentioned before, I never check nitrate in any of my tanks.
When you wipe the surfaces, how do you remove the slime coat that is removed by the wiping?

 

[vlangel]

When I wipe down the glass and equipment with an aquarium scrub pad in my adult seahorse tank I do the partial water change but most of the residue I had hoped my protein skimmer took care of.
In the fry/juvenile tank that is bare bottom I syphon out any disbris and residue with the water change which is a much bigger percentage, 25% every day. I wipe the tank down ever other day.

 

[rayjay]

I don't remember if you are using a mechanical filter of any kind, but if so, I'd clean it out a few hours after the wipe down so you remove any of the trapped bacterial slime.

 

[vlangel]

I don't remember if you are using a mechanical filter of any kind, but if so, I'd clean it out a few hours after the wipe down so you remove any of the trapped bacterial slime.

Thank you. Yes I am using HOB filters. In my adult tank I only put filter floss in before I clean the glass and I remove it after I do my water change. In my fry/juvenile tank I only run carbon in it and I had been changing that once a week. Upon your advise perhaps I should be changing it after the wipe down.

 

[rayjay]

I'm not sure how much good the carbon is doing for the fry tank, especially when you change out 25% water each day, but you could put floss on the "intake" side of the carbon, allowing the floss to capture the bacterial slime, and then remove the floss after sufficient time.

 

[vlangel]

I'm not sure how much good the carbon is doing for the fry tank, especially when you change out 25% water each day, but you could put floss on the "intake" side of the carbon, allowing the floss to capture the bacterial slime, and then remove the floss after sufficient time.

Ok, I will do that.