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maximising filter flow / sponge only

fourmations

Member
Joined
30 Aug 2008
Messages
201
hi all

i bought an 850lph filter for a 100l tank (i know, im an idiot!)
i have a koralia in there too so the flow is pretty good
but im interested in maximising the flow as best i can,
i run the koralia more or less in sync with my co2
but when its off the flow is not great

Ive read about people only half filling the baskets etc etc
I also know a guy who is very experienced and he was saying
to just use foams, no noodles, sintered glass stuff etc.
this was for flow but also he mentioned that the sintered / ceramic medias
have a negative effect for some reason in a planted tank, i cant remember fully but im sure it
was to do with nitrifying bacteria, any thoughts on this?

would a three basket external with foam only do the job or maybe just two baskets full
with regards to the good bacteria or do you think ceramic/sintered media is a must?

thanks
 
Filter Foam is first & foremost a mechanical filter but it will also become biological.
A lot will depend on your stocking levels as to wether you need the biological media as well.
To optimise your flow keep pipe runs to a minimum with nice swept bends & no misshaped (Oval) piping.
Long pipe runs & right angle bends slow the flow immensely & if you have smaller pipe in the system say 10mm length of 12mm pipe & the rest is 16mm then you might as well have 12mm throughout because that is what your maximum will be.

Filter wool is the biggest problem for disrupting flow.
 
Hi all,
Filter Foam is first & foremost a mechanical filter but it will also become biological.A lot will depend on your stocking levels as to wether you need the biological media as well.
To optimise your flow keep pipe runs to a minimum with nice swept bends & no misshaped (Oval) piping.
Long pipe runs & right angle bends slow the flow immensely & if you have smaller pipe in the system say 10mm length of 12mm pipe & the rest is 16mm then you might as well have 12mm throughout because that is what your maximum will be.

Filter wool is the biggest problem for disrupting flow.
I think the same as "@KipperSarnie".
....this was for flow but also he mentioned that the sintered / ceramic medias have a negative effect for some reason in a planted tank, i cant remember fully but im sure it was to do with nitrifying bacteria, any thoughts on this?
It isn't true.

If you never cleaned your filter, stuffed it full (with any media) and impeded flow enough you would get anaerobic denitrification of NO3, and out-gassing of N2 gas. If you don't have plants this is a recipe for disaster, if you have enough plants you will probably get away with it.

I like the coarser PPI10 and PPI20 sponges, and I always have an easy clean sponge pre-filter on the filter intake, but it doesn't really matter which media you have in your filter, as long as the water doesn't become de-oxygenated within the filter. A finite amount of oxygen enters the filter, it can't be replenished in the canister and, if flow slows too far, you have the real risk of ammonia levels building up.

It isn't the media in the filter that is important, you only actually need a small volume of filter media, if you have enough oxygen. For this reason I'm not a filter floss fan.

No-one is going to persuade me that having simultaneous aerobic nitrification and anaerobic denitrification (in a canister filter) is a good idea, there are too many risks involved.

cheers Darrel
 
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