Beginners Guide to Filter Media

[seaflea]

when i was in school we did a study on bio media. we were trying to find something that had the most surface area and that we could get in bulk cheep. This was all for 4 10,000 gallon tanks and 2 5,000 gallon tanks that were going to need very high levels of bacteria. We were growing tillapia and producing about 100,000 pounds a year. We found that these styrafome packing material had way more then anything else( and not the peanuts, they were tiny little balls a little bit larger then a bb).I don't know how much surface area this stuff had, its in my notes somewhere) so you'd have to take my word for it but this stuff was awsome. it dose float, but that isn't really a problem if your wet/dry trickling. The stuff is so small that there;s not much room between them and aloth they look round they are actully very jaggety. We had a tractor trailer load of it and the only way i knew of getting a hold of it was in bulk. I did find out that many bean bag chairs are also filld with the stuff so you could always buy one and rip it open. i dont kno if this helps but i thought id share it. i also dont take any credit for finding it since it was mainly our teacher.

 

[jimmey_zed21]

awesome info thanx alot! how often do you guys clean / change your media?

 

[blue_francis14]

All surface areas were derived from the numerous biomedia graphs and charts which have been posted after being cross referenced and compiled into one convenient post ^_^

Hello, may I know where to find the graphs and charts? I am going to use the information on a report I have to make. I can't use the forums in my citation or foot notes. Thanks in advance.

 

[MeAko]

Hey how about cut up drinking straws? Tip: might be best to put them in a netting/stockings of sorts as if you put directly in a wet/dry, it would be a pain to try to move

How about these artificial grass mats, I have a ton of these...any idea of the surface area?

The old reliables...

This thread was a great guide for me! Thanks to the OP

I also got a big roll of poly-fiber, cheap, definitely get from the fabric store and not from LFS!

No need to spend a ton on bio-balls and ceramic rings when all these cheaper (and better) alternatives are so readily available.

 

[goalieman59]

I what order do I put in the media, bio, mech, and what else. or do i have these in the wrong order?

 

[Pharaoh]

I what order do I put in the media, bio, mech, and what else. or do i have these in the wrong order?

Typically, you want your mechanical filtration before your biological filtration.

 

[tcarswell]

Typically, you want your mechanical filtration before your biological filtration.

Absolutely. Keep your bio (I am referring to specific bio media bio glass substrate PRO etc) as clean as possible if you choose to use it.

 

[Jardini 360]

Guys will a internal filter ( the one which has a powerhead) with sponge as a media suffice as a filter for a 4ft arowana tank ?

 

[mowielx]

Hi all,

This is a great thread, very helpful. I'm getting ready to set up a diy wet/dry and am looking around for the scrubbies, does anyone know where to find them in bulk here in Australia? Otherwise ebay has 46mm bio balls 200 for $70.

Would it be ok to run some sponges and a layer of felt as the first section, then the bio media, then run some more felt for polishing?

 

[SpeshulEd]

I bought scrubbies at a dollar store - 6/$1.00. It took me about 10 different ones to get enough. One guy I talked to about filter media said he didn't like scrubbies because they collect poop, where bioballs just need a rinse and they're good again. Personally, I think its still cheaper to just replace a handful of scrubbies though.

I'd put all of your polishing media in front of the bio media. I use pollyfill, that collects all the poop and everything before it hits the scrubbies. Felt should be ok though, and I'm actually thinking I may add some inline with mine. Then I have ceramic rings and seachem matrix in the third stage.