Why Not Bioballs?

[Franzvs]

I am reading all these posts, set up a 75gallon myself a little over a year ago. What is this talk with the bio balls? I inherited a self built aquarium, where a refugium is no option underneath. I have a wet/dry filter with pads I frequently replace. Purapad, which takes nitrates, etc.. out as well as a hang on skimmer. My nitrates are always 0ppm. I should be OK with the Bioballs then, right ?

[Bloodydecks]

If you are running a fish only system with sump type filter, you will need the bio balls, as ghey are the bio media for the nitofying bacteria that break down the ammonia nd nitrates. You should also use a skimmer.

Some people who have a fish only tank with live rock, can also eliminate the bio balls, as the live rocks or base rock will become the bio media. It all comes down to bio load.

The main draw back, especially in reef systems is that bio balls can trap detritus, which will increase the level of nitrates in your sump.

IN a reef tank, you should have enough live sand and live rock that will allow for colonies of the nitrifying bacteria to develop as needed, so there is no need for the bio balls, and you should remove them........plus you want to keep your sump free of detritus, and with bio balls it can be a pain.


All i use is a micron filter bag, and skimmer in my sumps.

Hope that helps.

PS...if you are using bio balls, make sure you have some sort of mechanical filtration before the water goes into the bio ball bin....filter pads of some sort will work. The smaller the micron rating the better, but they will also clog faster, so you will need to change them more often.