Cutting the tab in chamber 1 to 2

[mandarinlove]

....so I was reading that some people cut the tab from chamber 1 into 2 to increase the water flow in a oceanic bio cube 29 gallon tank. Is this REALLY necessary?? Am I going to see a big difference in my filtration system? Right now I have the protein skimmer in chamber 1, the stock filter cartridge I removed when I set up the tank a month ago. Chamber two has filter floss, purigen and chemipure (no bio balls). Chamber three has the pump and the sponge....

Anybody have any suggestions??

 

[Zer0]

Clearly it is not necassary. If it was, they would either have it like that, or would reccomend you do it like that. I actually haven't ever heard or seen this before. If it were my biocube, i would just leave it alone and let it do what it is supposed to do. I know two people on here that have awesome biocubes. I think one is a 29G. I don't think they've cut the tab in their chambers, but then again, maybe they did, and the conversation just never came up. But still, i would leave it alone.

 

[Bige]

I have a biocube 29 and the oceanic skimmer. I did not cut mine and I have plenty of flow. I did stop using the oceanic filter cartridge and switched to a blue filter like from a canister filter. This catches the big stuff. I also have purigen and chemi-pure elite. The combo you have will work great. I am glad I left mine alone because now that I have it tuned in it works great.

 

[mandarinlove]

How long have you had the bio cube? Do you have any pictures of your tank?? I have some other questions I would like to ask you as well if you get the chance.

Thanks

 

[Bige]

I have had the cube about ten months. I do have pics and I will try to put them up in a little bit. And I would be happy to help you with any questions I can answer about the biocube.

 

[mandarinlove]

Mine has been set up for 2 months now. I have some ricordia, green star polyps, zoas, cabbage and finger leather and some xenias. All of them were little frags. Like you had said earlier, some of your coral is attaching. Mine is also. I was wondering if you had a diatom bloom and if so, how long it lasted? Also, do you have any coralline algae growing in your tank?

 

[tlkng1]

I think for the most part the removal of the tab between the first two chambers is just personal choice. I set up the tank initially as is, with no modifications. I found, however, for wahtever reason, that the flow was not as strong as I would like to see and the water level in chamber 3, over the pump, was always actually below minimum no matter how much water I had in the tank. I gave in and cut the tab away and the flow, with the same pump, was the way it should be..my level wasabout 2/3 of the way between minimum and maximum and has remianed there even though I swapped out the pump for a mini-jet 600. Since I don't use the bio balls anyway, the trickle effect doesn't have to be regulated for chamber 2..I don't even have the top trickle tray installed but instead fill the chamber at the bottom with a self-made bag of charcoal (loose charcoal, not a filter pad) then on top of that, I have filter floss. The lower part of chamber 2, under the false "floor" contains a unit of the Chemi-Pure.

 

[Bige]

I do have a diatom bloom. It has been an on going battle. I have added powerheads and taken them away. I have purigen, chemipure, carbon and phosphagaurd (just added yesterday). I read on this site the other day that frozen food contains a lot of phospates. I was feeding a sun coral at night with cyclopeeze to bring it out then two helping of mysis shrimp. All is consumed quickly by everybody in tank but I think it is the fluid with the food that is bad. I guess I need to rinse off. I also think I will remove the bioballs at some point because I heard they cause nitrates. I know people that have no bioballs only protein skimmer and they have cleaner tanks then mine.

 

[mandarinlove]

Yea, I have took out the bio balls right away! I have chemipure and purigen in the second chamber minus the drip tray. I also have filter pads in that chamber as well. My protein skimmer is in the 1st chamber.

My water is really clear, I think you should get rid of the bio balls and clean the second chamber out a little bit, but not too much.

Let me know how it goes.

 

[Bige]

So I did not have diatoms, I had cyanobacteria (red slime). I treated for it and my tank looks clean again.

 

[epsolon77]

I also think I will remove the bioballs at some point because I heard they cause nitrates. I know people that have no bioballs only protein skimmer and they have cleaner tanks then mine.

Now, forgive me because I am a fresh water guy who's getting set to work on salt water, but don't we want nitrates? The bioballs should create nitrates by allowing bacteria to attach to the surface to reduce toxic ammonia and nitrites into nitrates. Now in my fresh water takes nitrates are removed by the live plants. If this were a fresh water tank I would say that your bioballs are not necessary, but you need SOMETHING for the bacteria to grow on to reduce the ammonia. That could also be filter fiber like I use or any number of other objects with large surface area's. Again I am not a coral expert so PLEASE correct me if I am wrong.

 

[Flake]

bioballs are useful to start with because they provide that space for bacteria to grow. Later it would be beneficial to remove them from tank and replace them with lr rubble.

Bioballs eventually accumulate far too many nitrates over time, making your tank high in nitrates. In fw, the plants will remove them, in salt, you remove them through cleaning the tank, doing water changes and not overfeeding. (algae will also remove them, but without a sump or fuge, theres not a lot of room for beneficial algae) There's not too much hope that the nitrates will drop to a manageable level with the bioballs in there. This does take time, but eventually they will pose a problem in salt.

 

[epsolon77]

I have much to learn. I bow to your expertise...
I am a salt water