Biopellet Questions

The friendliest place on the web for anyone with an interest in aquariums or fish keeping!
If you have answers, please help by responding to the unanswered posts.

donniea1800

Aquarium Advice Regular
Joined
May 7, 2013
Messages
87
Location
Newnan, GA
Hello,

I have a 50 gallon reef tank that has been running about 4 years. I have had my ups and downs but it has been doing pretty good lately. My nitrates and phosphates remain mostly undetectable when I test with Red Sea test kits. I do run a phosphate reactor to keep my phosphates low. I have been thinking about trying bio pellets. I have tried carbon dosing to the display, but ran into some issues and I don't really like dosing the display. I would like to hear some pros and cons of bio pellets. I don't have a sump and run a reef octopus BH1000 HOB skimmer. Does anyone currently run bio pellets with a HOB skimmer? How is it working? How do you run the reactor output to your skimmer? Do you just get it close to the intake? Also am I supposed to take phosphate media offline before running the pellets?

Any information is much appreciated.
 
You wouldn't incorporate the skimmer and the biopellets, as you would need a separate reactor for the pellets.

Check out BRS for a media reactor and a pump like an MJ1200. You can place the pump in the tank and have the reactor routed to below the tank with some black tubing and push connect fittings, and then back up. That's what I did when I was sumpless, and then used a locline return nozzle.
 
Bio pellets fueled a cyano outbreak for me that a year later I am just getting corrected. I use vinegar mixed with kalkwasser. The acetate in the vinegar isn't as powerful of a carbon source, but it doesn't seem to cause cyano to bloom.


Sent from my iPhone using Aquarium Advice
 
You wouldn't incorporate the skimmer and the biopellets, as you would need a separate reactor for the pellets.

Check out BRS for a media reactor and a pump like an MJ1200. You can place the pump in the tank and have the reactor routed to below the tank with some black tubing and push connect fittings, and then back up. That's what I did when I was sumpless, and then used a locline return nozzle.

that is exactly what I did with my DIY skimmer;
92584-albums13974-picture68727.jpg


water is pulled from the bottom before the drain and then pump through the reactor and then back into the skimmer where it will get recirculated through.
It was worked out great and the excess bacterial slough never reaches my display, but is removed by the skimmer.

Bio pellets fueled a cyano outbreak for me that a year later I am just getting corrected. I use vinegar mixed with kalkwasser. The acetate in the vinegar isn't as powerful of a carbon source, but it doesn't seem to cause cyano to bloom.

When I first started mine I had the UV hooked up, so I never had any issues with any type of blooms.
Now that I have disconnected the UV (trying to establish pod colonies), I have been getting that white bacterial haze on the sides of the tank and the cyano has begun to creep back.
but I'm also about 10 days overdue for a water change, so that could also be a contributing factor.

Overall I'm happy with running the pellets, my nitrates have easily halved in the last 5 weeks or so, from 30-40ppm (I know :eek:) down to 10-20.

The first couple of weeks running them they will shed a TON of junk, then they mellow out.

There really is no reason you can't run it with a HOB skimmer, and yes, directing the effluent from the reactor into/near the skimmer will help.
If you have a lot of filter feeding critters, let it empty directly into the display and see how that goes.
 
"that is exactly what I did with my DIY skimmer;"


Which is fine, but the OP has a HOB skimmer...
 
"that is exactly what I did with my DIY skimmer;"


Which is fine, but the OP has a HOB skimmer...

Yes, I am aware of that. I think maybe you misunderstood their question.
They were asking about running the output from the reactor into the skimmer.
and I addressed that question;

There really is no reason you can't run it with a HOB skimmer, and yes, directing the effluent from the reactor into/near the skimmer will help.
If you have a lot of filter feeding critters, let it empty directly into the display and see how that goes.



am I the only one who actually reads the posts? :rolleyes:
 
Back
Top Bottom