bio wheel looks new after 2 months with fish
- Thread starter mkatts
- Start date
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Goldfish loach boy
Aquarium Advice Addict
- Joined
- Mar 16, 2013
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- 3,167
IME it takes time for it to build
Brookster123
Aquarium Advice Addict
I just took a good look at mine, 4 months and there's some good build up on it.
ClassicRocker
Aquarium Advice Regular
We have the Marineland Eclipse 5, 5 gallon hexagon aquarium w/the blue filter and BIO Wheel. This filtration system was very highly recommended to us as being "one of the best". Recommended filter change is every two weeks to a month. Looked at the filter yesterday, during w/c, and within a week or so will either clean it or put in new one.
One thing that is a definitely "for sure", this filtration system is so, so quiet! I actually have to put my ear down to the filtration cover to hear it running!
One thing that is a definitely "for sure", this filtration system is so, so quiet! I actually have to put my ear down to the filtration cover to hear it running!
Brookster123
Aquarium Advice Addict
dont change it until it's falling apart, rinse it out in tank water and put it back, it holds all the bb.
Oh, Brookster. I say this with respect because I've read a lot of good posts from you but you're dead wrong on this one. Cleaning it saves money and saves the bacteria that are on it but the population on the wheel is more than sufficient. If they weren't, my fish would have died years ago.
ClassicRocker
Aquarium Advice Regular
As already stated by another replier, the BIO Wheel holds most, if not all, of the bb. That is the main function of it.......at least that's what I've read. And, when only having one aquarium, water would have to be taken out and replaced to use that water.......of which we still may do.
Brookster123
Aquarium Advice Addict
thats cool, I replace mine, not every 2-4 weeks though, it's your money and tank, I'm just throwing in my 2 cents, might as well be 10000 cents cuz boy do I save a ton of dough on filters
thats cool, I replace mine, not every 2-4 weeks though, it's your money and tank, I'm just throwing in my 2 cents, might as well be 10000 cents cuz boy do I save a ton of dough on filters
Rolling in it, I'm sure.
I'm all about not sending cash down the crapper
Just don't want anyone to be fearful that they are jeopardizing the tank they worked so hard to cycle if they find that water is bypassing their filter pad in spite of swishing. Bacteria love the wheel 
Brookster123
Aquarium Advice Addict
I agree, I have some good growth on my wheel, my aqua clears also have good growth in the pads, my penguin pads are chalk full of bb too, I'm just saying ditching your underwater bb every 2 weeks is not the best idea. I'd be interested to see if a year old wheel could handle the tank with out a pad in the box??Rolling in it, I'm sure.
I didn't test it at one year. It was more like two when I shoved the biowheel into a canister full of biomedia and moved the fish over to their new digs. I moved a rock and two decorations as well but not the gravel. No mini cycle. That wheel was plenty full.
That wheel was plenty full.
Brookster123
Aquarium Advice Addict
Brownish red build up, smells like fresh dirt! Mmmm
Brookster123
Aquarium Advice Addict
2 months maybe??
jwh0818
Aquarium Advice Addict
You really don't want "growth" on there. It will stop the bb from growing. It will clog the pores. The "growth" I think your referring to is a build up of some algae and waste
It looks like pale yellow ammonia tests and sky blue nitrite tests. That's the dead giveaway.
while I understand what you are saying, An My tank is cycled. That does not prove that bacteria is living on the bio wheel does it?
jwh0818
Aquarium Advice Addict
while I understand what you are saying, An My tank is cycled. That does not prove that bacteria is living on the bio wheel does it?
There is no definite answer to that question. If you tank is cycled then call it a day. There is bb on it otherwise your tank wouldn't be cycled.
Oh, for crying out loud. No, you cannot see the bacteria without a microscope. But, where do you expect them to grow? The wheel has a massive surface area for such a tiny thing and great conditions for them to grow on. They thrive where the conditions are good.
BTW, for the first year or more, I changed my filter cartridges every few weeks. So yeah, I DO know it works. And, as stated above, I moved a wheel, a rock, and two decorations to a new tank with the fish and it was insta-cycled. Obviously, the wheel was populated well enough to support the tank's occupants without the cartridge or the gravel or the ones growing on the tank walls. It was clearly plenty full.
I'm not sure why you doubt it? This is not a new technology. If it didn't work, you'd find people screaming on here about their tank crashing after changing the cartridge. But they don't because it just doesn't happen.
BTW, for the first year or more, I changed my filter cartridges every few weeks. So yeah, I DO know it works. And, as stated above, I moved a wheel, a rock, and two decorations to a new tank with the fish and it was insta-cycled. Obviously, the wheel was populated well enough to support the tank's occupants without the cartridge or the gravel or the ones growing on the tank walls. It was clearly plenty full.
I'm not sure why you doubt it? This is not a new technology. If it didn't work, you'd find people screaming on here about their tank crashing after changing the cartridge. But they don't because it just doesn't happen.
