dumb filter question

[JPKeenan]

I have heard in passing of people placing gravel in their HOB filters for the biological filtering.

*lol* I must be going from newbie to questing acolyte.

Do you just fill the bugger up with gravel? Place some gravel at the bottom of it? Keep the "scrubby" (biological sponge thing) and filter envelope (the fibery thing full of carbon) in and pour the gravel around it?

I am just trying to figure out what ya'll mean and if it there is any extra benefit to it.

 

[jessicasmarine]

In SW you take all the media out put in LR rubble and the waterflow through the rock is your bio filter. I have seen some leave the media in to though. I guess it would be the same principle in FW

 

[JPKeenan]

*lol* would have helped if I said it was for a FW tank.

Only doing freshwater at the moment. If I can find a new place to live, lower my car payment and get some more money coming in I will be switching to SW.

 

[jessicasmarine]

I knew you were a freshie, just givin ya a comparison, not much of a fresh guy myself.

 

[JPKeenan]

hehehe so in other words it wouldn't hurt.

Just seems that my ammonia levels need some more tweaking... can't seem to get them to 0.... best I have done is a shade between 0 and .25ppm.

 

[joy13]

It really depends on the type of filter you have I don't use any charcoal or gravel in my filters for the fresh water. When I start a new tank I take the filter foam out of a well established tank and use that in the new filter, a couple of good handfuls of gravel and plant the tank heavily. I have little to no ammonia spike.

I put the gravel on top of the gravel in the new tank.

 

[mfdrookie516]

i replaced all the carbon in my cartridges with gravel... its the same principal, and carbon is only good for 2 weeks or so, not really needed though unless youre medicating a tank or something... the gravel is just there because i wanted something extra to hold some bacteria...

 

[mgamer20o0]

if you want more bio filtration add pot scrubbers. they are cheap and have lots of surface area. maybe make a thread with all your details of your tank see if someone can figure out whats going on.

 

[JPKeenan]

It's wigging me out. The ammonia in a new tank is reading the same as in a 20g I have that has come down to .5ppm. Well high end... my established 20g spiked a few weeks ago and has wormed it's way down to between .25 and .5 ppm (water change yesterday).

The new tank has recycled gravel (no clue how old... rinsed with just tap water and left to dry in the sun). A sponge filter that has been in my (running and with fish) 20g tank. A piece of fluff I kept in the other 20g filter. And some vinegar sprayed and rinsed fake plants/ceramic fish.

The ammonia levels are just slightly higher... no nitrites or nitrates yet.

I took the sponge filter out for a while, not enough to dry, just long enough to put an airstone in it and change the air hose. When I placed it in the new tank and turned it on a puff of gray fine "dust" came out.... was that just poop and food bit or was it some bacteria?

I am at the point where I am not 100% newbie, I just get some confusion now and again.