Filtering with nanocube

[BassAssasin]

Was just looking for some advice on setting up the filtering in my nanocube, was gonna go with Filter floss in 1 and 2, heater in 2nd and bag of charcoal in third with the pump.... hows this sound? any other options? pictures of said setup would be nice too!

[ermartin]

skip the charcoal and put Chemi pure and purigen in 2

[Illuminati]

Filter Floss is good in chamber 1 at the top. The main purpose for it is to catch debris, no use in putting it in the second chamber as debris "shouldn't" be getting to that chamber.

It's not Charcoal but Carbon and skip it. It becomes worthless fast. Chemi-pure is similar, lasts longer and does more. Get Chemi-pure elite instead of plain Chemi-Pure for the phosphate removing effect.
Purigen is great, love it. It can be bought in it's own media bag.

My Chambers:

Chamber 1 - Chemi-Pure (Elite) on the bottom, Filter Floss on top.

Chamber 2 - Purigen

Chamber 3 - Return pump

[NewFish3]

Illuminati,

Do you have any pics of your tank. I would to see them.

Question for you...........you say to scrap the carbon....I was told here by all the BIG fish ( RC TEAM ) that I should have it. Ever since I added it my water is so crystal clear it looks fake. I also have a bag of PURA-COMPLETE ( same as chemi-pure ).

http://i269.photobucket.com/albums/jj66/NewFish3/BioCube50.jpg

[eaglesrx]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12132973#post12132973 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Illuminati
Filter Floss is good in chamber 1 at the top. The main purpose for it is to catch debris, no use in putting it in the second chamber as debris "shouldn't" be getting to that chamber.

It's not Charcoal but Carbon and skip it. It becomes worthless fast. Chemi-pure is similar, lasts longer and does more. Get Chemi-pure elite instead of plain Chemi-Pure for the phosphate removing effect.
Purigen is great, love it. It can be bought in it's own media bag.

My Chambers:

Chamber 1 - Chemi-Pure (Elite) on the bottom, Filter Floss on top.

Chamber 2 - Purigen

Chamber 3 - Return pump

Do you know if the chemi-pure elite is a iron based phosphate remover or an aluminum based, similar to seachem's? Do you know what the other benefits are of the std chemi-pure over standard carbon? I actually use TLF's phosban. There's a study comparing the phosphate removing capabilities on advanceaquarist.com comparing phosban and rowaphos. Not sure where chemi-pure elite falls in that.

[Illuminati]

I've always heard that carbon doesn't last as long. People with large tanks use carbon by the bucket full while nano-reefers usually stick to Chemi-Pure and Purigen.

The beauty of reefkeeping is that there are several ways to keep your reef, do research, learn and make your own choices.


As for pics I will do them from oldest to newest, all the same tank just shows how it evolved over the last few years:

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h73/colinadam/Dsc01470.jpg

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h73/colinadam/tank101820012.jpg

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h73/colinadam/fts.jpg

http://i61.photobucket.com/albums/h73/colinadam/fts081207.jpg

[Illuminati]

Chemi-Pure description from Dr. Foster and Smith:


Your fish will live a healthier life – up to 4 times longer. <-- (Not sure about that)

Works equally well in marine or freshwater aquariums to remove heavy metals, copper, phenol, ammonia, and other nitrogenous waste. <---- (So does carbon)

Helps keep pH at a consistently safe range and your water sparkling clear. <--- (Carbon can't do that)

NEW Chemi-Pure Elite adds ferric oxide to the original Chemi-Pure formula to also remove phosphates and silicates, making it the only complete choice for filtering any kind of aquarium. <---- (Ferric Oxide is Iron based)

Remains active 4-6 months. <---- (Carbon doesn't last as long)

Tips from our Techs
Many of our customers enjoy fewer necessary water changes when they use Chemi-Pure. Its ability to sustain and stabilize high water quality over longer periods makes it quite popular with discus and reef keepers.



Carbon is popular in large tanks because it's cheap. You'd go broke trying to use the same amount of Chemi-Pure as some people with large tanks use Carbon. Everyone who I have ever heard that uses carbon replaces it at least monthly if not more.

I'll have to track down that article that you mention Eaglesrx. I used Phosban and now use Rowa Phos and like the Rowa Phos a lot more. I have photographic proof of the difference but have hijacked this thread enough :)

[NewFish3]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12133352#post12133352 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Illuminati
I have photographic proof of the difference but have hijacked this thread enough :)
I dont really know if your hijacking the thread....I think BassAssasin can get some good info from this. As you said there are lots of ways of doing things & you have to see what works for you.

I do weekly water changes on my BioCube 14 ( 2 gal changes ) & ya I change the carbon every 3 to 4 weeks. But the tank looks awesome. As I said, this info was given to me by the RC TEAM & its working.

BTW.......VERY nice tank...........thanks

[eaglesrx]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=12133352#post12133352 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Illuminati
Chemi-Pure description from Dr. Foster and Smith:


Your fish will live a healthier life – up to 4 times longer. <-- (Not sure about that)

Works equally well in marine or freshwater aquariums to remove heavy metals, copper, phenol, ammonia, and other nitrogenous waste. <---- (So does carbon)

Helps keep pH at a consistently safe range and your water sparkling clear. <--- (Carbon can't do that)

NEW Chemi-Pure Elite adds ferric oxide to the original Chemi-Pure formula to also remove phosphates and silicates, making it the only complete choice for filtering any kind of aquarium. <---- (Ferric Oxide is Iron based)

Remains active 4-6 months. <---- (Carbon doesn't last as long)

Tips from our Techs
Many of our customers enjoy fewer necessary water changes when they use Chemi-Pure. Its ability to sustain and stabilize high water quality over longer periods makes it quite popular with discus and reef keepers.



Carbon is popular in large tanks because it's cheap. You'd go broke trying to use the same amount of Chemi-Pure as some people with large tanks use Carbon. Everyone who I have ever heard that uses carbon replaces it at least monthly if not more.

I'll have to track down that article that you mention Eaglesrx. I used Phosban and now use Rowa Phos and like the Rowa Phos a lot more. I have photographic proof of the difference but have hijacked this thread enough :)

I definitely don't mean to hijack this thread either. I'm always trying to learn about products that I don't already use, such as Chemi-pure. My brother uses chemi-pure in his tanks and swears by it. So, in regards to using Chemi-pure, I guess I just don't know enough about it to put it in my tank. However, I do hear a lot of experienced, skilled reefers swear by it.

Below is a thread on reefcentral. Boomer is about as knowledgable about activated carbon as anyone I've seen on reefcentral.
http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=1325727

In addition, here's a study that looks at different types of carbons on the market:
http://www.pets-warehouse.com/carbon.htm

This is one of the reasons why I prefer using TLF's carbon. However, as you'll see in this study, there are certainly other brands that will do just as good of a job.

In regards to phosphate removing media, below is a good article that compares 2 popular brands of media:
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/june2004/review.htm

Once again, I'm sure there are different brands to use that are effective. Given the study above, they appear equivalent. Of course, there's always inherent flaws in many of these reef studies.