Bio balls-Do i need them or is this a way to get bad water quality?

[ROB712]

Hey guys. I have a 300g Reef with a 60 gallon sump. When we set up the tank about a year ago they filled the overflow boxes up with bioballs i had laying around so there wouldnt be a "sucking noise" from the water going down into the overflow. My question is this a bad source or Nitrates and other negative water qualities that i DO NOT want in my reef? ive never even touched them for a year should i take them out? Any help is appreciated. btw my sump is filled with Macroalgae so i guess i dont really need the bio balls what do you guys think?

[jimsplace]

I would remove them since they are a source for nitrates in your tank.

[Frick-n-Frags]

the original wet-dry filter concept was to trickle water through a super-aerated medium to encourage nitrifying bacteria to be the most efficient. they only make NO3 as a final residue of eliminating NH3 and NO2. this was the dry partt..then the wet part was like a foam block and where the skimmer went.

foam blocks in the sump also are nitrate factories as the stuff it traps gets converted to NO3 also(and maybe PO4 too from trapped food etc)


the modern idea of the LR in the DT is to handle the nitrifying, BUT very near to things that may use NO3 like anaerobic bacteria in LR pores and the corals themselves.

so, if we put the super efficient dry filter in the loop this takes away from the LR AND it puts raw NO3 into the entire water column vs localized where it has more chance of being eliminated somewhat.

bottom line: if you are following the reef concept of LR in DT, then the dry filter is not your friend.

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Do you have elevated nitrate?

If not, then keeping them for the sound effect is probably fine, IMO.

[grammatron]

foam blocks in the sump also are nitrate factories as the stuff it traps gets converted to NO3 also(and maybe PO4 too from trapped food etc)


So should we not use foam in the sump either? I've got a big wad of cottony foam in between the two chambers in my sump to trap the big stuff that comes down. Bad idea? If it is, what should be used instead? A filter sock that gets changed out regularly? Nothing?

I'm new to having a sump (had a canister on my previous tank) and still trying to get my head around the concept, lol.

[Jersey Bounce]

So should we not use foam in the sump either? I've got a big wad of cottony foam in between the two chambers in my sump to trap the big stuff that comes down. Bad idea? If it is, what should be used instead? A filter sock that gets changed out regularly? Nothing?

I'm new to having a sump (had a canister on my previous tank) and still trying to get my head around the concept, lol.

Nitrates from the foam in your sump would be significantly minimized if you clean it out (squeeze the detritus, etc. out of it into a bucket of tank water (and then discard the water)) routinely. But if you have LR in your DT, you don't really need any "biological filter media" in your sump. If you want to strain particulate waste out of the water when it enters the sump from the DT, I'd suggest using a filter sock or some type of filter pad that can be easily replaced/rinsed clean.