Bio Wheel

[lovet]

I just wanted to know if it is ok to use a bio wheel in a reef tank. I have a 75 gal reef tank which when I bought it I also got a 4 stage wet/dry sump /w bio wheel. Should I take the bio wheel out and replace with live rock or leave it along. I have had it set up like this for almost 6 weeks and things do look good.

[WaterKeeper]

Hi Lovet
[welcome]

You really want to use a natural filtration system rather than mechanical/biolfiltration on a reef. Spend the money on good LR and LS and your tank will remain in better shape. I guess the wet/dry came with the tank but you can use it as a sump sans the filter media.

[reefnetworth]

some people chose to remove it believing the bio-wheel is the cause of nitrates to remain in their system. also the same believe with the wet/dry, when including bio-balls. I believe the system set-up and the amount of food and detris has alot to do with nitrates. bio-balls will increase nitrates, though the wheel is argumentive. LR is definatly the natural filter for nitrates along with many other imbalances found in tanks not holding LR. REEF-ON!!!

[lovet]

Thanks for the information. As soon as I can get something to replace it I will remove it and get something else A.S.A.P. I am looking for a good Protein skimmer for my tank. I bought on of those 150 cyclone protein skimmers and It went back the other day. I am about to order an 125 Gallon Coralife Super Skimmer Needle Wheel Protein Skimmer has anyone heard about this one.

[lovet]

What would be a good set-up for a reef tank, meaning a guideline of equipment that I should have.

Things I have:
75gal Reef tank /w overflow & stand
24.6 lbs of live rock
40 lbs of dry aragonite
15 lbs of live pure aragonite
Bio Balls (in overflow)
1 mag drive (that turns my water I think 4 or 5 time or more)
Tidepool 4 stage wet / dry /w bio wheel



Things I am going to get:
I am about to buy a newer wet/dry (something like the clear ones on the market)
20 lbs of Live Rock
??gals Refugium

[fsn77]

You may want to buy some more LR (estimate 1+ pounds per gallon). It's not a requirement, but it will help with long term stability.
There's no mention of a skimmer... are you planning on running one, or going skimmerless? There's advantages to both methods, lots of posts about that.
Instead of buying bio-balls, check into some live rock rubble. It may be cheaper and is a more natural form of filtration than bio-balls. Any particular reason you want to buy a new wet/dry? If you're a little handy, you could build one out of an old (or even new) aquarium (whatever size works for your space), some egg crate (lighting diffuser), and some cut glass (most places will cut it to size for you) if your current one is not satisfactory. You could build one for far less than $100 (the price range for a wet/dry locally in my area).
What are your plans for lighting? The type of corals you wish to keep can have a big influence on that, so which corals are you into keeping?
Planning on any powerheads for supplemental flow in your tank? Maxi-Jets are a good value if you want to watch your spending.
You can also build your own refugium out of an old aquarium, again using whatever size fits your needs for space. Or, if you build your own wet/dry/sump, you could make a compartment to grow macroalgae in, just as long as you have room for a light for it.
Don't be in a big hurry... the less you rush, the more successful you are likely to be. It took more than a few weeks to build the oceans' reefs, so it's better to not build our own in a few days.

[lovet]

oh ya, I also have 260 watts of homemade Compac lights

[locofish]

I removed my Bio-Wheel from my Tidepool and the nitrates have come down. I added some small pieces of live rock where the bio-wheel was. The Bio-wheel does a good job changing the ammonia to nitrite and nitrite to nitrate but it does nothing for changing nitrate to nitrogen.

[eperez25]

I had nitrates of 50 consistently in the beginning. I removed by biowheel and they began to decrease. I have been running at 0 now for about 2 months. Right now I just have media and carbon in my 280. I am debating on whether or not to remove the filter media. It does pull out a lot of gunk though. I figure if I am diligent about changing the filter regularly, it shouldn't be a problem.

[lovet]

one thing that I us is a 100mic filter and some poly foam and it helped pull alot of the cloud dust that was in my tank. It catches alot of stuff from my tank.