Uniquarium question

combiemaster · 05-21-2006, 01:24 AM

Ok fish experts i have a question on uniquariums. On the back side there are bio-balls (ewwww i know) any who there are lets say about 100+ back there. they are stack up on top of each other lets say 10 inches high. the lower 3-4 inches are submerged in water and the rest catch the water as it cascades on them. on the directions for the aquarium it said to keep the water at least 3 inches above the return pump which i have been doing.
Now my question is Do the bio-balls need to me submerged under water or do they need to be half and half. i have heard and read that bioballs are nitrate factories. would my nitrates increase if they were exposed to air like that or if they were submerged under water?????? please some one help thx.

PS: when i get my 180G at the end of this year no bioballs i will go live ruble rock instead.

tims · 05-21-2006, 08:42 AM

the ones just kept wet are living and dieing quickly, the covered are living and not really allowing the fully denitrification process to happen

scoop · 05-21-2006, 05:30 PM

It's my understanding that if they are kept totally underwater it's no different than LR in the tank, and it's OK. (As long as they are 'cleaned', like the LR, blown off periodically by a turkey baster or a power head.) The ones that are having water cascade over them will eventually trap 'stuff' that will turn them in to nitrate factories. If you have enough LR you don't need the bio balls at all. Also, don't take them out all at once, it could cause a spike. Remove them a little bit at a time, maybe 20% a week for 5 weeks.

combiemaster · 05-21-2006, 05:39 PM

after i have taken them all out i can just place LR rubble in the back right. as for placing the rubble back there can i just drop about 30lbs of it at once or also at a slow rate?

As for the water level can i just increase it so the bioballs are all submerge would that just better than water cascading on them. i read if the bioballs are coming in contact with oxygen then they can become nitrate factories. So if they are submerged it would be better right????
If someone can answer this please ill just fill her up now thx guys

leveldrummer · 05-21-2006, 05:54 PM

i believe that they are "nitrate factories" because the water trickling acts like the biowheels in fresh water tank, by keeping the bacteria wet, but still exposing it to air. it gives the bacteria a huge supply of oxygen, which helps the bacteria break down everything so fast that the nitrates skyrocket. i think keeping them submerged would help with that, but then they would be very hard to clean. unless you take them all out every now and then and wash them.

tims · 05-21-2006, 07:56 PM

okay Guys,
not bad at all..Andy you have most of it, but think about surface area to
here is a little reading for ya all..
after that lets keep going on the bio balls..

tims · 05-21-2006, 08:04 PM

the main part is page 2 and 3 that covers Bio balls.. but the whole discussion we had was very good

combiemaster · 05-22-2006, 12:21 AM

ok guys this is what i did. Oh and tims i read all 4 pages i learn a few things thx. Ok for the past couple of days my tank had been at about 80-82 degrees. i decided to remove my canopy and store it for a while. so i took a peek at the bio ball area and saw something that scared me. There was a layer of what i think is detitrous. Its like a film a little lighter in color from what comes in the skimmer. and i looks in the heater comparment and it had the same film. Then i look were the bioballs are look at the very bottom and saw the same film and some of the balls had the same stuff on it. I really want to clean up everything in there because i am going on my asia vacation in 1 week. I dont want to kill all the bacteria that is already colonized on the balls. how do i go on cleaning them do i just pull out some tank water in a bucket and dip them in there and as for the detitrous can i just wipe it off and catch it with a sponge. If i pull out all the bioballs and clean them is that good?? and if i was to start pulling them lets say 1/4 each week would that have any big effect on the tank. I want to get to were there are no more ball in there and i can just have rubble back there. Also as i pull out the bio balls do i need to replace it with LR imidialty or after all the balls are gone then i place the rubble in

tims · 05-22-2006, 12:15 PM

it is that and Disolved organics..
you can slowly take the bio balls out and clean them, or do what you want withthem. you have to let the tank catch up the the load the bio-balls were taking. so yeah 1/4 of them over the week shoudl be fine
wait until you have all the balls out before replacing withthe rubble.. the rubble is in the tank now right?
nice thing with that rubble, once it is in place it will be a lot easier to clean..

combiemaster · 05-24-2006, 01:10 AM

no the rubbles i was planing to buy it. But i am a little confused do i take out 1/4 bioballs and put in 1/4 rubble or after all the bals are out the put it in 1/4 at a time over a week. also how much rubble would i need??? (pounds)???

tims · 05-24-2006, 07:20 AM

can you take a picture of that area for me...
yes take out 1/4 until all gone.. rubble in after it is all done.. but you can place the rubble in the tank to help it along until you are ready