Advise needed

[domzzz]

I just setup my tank yesterday.

Just put in the C3 sand and the water.

I'm using sea water but has insufficient will be

getting some more today.

I'm using a 2213 filter, a sander protein skimmer and a powerhead.

So is this wat i should do now?

1) fill up the tank and let it run for 3 - 4 days?

2) test the parameter and then add some LR

3) what is the requirement needed for the water before i can add LR

4) Do i need to add any chemical? eg bacteria or wat into the water for

it to cycle...

5)This is wat i put inside the canister, top to bottom

i)wool

ii)substate

iii)wool

iv)bio ball

v)activated carbon

vii)ceramic rings

Is it ok?

Thanks

[lona]

Hi Domzz,

Actually you can put in the LR already, no need to wait..

[Chris]

You don't need wool in your canister at all. It will only trap particles and cause a built-up of NH4, NO2, NO3. Use it entirely as biologiccal and chemical filter. Need only coral chips, bio-rings, carbon(opt) and most impt poly-filter.

With your set up, you might have a Nitrate build-up as there is no export system for Nitrate. There are commercial items to battle that or you can use DSB (Deep Sand Bed). If you want to use DBS, then C3 sand is not suitable. You need at least 4" of C1 sand. Also, you need season live sand to seed your sand and the DSB will take about 6-9 months to mature.

Hope these help.

[domzzz]

what is poly filter?

[piero]

It is a high density fliter wool Not too bad.. think can get at pet mart for $13 a piece...

[dersuz]

Or 3 for $30 cash.

[domzzz]

is it the same as those that come with the cannister filter?

if not wat are those? filter pad

[junlover]

So is this wat i should do now?

1) fill up the tank and let it run for 3 - 4 days?

depend on yr size of yr tank,e cycling time vary

bigger e longer,3-4days toooooo short...

wat yr tank size?

[bawater]

domzzz, what seawater?

izit raw seawater or bought filtered seawater from LFS?

your protein skimmer should be on as the water is bound to have dissolved organics.

1) 3-4 days to add what? LR is ok. livestock? hmm i think better to finish cycle first.

2) test today,add LR test a week later. test every week till u see no ammonia or nirite.

if u dun feel good, let it run empty somemore then start stocking slowly(not 5 fishes in one go)

3) if using artificial saltmix u need to let it run & stabilize for abt a week,add LR.

4) No- bacteria will find their own way

5) how u fit in so much into a 2213?

wool will clog & slow the flow down very fast,carbon u will need to replace every week or 2-

u are not meant to wash canisters very often so a little biosponge(those that come with canisters) at the bottom where the water enters & fill the rest with ceramic is fine. bio balls take up too much space- ceramic serves the same purpose in less space.

why u fill with substrate? u mean coral chips? this just becomes another bacteria medium-but the ceramic works better as it has a larger surface area for bacteria.

as chris mentioned, u will end up with nitrates which is what the canister was designed to do.

What u do to it from here is up to u- a NNR method or diluting by regular water changes.

[domzzz]

there seems to be a lot of space in the cannister.

WHat do u recommend me putting inside?

NNR- can i use LR for that??

Anyway my tank is only 80L which is around 20gal

Dimension: Height 20" length 24" Width 18"

[bawater]

i use a 2213 purely for chemical purpose- carbon & phosguard.

& a 2235 just for biological

u can stick to what chris said or just sponge & ceramic makes it a biological filter & only need to clean every 60-90 days.

i don't think there will be enough LR alone that u can fit into a 2ft to help nitrates.

[domzzz]

If LR alone cannot do the NNR, what does can be done?

[bawater]

LR alone can work, aka the berlin method.

u need lots of it of the correct shape & low stocking levels.

u will know what i mean when u fill your tank with LR, it gets full fast & u will want to leave some swimming space for fishes

[Hon]

LR fill the tank fast?? Your wallet must be really fat to do that now.....

I been using Berlin method for a long while, but looking at the price of LR, I need to fall onto a newer technology!!!

[bawater]

i mean those big pieces take up lots of space Hon.

i haven't touched LR since it cost $4-$5 per kg. die die also won't buy now. For my upcoming i rather use back dry base rock i stockpiled under the kitchen sink then seed it in tank with current LR .

I can only cringe at the thought of u filling up that 6ft...phew!. can die

[hongqixian]

You don't need wool in your canister at all. It will only trap particles and cause a built-up of NH4, NO2, NO3. Use it entirely as biologiccal and chemical filter. Need only coral chips, bio-rings, carbon(opt) and most impt poly-filter.

With your set up, you might have a Nitrate build-up as there is no export system for Nitrate. There are commercial items to battle that or you can use DSB (Deep Sand Bed). If you want to use DBS, then C3 sand is not suitable. You need at least 4" of C1 sand. Also, you need season live sand to seed your sand and the DSB will take about 6-9 months to mature.

Hope these help.

Wool and bio balls are not nitrate factories if CLEANED REGULARLY. Bio Balls are called nitrate factories because they tend to trap dirt within the large bacterial colonisation area that they provide. So it's not perfect. They are OK if you just take them out and swish them around in old tank water once in a few months.

Filter wool traps dirt like waste particles and uneaten food. Either those particles get eaten or they rot. If waste gets trapped & removed with regular washing/changing of the filter wool and the uneaten food is removed quickly you will have very little nitrates to deal with.

Its just a different place for the dirt and uneaten food to rot. Maybe some food particles in the water eventually gets eaten by micro critters but it all adds up to nitrates and the critters will adjust their population to the amount of food.

The coral chips, bio rings, carbon and poly-filter pad can all trap particles in the canister. Rinse them in a tub of old tank water to remove the dirt but preserve the bacteria.

DSB is not needed in a 2ft tank. It traps gunk and those rot inside too. Eventually all the toxic gases that can accumulate inside can kill the bacteria and the DSB fails.

Live rock will seed your sand by itself.

[Fishfreak]

Wool and bio balls are not nitrate factories if CLEANED REGULARLY.

[BarraCudaTM]

bioballs are called nitrate factories not because they trap dirt but because they are too efficient in coverting NH3 -> NO2 -> NO3

infact bioballs are self cleaning, they are less likely to clog compared to siporax or other ceramic materials

[Anthony]

i think 2ft tank, "LR alone can work, aka the berlin method." cannot help much loh.

my 2ft tank got around 15+kg LR. 30% water change and my NO3 still sky high

haiz

[Fishfreak]

mrjoe Posted on Mar 7 2003, 11:41 PM

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i think 2ft tank, "LR alone can work, aka the berlin method." cannot help much loh.

my 2ft tank got around 15+kg LR. 30% water change and my NO3 still sky high

Overfeeding? Silicate sand? Overstocking? Better find out why.

I do less than 20% water change once a month, less than 15kg LR, an efficient Prizm and my NO3 peaks at 20ppm. Don't recall it being higher than that. But I d have low stocking of fish - just two tiny clowns and a lawnmower blenny. And, oh yes, a bicolor blenny that I don't know if its still alive or where it is

[dersuz]

IMO, Berlin system only works well for biger volume tank, a 2ft tank volume might be too small for it to work effectively.

You can increase the water volume by having a bigger sump to perform both mechanical and chemical filtration. Or reduce your tank loading, eg. fish, food, etc.

[Anthony]

i have 2 maroon, 1 YT, 1 damsel . (i know overstock liao)

using a venturi skimmer.

just install a atman 3338

any 1 using tetra NO3 b4?.

wonder y after i change 20% . my result still the same .. always fall around 30-40ppm.

[dersuz]

How thick is your sand bed?

[Anthony]

around 3"

anyway i still using C4 or C5 sand. thought of toping up till 6" using C3 sand

"will there be any spike ifi remove all the bigger sand n add new C3 sand in?"

[dersuz]

Is better to have 1" sand bed for Berlin system, anything between 2" to 5" does not help in reducing nitrate. But if you prefer to have DSB, then you should use #1 sand and top up to 6" or more.