Bioballs..clean, rinse, or leave alone?

2

2008pollyanna

Reefing newb
Wondering what to do...
I have bioballs in my biocube, and read not to clean them. To let them be. So, when I clean the tank. I just put them in a bucket and return them to chamber after wiping the chamber out...
And I do the same in my sump...

So, are we supposed to be cleaning or rinsing bioballs or just leaving them alone?
 
Live rock in the bio ball cavity of my biocube? I have lots of live rock and live sand in my biocube. Same with my bowfront. I thought the bioballs actually promote good bacteria growth.
 
There are two types of bacteria: 1) bacteria that convert ammonia to nitrite and nitrite to nitrate, and 2) bacteria that convert nitrate to nitrogen gas, which then leaves your tank. The first type of bacteria is aerobic, and lives on all sorts of surfaces. The second type of bacteria is anaerobic and only lives in oxygen poor environments like deep inside live rock or in a deep sand bed.

Live rock creates an environment for both types of bacteria to live. You get reduction in ammonia, nitrite and nitrate. Bioballs create an environment for the first type of bacteria to live, but not the second. So you get low ammonia and nitrite, but nitrates that get higher and higher and higher. Basically bioballs will create a nitrate problem, detrimental and even fatal to inverts.

So if you clean the bioballs thoroughly weekly, you probably won't get nitrate problems. If you leave them be, your nitrates will probably spike.

That's why bioballs are usually not used in reef tanks. Fish only tanks they are okay, because fish can tolerate high nitrates. But inverts can't.

If you replace your bioballs with live rock rubble, you will get both types of bacteria growing in it.
 
Hey Biff,
So your saying I want both types? Let me see, I want the nitrates in my rock and deep sand bed to convert to nitrogen gas...is that a good thing? I understand how ammonia converts on to nitrite and then the nitrates climb to overcome the nitrite. That is a good thing. From what I understand.
I also have heard that rubble can trap the gas....which we dont want. So, in a biocube where do I put the rubble....in the bioball canister boxy thing?
I will definately start rinsing those danged ole balls...ha ha...
And to make live rock rubble...I can just bust up some rock, eh?
Facinating lil ecosystems arent they....
Thanks Biff....
 
Yes, just bust up some rock and make rubble. with proper flow you wont need to worry about any buildup. and yes, the gas is a good thing it will leave your system.
 
I have a a biocube 29.

I filter all water thru a piece of floss and have never seen my bioballs get clogged with a bit of detritus.

Putting LR rubble in the back chambers could clog your pump. One little piece of rock will break or jam the impeller. Yes, I've seen a little piece get from chamber 2 work its way around the sponge to the pump in chamber 3!

Also, I tried putting LR rubble in the high flow back chambers --where there is less stagnant water and less anaerobic bacteria-- and it accomplished nothing. Many people put live rubble in the back of the bio-cube but I think its a bad idea.

In chamber 1, I have a heater and a slightly modded skimmer. In chamber 2, I have chaeto with lights, chemi-pure wrapped in floss and I have left some bioballs in only because it makes the tank quieter. Again, I have looked at my bioballs many, many times and never seen a bit of detritus in them. If they do get messy, rinse them with water from a change out. Let me emphasis that although it doesn't seem very high tech, forcing all water thru a simple piece of filter floss can take out a whole lot of detritus and prevent nitrates quite a bit. BTW, my nitrates are consistently below 10 ppm.
 
Trapped nitrogen gas isn't a problem, and isn't hurting anything. I've never heard of it happening. You want nitrate to convert to nitrogen gas, because then it escapes from your system and your nitrates stay naturally low.

Most people with reef tanks do away with the bioballs completely. A lot of times, people get rid of them after they start seeing nitrate problems and try all sorts of things to get them down.
 
When I ran the bio-balls,I rinsed them out at least once a week.I even bleached them once a month.But I kept them because the sump I was using sounded like a water fall during a flash flood.
If you keep them clean,there not a problem,but if the get dirty there going to cause bad water quality.
 
I used a wet/dry with bioballs in my reef for over 15 years. I never took them out to clean them and I never had any nitrtate problems. It's all about proper husbandry.
Here's a pic of my old 50g tank with the wet/dry and bioballs. Those bioballs were never moved in the 15+ years I used that setup.

filter_12-05.jpg
 
I run 380 to 400 in calcium and 13 drops in KH alkalinity. With my new RODI system. If I did kalwasser to pump up my calcium...it would also pump up my alkalinity. Right? Which I wouldnt want. Its borderline already.
I have corals and would like to run my calcuium higher....suggestions?
I do water changes every one to two weeks. 20% and I have a 46 bowfront with a 40 tank sump with refugium.
 
I use reef crystals by instant crystals. I have lots of soft coral. A few skeletels like cotton candy, fox coral, bubble coral, red monti, a couple favites. Frogspawns, kenja,zenas, toadstools...Zoans...a good variety.
So, 380 to 400 is fine. Why do people use kalwassa then? I hear so much about it?
 
most people that use kalk have large loads of sps and lps coral that deplete the calcium very rapidly like you could start the day at 400 and by the end of the day it is at 200.
 

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