HOB filter?

[AlwaysImproving]

I have a sea prizm HOB protein skimmer. Don't ask why but I bought two aqueon HOB filters and have them on each end of the tank. I have about 50 lbs of live rock in my 55 gallon and my question is do I need both filters, or even any HOB filters for that reason. I was reading that some corals actually grow better in water that isn't immaculate.

 

[Bifferwine]

Well, the HOB filters will tend to raise your nitrates unless you keep them clean. So if you can devote time to cleaning them at least once a week, then they should be okay. Most of the time, HOB filters are not used in this hobby because they lead to poor water quality. And yes, some corals grow in water that isn't immaculate, but that means 5 nitrates vs. 0 nitrates. And with HOB filters, you could start to see your nitrates go up to 40+ which isn't really good for anything.

 

[yote]

+1 Biff.

 

[AdeptMrSniffles]

You should sell your skimmer and filters for a better HOB skimmer and more Live Rock.

 

[mblack]

some people say the red sea prizm is worse than useless, I haven't tried it so I am not going to tell you to get rid but keep an eye on it, make sure it's doing a good job.

 

[daugherty]

yea they are kinda like a seaclone they work for lightly stocked tanks but if you get a heavy bio load than they dont work well

 

[winyfrog]

The best hang on skimmer in my opinion is Aqua C Remora.

 

[daugherty]

i have an octo 800s and it does a very good job

 

[Bifferwine]

Octopus and Aqua C are the two best brands for HOB skimmers. The only 4 skimmers I've ever had are a SeaClone, Prizm, Aqua C Remora Pro and Octopus Recirc. Guess which ones ended up in the trash after about a month.

 

[sen5241b]

High nitrates from HOB filters, bioballs, canister filters and under-gravel filters is something you hear all the time. They produce nitrates only becuase they collect detritus. If you keep them clean they will not produce nitrates. The question is do you want to take the time to be cleaning them and if its big --possibly more than once a week. I have a HOB filter on my 10G FOWLR that holds chemi-pure. I clean it once a month. My 10G also has an undergravel filter. I reverse blast water thru it twice a month. Nitrates 10ppm.

 

[OmegaOmega]

High nitrates from HOB filters, bioballs, canister filters and under-gravel filters is something you hear all the time. They produce nitrates only becuase they collect detritus. If you keep them clean they will not produce nitrates. The question is do you want to take the time to be cleaning them and if its big --possibly more than once a week. I have a HOB filter on my 10G FOWLR that holds chemi-pure. I clean it once a month. My 10G also has an undergravel filter. I reverse blast water thru it twice a month. Nitrates 10ppm.

I keep reading everywhere about how underground filters are the big sin... Is this not the case? Should I look at one for my BioCube? Do a lot of people here run undergrounds?

 

[Bifferwine]

Oh they aren't worth it at all. The only reason you'd have an undergravel filter is if you mistakenly set the tank up with it in the first place, and had too much rock, sand, and livestock in the tank to be able to remove it. I think Sen is the only person on this site that runs an undergravel filter, and like he says, he has had good luck with it. But 99% of people that have tried it have run into really bad water quality issues. And he says his nitrates are at 10 ppm, well, the undergravel filter may very well be the reason why he will never be able to get to 0.

Just stay away from them.

 

[OmegaOmega]

Oh they aren't worth it at all. The only reason you'd have an undergravel filter is if you mistakenly set the tank up with it in the first place, and had too much rock, sand, and livestock in the tank to be able to remove it. I think Sen is the only person on this site that runs an undergravel filter, and like he says, he has had good luck with it. But 99% of people that have tried it have run into really bad water quality issues. And he says his nitrates are at 10 ppm, well, the undergravel filter may very well be the reason why he will never be able to get to 0.

Just stay away from them.

It's like they be tryin' to catch me ridin' dirty

 

[sen5241b]

Oh they aren't worth it at all. The only reason you'd have an undergravel filter is if you mistakenly set the tank up with it in the first place, and had too much rock, sand, and livestock in the tank to be able to remove it. I think Sen is the only person on this site that runs an undergravel filter, and like he says, he has had good luck with it. But 99% of people that have tried it have run into really bad water quality issues. And he says his nitrates are at 10 ppm, well, the undergravel filter may very well be the reason why he will never be able to get to 0.

Just stay away from them.

There is an article at saltwater.about.com about how undergravel filtters work decently for smaller tanks. As I said in another post, mine is an experiement. Nitrates still holding at 10ppm. I reverse blast water thru them to prevent detritus build up under them. The idea was to stay away from sand as it too can become a detritus trap. Some people go with sand-less tanks for the same reason.

 

[dcantucson]

Seems like there are a lot of varying methods which work for different people.

Back in the 70's (I know along time ago) people used undergravel filters for saltwater tanks. I remember on my first tank using floss on top of the filter grate, then sand on top of that. That way the sand wouldn't seep down into the lower part. Of course reef set-ups were not in existence for the most part. Just fish, mainly.

It would be interesting to see what reefing would be like in 2050! What advances will be made?

 

[Epos]

+1 biffer. IMHO mechanical filters other than wet-dry's aren't worth the cleaning time. I am pretty lazy though...

 

[Ted]

70's Heck i had a undergravel in the early 90's on my fo. Of course it might have been the reason I could never keep much alive back then or it could have been that air driven counter current skimmer. Ran them almost 6 years I did have a few fish that lived that long but my yellow tang decided to kill everyone one day. That was when I tore down the tank. :grumble:

 

[Epos]

I'd pass on the undergravels as well. Unless you're using very coarse substrate they're pretty much impossible to vacuum and they end up just collected waste that will turn into the nitrates and just sit there.