Canister filters

[kwjones]

Ok, I'll admit that as a newbie, I was duped into getting one of these.

I used to run filter media and carbon in it, but my Nitrates stayed high, so I ditched the filter media and just put carbon in it.

Recently I've taken the carbon out and put it in the bubble trap return on my Remora Pro skimmer, so basically the canister is empty except for the baskets and is used for circulation.

Has anyone put LR rubble in their canister filters? Any benefits? Does it turn into a nitrate factory?

I'm just trying to think of a way to get some more use out of the canister instead of just circulation and surface agitation with the spray bar.

Kevin

[chawee]

If you ever have a phosphate problem you can run RowaPhos in it. Some reefers even use it continuosly, but that can be expensive... especially if you don't need it!

[pbanda]

I got duped too back in '97..... I ran it empty for a while just for circulation... it died over the summer. The most fowl smell I every smelt when I emptied it before tossing it!!!

[JJM]

I run my reef with 3 cannister filters, and 2 PHs for circ, thats it...no skimmer or sump. Unconvential , yes ,...impossible , no....I run fluff, carbon , polys 24 / 7 .....modest h20 change weekly , change filter media every 3 or 4 weeks...Guess ive been duped to , into a successful reef !!!!
as far as your question , I dont like dsb or any dead spot potential, some pics i see on rc that have dsb, have cyno and or hair , on or around the dsb line. your nitrates probably manifested its self in old media, yes , you can put crush coral , or rubble , and it will be a stable low flow bio filter,...you'll need to use a spong filter as your first stage but clean it often..There are many ways to run a successful reef , if you have one problem ie nitrates , dont blame the easiest thing , it could be your salt , water souce, your food or feeding regiem , additives, etc.......if you dont want you cannister filter , i'll take it

ok , flame away, its been a crappy day anyway

[kwjones]

I know a lot of my nitrate problems were coming from the canister because I was lazy and didn't change the filter pads as often as I should have, and I'll admit that. I dreaded cleaning out the canister because I always had a leak after re-connecting the hoses.

I don't have a lot of LR in my tank to begin with because it's a FOWLR tank. But I figure, if I'm going to upgrade to reef, and I'm going to install a sump, I'm probably going to want to put some LR rubble in the sump anyway. If I'm planning on getting some rubble anyway, why not put it in the canister until the sump is finished?

[MadTownMax]

When I had a 30g I ran a Ehiem 2213 and a prizm skimmerand the tank worked great, although I also had some calupera in it that grew like a weed - probably due to the nitrates that JJM mentions in his posts.

As chawee said, they're great to have around to run any sort of media filtration, and also work well to polish the water when your sand bed gets stirred up.

[JJM]

that was my next lecture !!!,...cannisters are great for what they do , they isolate the dirt very well ,...its up to humans to remove it from the system ,..as far as leaks in your disconnect valves ..Teflon Tape !

[kwjones]

I'd love to have some macro, in fact I used to have some feather calupera growing on my TBS rocks, but my fish ate it all before it had a chance to get established, hence the major reason for me wanting to add a sump and fuge ;).

[kwjones]

I'm also thinking about going bare bottom when I set up the new tank. Anyone want 100 lbs of Southdown? My wife will kill me if I can't find a use for it after I take it out of the tank.

[gilinjoppa]

Hi KWJONES THIS IS GILINJOPPA HOW MUCH DO YOUYWANT FOR THAT SAND IS IT LIVE I HAVE A 55GL FOWLR TANCK AND AND A LOW BUGGET

[kwjones]

It's going to be a while before the sand is available, hopefully not more than 2 months. I still have to get my sump built and swap out my current tank with the new one. You can have the sand if you want it. You live pretty close to Rising Sun, so when I swap the tanks I can put it in a few buckets and you can come pick it up.

[gilinjoppa]

Thanks, I appreciate it. Let me know when your ready and I will pick it up.