bio-balls, fuge query

[luvnpc69]

this is a two part question...help is much appreciated....

1) i have read that removing bio-balls from my wet-dry sump/filter may be necessary...how necessary is this and what is the reasoning?

2) i keep reading about large refugiums, up to 20 gallons or so...i have a 55 gallon tank with an approx. 10 gallon wet-dry...i mainly plan on keeping anemones, corals, crabs, shrimp, scallops, cucs and other inverts, but would also like a fish or three: probably a scooter blenny, clownfish, and eventually a mandarin....i have a 2.5 gallon fuge on the way...i will stock it with a couple pieces of live rock and some cheato, perhaps a mangrove or two... i have plenty of pods right now and will probably buy a bottle to help kickstart the fuge... do i need a substrate in the fuge?...will i be able to support my tank with this size fuge? why is it necessary to have such a large (20 gallon) fuge?
thanks

[mg426]

Bio balls can promote rising nitrate levels. Most people just remove them a hand full every few days untill they are gone. A refugium is a very welcome addition to any system the larger the better.

[luvnpc69]

but will my small fuge be enough to sustain the life i plan to keep?

[Jareth]

A fuge wont effect your livestock, other than making their water cleaner. A fuge is basically a kind of filter, usually stocked with micro life such as copepods, that assists in cleaning your water.

I have seen HOB fuges of less than 1 gallon. Im sure a small fuge would help, if in no other way than adding more water to your system thereby making it more stable.

You probably wont have to seed the fuge, a cup of sand and maybe moving one of the pieces of LR in your tank to the fuge will transport them. I have not seen pics of any fuges without LS, LR, and macro algae of some sort, so I would have to say LS is a necessary substrate. Besides, the more nitrate reducing elements you have the better.

[seapug]

Many people use bioballs with no trouble, but removing them is a good idea to reduce the rapid production of nitrate.

Fuges do a lot more than just keep your water clear. A refugium with live rock and macroalgae (with or without sand) kept on a reverse or 24/7 lighting schedule can help stabilize pH, increase denitrifcation capacity, reduce hair algae growth in the display and provide a source of food for the fish and corals. The bigger the better, but there are benefits to one of any size you can set up.

[meco65]

You can run bio-balls with out a nitrate problem, You will how ever need to take the bio-balls out (JMO) once every two weeks and rinse them in SW, and clean the wet-dri out. That way you take away the nitrate fule, while not hurting the bio-filter.

[seapug]

Originally posted by meco65
You can run bio-balls with out a nitrate problem, You will how ever need to take the bio-balls out (JMO) once every two weeks and rinse them in SW, and clean the wet-dri out. That way you take away the nitrate fule, while not hurting the bio-filter.

i'm not so sure about this. While it is true that dirty bio-balls are bad, a properly designed bio-ball filter (with a prefilter sponge) should never need to be "cleaned." It's not about debris trapped in the bio-balls-- the nitrate issue is caused by the bacteria on the extremely high surface area of the air-water interface of bio-ball media-- the nitrifying bacteria are too efficient so they convert ammonia to nitrate faster than the nitrate can be "de-nitrified" by the live rock and sand bed so you end up with chronic excess nitrate.

[baldomero]

I HAVE A 90 GALLON WET DRY ON MY FOWLR AND I NEVER HAD A NITRATE PROBLEM.

[meco65]

i'm not so sure about this. While it is true that dirty bio-balls are bad, a properly designed bio-ball filter (with a prefilter sponge) should never need to be "cleaned." It's not about debris trapped in the bio-balls-- the nitrate issue is caused by the bacteria on the extremely high surface area of the air-water interface of bio-ball media-- the nitrifying bacteria are too efficient so they convert ammonia to nitrate faster than the nitrate can be "de-nitrified" by the live rock and sand bed so you end up with chronic excess nitrate.

If this was the case all the surface aria in our tanks would have to be thought of the same way, as all surfaces in the tank grow bacteria. I would like to here from the people that have ran the wet-dry filters with bio-balls that did have high nitrate levels, truely how clean were the bio-ball when they removed them from the system. I would bet that most had not been cleand very often and had a build up of junk on and around them.

Look at the post by baldomero.

I HAVE A 90 GALLON WET DRY ON MY FOWLR AND I NEVER HAD A NITRATE PROBLEM.

What about all the people that run the wet-dry filters with bio-balls and have no problems what so ever.