Damn, you're a man on a mission - I only spoke to you about this yesterday and you dived straight into building it. Good work,man - it looks great and you're bang on when you say a slower flow will increase the amount of anaerobic activity as that is 100% right. A full cycle can till be easily achieved using a canister filter but it does take quite a lot of suitable media (biohome) to do that, anywhere from 1kg per 100 litres (26 US gallons)for a normally stocked tank to 2kg per 100 litres (26 US gallons) for a heavily stocked tank. In that high flow situation the media holds maybe 5% anaerobic bacteria but in a low flow (deoxygenated) environment like a reactor that could increase to 50%, 75% or higher depending on the flow.....lower flow = more anaerobic activity so as far as how much biohome would be needed the normal tank requirement of 1kg per 100 litres for nitrate reduction could drop to 0.5kg per 100 litres or lower depending on the flow. I always laugh when I see some of the very high profile channels who have never used biohome say that nitrate reduction is impossible in canister filters, biohome doesn't work etc. etc. when thousands of people all over the world who have used it tell them otherwise....problem is that their posts get deleted, they get banned from their channels, forums etc. so it maintains the ignorance of the full cycle simply to preserve the nonsense those channels are spreading - just try putting a positive comment about biohome or something about a full cycle being achieved in any situation using media in the comment section of a popular channel videos and see what happens, lol Good on you, man - we're slowly getting there and that's why channels like yours are so important to get proper information out into the sea of 'Tank alteration #39' / 'All my fish are dead' / 'New fish!' / 'Look what idea I'm going to pass off as my own' / 'Livestream about bugger all # 376' type of crap which is blighting UA-cam. Problem is we're small fish swimming against a tide of sludge but people who care about their fish are attracted to good information - it's no surprise that you have a really excellent set of people who watch your videos and that will always have infinite value compared to the money driven nonsense route. That's why I'm glad to support you and other honest channels however I can.
Pondguru Spot on about rubbish fish channels Richard. I've subscribed to quite a few in the past but have unsubscribed from the majority as I got increasingly irritated by them too. Mark is fab, and so are you for reliable intelligent content and info, you both deserve many more subscribers!
Hey Pondguru I used your video to set up a used Eheim canister filter I got with a 60g tank off Craig's List. I now understand the layered order needed for best filtration. I do need to find something to take the weight off compressing the filter floss (quilting fiber fill I already had). I'll figure something out. Need to find a pond plant pot or something similar. Thanks for all the great info! Happy New Year!
This kind of video is exactly why your my favouate UA-camr... Every video you post is insightful and different from the one before. I hope that in 2019 your viewers reach at least 50K because your certainly deserve it . Thank you mark, keep it up 👍all the best for 2019 😊
Heya Mark, I created a denitrification basket using two undergravel filters and baked clay kitty litter last year and have been achieving constant 0 to 20 ppm with zero water changes for the past year, I cut the riser pipe for the undergravel filters to just four inches in height to slow the water movement through the substrate. The tank (230 litre) is moderately stocked (25), silver dollars, congo, neons and rummy nose, no plants and very low levels of algae, also run a canister filter and pre-filter, its running like a champ, denitrification filters are certainly worth experimenting with...
post a pic, at the moment my 350L tank I just used a 25L bucket with multiple reverse flow sponges and gravel media and then let it drip into the tank from the top cause I'm cheap and functional at the moment. Still need to get a water tester though, to see the water quality.
@@MorneBooysen yeah, I got cheap under gravel filters off Ebay, made two tank sized trays and then tied the two together and put kitty litter in the center, I didn't bag it but I guess it probably would've been better, then put it at the bottom of the tank under my substrate with one riser pipe cut short, I haven't got photos though I'm putting together another one in a couple of months a little different, with a sand substrate and garden weed barrier cloth and probably a full length riser, flow will already be restricted by the sand etc, I'll get photos if you like . its dirt cheap $8 for ten pieces of modular filter plates, I used I think 34 pieces for the three footer, and a huge bag of unscented clay kitty litter for $15. System is really stable the only time i get higher than normal nitrates is if I feed them too much, or should I say the children (rolls eyes) LOL but a couple of days back to low NO- 3 ppm's, just did the first water change the other day to clean up the substrate of detritus and will probably stick with three monthly water changes from now on, tank got a little messy, but I guess it shows that it works, anyway good luck with it
Nice reactor mate I went the cheap-ass and bought 2 sunsun 603s and a small power head. Filled both sunsuns with 2kgs of biohome gravel each. I have half closed the taps on the outlet side of the sunsuns so I get a real slow flow returning into my tank. Fingers crossed I start seeing some results soon and lower nitrates in my frontosa 6x2x2 tank
Interesting to see you making this, will enjoy seeing what Richard does with it! I wasn't expecting you to glue both ends as you won't be able to remove the media, but I guess you won't need to replace it or clean it as you would lose the anaerobic benefits.
Nice piece of equipment you got there Mark, love the laser cutter, also very interesting project, can’t wait to see what Richard is doing with it. Happy New Year!
Luckily found your channel, have already subscribed to it, also follow Pond guru Richard, very nice video, unfortunately we don't find so many persons like you guys that like to share with others your acknowledgement and creating alternative ideas of how to make this hobby more efficient and cheaper, thanks a lot for both of you, keep safe and well.
Great video. I need something like this for those pesky Nitrates :-) Do you have a follow up video on how successful this was? And maybe info on how much media is needed per tank volume?
Thanks for an other excellent video - I've watched some DIY projects on UA-cam which "do the job" but you take it to another level man!! Truly inspirational! I have internal filters already loaded with Richard's media (he likes to call it pimping the filter) and that works really well. But now I'm thinking of ways of incorporating this to boost the anaerobic bacteria externally as well....
Hey mark this is an awesome diy nitrate reactor, I would love to see if you could find a way of incorporating sand into the design, one of the best water polishers out there! I guess the water would have to come in from the top, and trickle down to compact the sand then out the bottom crystal like swimming pool water. When it gets clogged simply remove the unit, run it in reverse & back wash untill the sand is clean again. You have no end of possibilities with that 3D printer!
I'm currently building a setup with 3 large tanks on an 18 foot long stand that will all share a sump that runs the whole 18 foot length of the stand. I'm thinking of installing a horizontal pipe with water trickling in at one end and draining out the other into the sump. I can't afford that much Biohome media but I have found about 10 gallons of used Seachem Denitrate on Craigslist. DO you think this might work for nitrate removal?
Can this not be done with sponge? I'm confused about why sintered glass is superior to sponge. They both have similar pores and holds a ton of bacteria. Can a sponge not create a anaerobic zone?
Once again love the engineering side. Ironically I've just drawn up a very similar thing but with air lift. Great video as always Mark. Happy new year buddy and looking forward to 2019 vids.
Me jumping into the comments when i heard you say youre going to put biohome in there and push water through *youre going to need a super slow flow of-* You explaining itll have a slow flow of water Me 😮
Mark, did this item ever get tested? I can not find a link to the information after this video. Seems like a brilliant idea but I am curious to know how it worked in practice. I figure 1 year is more than enough time for it to have passed or failed the expectations of the testing. Thanks for the great video and idea!
Shouldn't we make a super wide diameter canister where the water comes in at the bottom and rises super slow through the biohome to the top and returns to the tank? Wait! What about....... Creating one HUGE block of sintered glass with an input and an exit? :)
Hi Mark great work I love making little things like this in the hobby and saving some money too. Do you have a video on how to make the auto top up? Thanks
@@MARKSAQUATICS Thank you, keep up the great work.! Fantastic channel that will without a doubt be earning more and more subs. All the best to you and yours.! From Haysville Kansas.
@@MARKSAQUATICS Are you familiar with Marks Shrimp Tanks.... Great guy!!! like yourself, very knowledgeable. Cares deeply for his animals (friends).! I think you and him would be great friends..!!!
Hi mark and everyone, I don't want to do water changes, it's a nuisance. I'm just totally sick of doing changes on that tank of 5-10 gallons a time, 15-20 gallons at another. once or twice a week when everything appears fine mostly. However, my Ammonia and nitrites have been stable and at nothing for years now, (running a 72g, with a 150 wet/dry and a 300gp/h pump. I clean my pre-filter a couple times a week and change the filter pad in the wet/dry once a month. I don't have an algae problem at all and never have, the fish that are there seem fine, some large kissing gouramis I've had for more than a decade now, I've noticed new introductions don't fair well in the tank and don't make it past 24 hours, I can take fish from the tank and put them in another one I do regular water changes on with a usual acclimation, nothing special needs to be done, but I can't leave them there for a couple months and then put them back, they won't make it the 24 hours either (found this out with a breeding pair of pearlscale albino angel fish and lost the male). I feel like it's "old tank syndrome" where nitrates are too high in the substrate. Small water changes don't do much at all, vacuuming it is a real pain. My only thought is that my nitrates are built up to an intolerable level for everything except for the fish that have been there forever which had a slow acclimation to it. Is this even possible? I know nitrates either need to be used up or removed, Would planting use up the nitrates efficiently and bring it down so I could put in new fish without them dying? ideally I'd like it to be "hands off" and just have to change filters and touch up, I want away from the water changes on that thing it's why I got decent filtration for it that could cycle the tank water 4x an hour at least through the filter but I feel like the nitrates have built up over the last couple years to intolerable levels for any new fish that haven't slowly adjusted to it. Will planting get it under control or just add to the problem? I also don't leave lighting on in a manner that would promote algae growth or have necessarily "grow lights" for the tank, just a aquarium 4ft fluorescent bulb. So would planting be worth trying? would I need to change lighting of I did plant? or am I pretty much trapped into sinking my arm into the tank to vaccuum the bottom and lug 20 gallons of water around or more every week for the next forever?
What are your thoughts on using activated carbon in your aquarium filters? A few years back everyone used it, and these days I do not see anyone anymore using it.
Hi Mark, fascinating. I hope this works. I haven't got all your gear, but I'm sure I could make something similar with a bit of cobbling stuff together. Be very interested to hear what Richard thinks.
@@MARKSAQUATICS A happy New Year to you and all your subscribers. Only recently found your channel. Definitely one of the best fish keeping channels on UA-cam.
Hi mark , I have a 23000l koi pond , my nitrites are0 but nitrates are 60/80 and need to lower them , what you have made is very similar to a bakki river , would a river with bhm help on my pond cheers
MARK'S AQUATICS thank you , would the shower with water sprinkling over media be best or the river where everything is submerged and water passes thro the media please
Hi I remember watching you cut plexiglass with a hand held device. Ive been trying to find that video for some time without success I ve been wanting to cut mine a quarter inch but have been afraid of ruining it(They are expensive)I have the saw blades for various saws. Could you tell me what would be the best way and a link to the video? Thank you. Your videos are very informative and I greatly enjoy watching them. Hope you continue to make great videos for a long time to come. Thank You
Hi Mark, Thank you for the wonderful video. Can I use activated carbon as media for anaerobic bacteria colony or else what other media I can use. I don't get bio home media in my place. Thank you.
Hi Mark. Ive been feeding my Betta fish with springtails and they seem to love them. I havent seen anyone feed these small insects to their fish... to this end, is there any issues with feeding springtails to bettas?
Isn't majority (if not all) denitrifying bacteria anaerobic? How will you ensure anaerobic conditions in such short pipe? Not trying to hate here - just genuinly asking. Great design and making though!
Most bacteria are aerobic. anaerobic bacteria do not need air to survive and colonise deep within sand beds and in the media. they are great for removing nitrate. Happy new year👍😀
Nitrate (No3) = Nitrogen + 3 atoms of oxygen, in theory if you can starve aerobic bacteria of oxygen it will take from the N03 (3 atoms of oxygen) leaving just nitrogen, nitrogen being a gas should just gas off. it probably wont get rid of nitrate completely but should defiantly lower readings as long as the flow is low as possible
@@sephuk Some aerobes are facultative anaerobes as well, so these should start the denitrification process off. Other bacteria , such as Nitrocystis, play a part in the process and require less O2, for the intermediate stages; strict anaerobes such as Paracoccus convert these intermediates - nitrous oxide N2O and nitrogen oxide NO, back to gaseous nitrogen to complete the cycle. These bacteria take a long time to establish in the anoxic zone so results are often mixed.
After 2 years my biohome really started to clog up and loose its efficiency, ive heard the only way to clean it is to boil it which obviously kills the bacteria, i see in that design you have glued both ends in, so cleaning is impossible, be interesting if you have the same problem. I also have the standard course, medium and fine pads for mechanical filtration before people say i don’t have enough mechanical
Yes completely understand that but after a couple of years the media started to clog up, reducing its efficiency. But best of luck to you and the project, look forward to seeing it hopefully still working in a couple of years, i will subscribe to find out 👍
You seriously need to get in to business with pondguru. You share the same business and fish keeping and personal views from what I see.. I’d love to buy an internal tank version of something like that.
Clean work... But not sure denitrification process is so easy to get working properly. It's bit pity you're not testing it yourself.. you'd have fun to complete the setup ;)
I still don't understand why a UV sterilizer that kills bacteria in the water isn't killing all the good bacteria in the water that we encourage. Is the only place the bacteria need to work then in the filter or reactor then? I always imagined the bacteria would be in the water, plants and substrate doing their thing as well as in the filter.
Great to see. I suppose you could miniaturise it for a smaller aquarium too? Also I have recently purchased some blood parrot cichlids. They are amazing. .....if you can actually get a view of them. They're super shy. And like to hide -_-. Ever thought about making a fishy hide? Not for a parrot of course cos they are huge. But a moss covered bamboo house for smaller breeds that are a little shy or something. Just a small idea for future builds I guess. We love your creativity, that's why many of us are here perhaps. But I don't really have the tools to make cool looking things. Be curious to see what your next creation would be. Happy 2018...
Yeah was thinking of making something like this and a fluidised bed reactor with sand, clean beach sand should have a nice rounded shape. Probably why you do not see smaller versions that much is because the smaller the grain size the higher the risk of clogging up the filter bed, and the grain size basically determines the effective size for the reactor or container pipe.
@@viciousfish6145 This info from your side is very interesting. I know any time I watch some UK show on TV ( like Car Sos or Wheeler Dealers) they use imperial units, when they are fixing or replacing some part on car. In my country we use imperial units only for pipes, but I think it's a standard in whole world
I'm from UK and whilst we used to use the imperial system we changed over to metric decades ago. As Peter Smith rightly points out our speed limit signs are still in miles per hour and we still buy beer in pints but everything else is metric. He is nearly fifty and was only taught the metric system in school; I unfortunately am a decade older than him and I was taught both. The transition from imperial to metric was an interesting time - I remember trying to buy plasterboard at 1/2 inch thick and was told that it had all gone metric, it was now either 8mm, 12mm or 15mm thick but the sheet still measured 8 feet x 4 feet. It's now changed obviously and now everything is metric. The whole world has adopted the metric system apart from just three countries which still use imperial measurements, these are Myanmar, Liberia and USA.
@@viciousfish6145 are system was based on twelve not ten simply put you can divide 12 by 3 get a whole number which you cant do with ten great channel by the way
Does it matter if the reactor is vertical or not? It will have water pressure from one end so will flow through anyway. Also, I thought I heard that anaerobic bacteria do not like light so should this one have a sleeve to darken the media for full bacteria usage? I think it's good to be able to see into it when needed though. I also think having one end not permanently attached but sliding into the unit and having a gasket for a seal would make sense to be able to continue to use the reactor in years to come by cleaning it occasionally between uses. I hate the idea of throwing it out if it gets clogged for some reason. Or maybe if there was an illness in the tank and you wanted to sterilize the media and restart it. Whatever, it's a cool thing. I like to watch you work on acrylic projects. Maybe put some slat wall on the empty wall behind your work area and use it somehow. Also the areas above your pond would be cold but still humid enough for some epiphyte plants. I wonder how cold it gets in there.
vertical will give you much better distribution and contact time between catalyst (bio media balls) and the fluid water, thus it will be much more effective and increase lifetime since you are not depositing all fouling on only one side if it was horisontal orientation
Happy New Year to you too. Sorry for being so full of suggestions. I don't want to be pushy or suggest that you need to do anything different because you are so very awesome already. Hard to get across attitude in just printed form like this. I think its all the creativity and DIY that gets my brain working and it seems teachers and parents never convinced me that nobody really needs to know what I think. Best to you and yours!
Damn, you're a man on a mission - I only spoke to you about this yesterday and you dived straight into building it. Good work,man - it looks great and you're bang on when you say a slower flow will increase the amount of anaerobic activity as that is 100% right.
A full cycle can till be easily achieved using a canister filter but it does take quite a lot of suitable media (biohome) to do that, anywhere from 1kg per 100 litres (26 US gallons)for a normally stocked tank to 2kg per 100 litres (26 US gallons) for a heavily stocked tank. In that high flow situation the media holds maybe 5% anaerobic bacteria but in a low flow (deoxygenated) environment like a reactor that could increase to 50%, 75% or higher depending on the flow.....lower flow = more anaerobic activity so as far as how much biohome would be needed the normal tank requirement of 1kg per 100 litres for nitrate reduction could drop to 0.5kg per 100 litres or lower depending on the flow.
I always laugh when I see some of the very high profile channels who have never used biohome say that nitrate reduction is impossible in canister filters, biohome doesn't work etc. etc. when thousands of people all over the world who have used it tell them otherwise....problem is that their posts get deleted, they get banned from their channels, forums etc. so it maintains the ignorance of the full cycle simply to preserve the nonsense those channels are spreading - just try putting a positive comment about biohome or something about a full cycle being achieved in any situation using media in the comment section of a popular channel videos and see what happens, lol
Good on you, man - we're slowly getting there and that's why channels like yours are so important to get proper information out into the sea of 'Tank alteration #39' / 'All my fish are dead' / 'New fish!' / 'Look what idea I'm going to pass off as my own' / 'Livestream about bugger all # 376' type of crap which is blighting UA-cam. Problem is we're small fish swimming against a tide of sludge but people who care about their fish are attracted to good information - it's no surprise that you have a really excellent set of people who watch your videos and that will always have infinite value compared to the money driven nonsense route.
That's why I'm glad to support you and other honest channels however I can.
Pondguru Spot on about rubbish fish channels Richard. I've subscribed to quite a few in the past but have unsubscribed from the majority as I got increasingly irritated by them too. Mark is fab, and so are you for reliable intelligent content and info, you both deserve many more subscribers!
I don't mess about mate! Happy new year.👍😀
Hey Pondguru I used your video to set up a used Eheim canister filter I got with a 60g tank off Craig's List. I now understand the layered order needed for best filtration. I do need to find something to take the weight off compressing the filter floss (quilting fiber fill I already had). I'll figure something out. Need to find a pond plant pot or something similar. Thanks for all the great info! Happy New Year!
Thank you both for you great videos
Have you ever experimented with a sulfur denitrator? They are exceedingly good at nitrate removal.
This kind of video is exactly why your my favouate UA-camr... Every video you post is insightful and different from the one before. I hope that in 2019 your viewers reach at least 50K because your certainly deserve it .
Thank you mark, keep it up 👍all the best for 2019 😊
Thank you Gerald. Happy new year.👍😀
@@MARKSAQUATICS many happy returns Mark 😊
Heya Mark, I created a denitrification basket using two undergravel filters and baked clay kitty litter last year and have been achieving constant 0 to 20 ppm with zero water changes for the past year, I cut the riser pipe for the undergravel filters to just four inches in height to slow the water movement through the substrate. The tank (230 litre) is moderately stocked (25), silver dollars, congo, neons and rummy nose, no plants and very low levels of algae, also run a canister filter and pre-filter, its running like a champ, denitrification filters are certainly worth experimenting with...
post a pic, at the moment my 350L tank I just used a 25L bucket with multiple reverse flow sponges and gravel media and then let it drip into the tank from the top cause I'm cheap and functional at the moment. Still need to get a water tester though, to see the water quality.
@@MorneBooysen yeah, I got cheap under gravel filters off Ebay, made two tank sized trays and then tied the two together and put kitty litter in the center, I didn't bag it but I guess it probably would've been better, then put it at the bottom of the tank under my substrate with one riser pipe cut short, I haven't got photos though I'm putting together another one in a couple of months a little different, with a sand substrate and garden weed barrier cloth and probably a full length riser, flow will already be restricted by the sand etc, I'll get photos if you like . its dirt cheap $8 for ten pieces of modular filter plates, I used I think 34 pieces for the three footer, and a huge bag of unscented clay kitty litter for $15. System is really stable the only time i get higher than normal nitrates is if I feed them too much, or should I say the children (rolls eyes) LOL but a couple of days back to low NO- 3 ppm's, just did the first water change the other day to clean up the substrate of detritus and will probably stick with three monthly water changes from now on, tank got a little messy, but I guess it shows that it works, anyway good luck with it
Happy new year.👍😀
@@MARKSAQUATICS Happy new year mate,
Nice reactor mate I went the cheap-ass and bought 2 sunsun 603s and a small power head. Filled both sunsuns with 2kgs of biohome gravel each. I have half closed the taps on the outlet side of the sunsuns so I get a real slow flow returning into my tank. Fingers crossed I start seeing some results soon and lower nitrates in my frontosa 6x2x2 tank
i did this as well...any improvement to your nitrate? tnx
Tbh that little guy with a decent return pump would be a great filter if you toss some sponges on the intake end.
Interesting to see you making this, will enjoy seeing what Richard does with it! I wasn't expecting you to glue both ends as you won't be able to remove the media, but I guess you won't need to replace it or clean it as you would lose the anaerobic benefits.
Happy new year.👍😀
Nice piece of equipment you got there Mark, love the laser cutter, also very interesting project, can’t wait to see what Richard is doing with it. Happy New Year!
Happy new year.👍😀
Luckily found your channel, have already subscribed to it, also follow Pond guru Richard, very nice video, unfortunately we don't find so many persons like you guys that like to share with others your acknowledgement and creating alternative ideas of how to make this hobby more efficient and cheaper, thanks a lot for both of you, keep safe and well.
So glad to see another DIY!!! Fan Art wall is a great idea!! Happy New Year!!
Happy new year.👍😀
Great video. I need something like this for those pesky Nitrates :-)
Do you have a follow up video on how successful this was?
And maybe info on how much media is needed per tank volume?
Thanks for an other excellent video - I've watched some DIY projects on UA-cam which "do the job" but you take it to another level man!! Truly inspirational!
I have internal filters already loaded with Richard's media (he likes to call it pimping the filter) and that works really well. But now I'm thinking of ways of incorporating this to boost the anaerobic bacteria externally as well....
You can test how well it's working by having an inverted u bend in the outflow tube to trap nitrogen gas...
Happy new year.👍😀
Was there any follow up on this ? Does it work long term ?
a large water filter canister with the ridged filter removed pack with filter floss with do the trick too
Did you send the filter to Richard? If yes did he test it and gave you a feed back about the efficiency of it?
Great idea! Have a Happy New Year and here's to many more projects in the new year. Cheers!
Happy new year.👍😀
Hey mark this is an awesome diy nitrate reactor, I would love to see if you could find a way of incorporating sand into the design, one of the best water polishers out there! I guess the water would have to come in from the top, and trickle down to compact the sand then out the bottom crystal like swimming pool water.
When it gets clogged simply remove the unit, run it in reverse & back wash untill the sand is clean again.
You have no end of possibilities with that 3D printer!
Some good ideas there. 😀👍
I'm currently building a setup with 3 large tanks on an 18 foot long stand that will all share a sump that runs the whole 18 foot length of the stand. I'm thinking of installing a horizontal pipe with water trickling in at one end and draining out the other into the sump. I can't afford that much Biohome media but I have found about 10 gallons of used Seachem Denitrate on Craigslist. DO you think this might work for nitrate removal?
Can this not be done with sponge? I'm confused about why sintered glass is superior to sponge. They both have similar pores and holds a ton of bacteria. Can a sponge not create a anaerobic zone?
Happy New Year Mark and many many more. Love your videos. Informative and entertaining also.
Happy new year.👍😀
Once again love the engineering side. Ironically I've just drawn up a very similar thing but with air lift. Great video as always Mark. Happy new year buddy and looking forward to 2019 vids.
Happy new year.👍😀
Me jumping into the comments when i heard you say youre going to put biohome in there and push water through
*youre going to need a super slow flow of-*
You explaining itll have a slow flow of water
Me 😮
Mark, did this item ever get tested? I can not find a link to the information after this video. Seems like a brilliant idea but I am curious to know how it worked in practice. I figure 1 year is more than enough time for it to have passed or failed the expectations of the testing. Thanks for the great video and idea!
I also can't find a follow up. Shame
You can use methylene chloride for the initial bond. Most chemical suppliers stock it. Not sure what tensol 12 is worth.
Isn't that for stripping paint.? Happy new year.👍😀
Great little DIY to end the year! It'll be interesting to see what Richard does with it. I want to wish you and your family a Happy New Year 🎉🍾
Happy new year.👍😀
Shouldn't we make a super wide diameter canister where the water comes in at the bottom and rises super slow through the biohome to the top and returns to the tank?
Wait! What about.......
Creating one HUGE block of sintered glass with an input and an exit? :)
Hi Mark
can i ask what cutter that is and what programs you use, nice job m8
Hi Mark great work I love making little things like this in the hobby and saving some money too. Do you have a video on how to make the auto top up? Thanks
Did this work ????
Nice idea, not sure if that is a submersible little pump though, please don't electrocute yourself in sump cause we need more videos
Fasaniting build as always Mark, Would the production build be refillable or is this a very long life filter?
It's a long life filter. Sintered glass media won't break down.
Ok thanks for the information 👍🏻
do under gravel filters grow anaerobic bacteria? that,s all I use and they work really well.
Hi. Yes over time it grow just be careful if hoover the gravel you don't go to deep ok just hoover the surface.
Michael, a few comments down mentioned what I was thinking also.... If it was air driven, wouldn't that make it "wet/dry" and improve efficiency.?
Anaerobic bacteria like low oxygen levels so that's why I added the pump to keep a very slow low oxygen level flow.
@@MARKSAQUATICS So it's better than wet/dry.?
Better for the removal of nitrates.
@@MARKSAQUATICS Thank you, keep up the great work.! Fantastic channel that will without a doubt be earning more and more subs. All the best to you and yours.!
From Haysville Kansas.
@@MARKSAQUATICS Are you familiar with Marks Shrimp Tanks.... Great guy!!! like yourself, very knowledgeable. Cares deeply for his animals (friends).!
I think you and him would be great friends..!!!
Hi mark and everyone,
I don't want to do water changes, it's a nuisance. I'm just totally sick of doing changes on that tank of 5-10 gallons a time, 15-20 gallons at another. once or twice a week when everything appears fine mostly.
However, my Ammonia and nitrites have been stable and at nothing for years now, (running a 72g, with a 150 wet/dry and a 300gp/h pump. I clean my pre-filter a couple times a week and change the filter pad in the wet/dry once a month. I don't have an algae problem at all and never have, the fish that are there seem fine, some large kissing gouramis I've had for more than a decade now,
I've noticed new introductions don't fair well in the tank and don't make it past 24 hours, I can take fish from the tank and put them in another one I do regular water changes on with a usual acclimation, nothing special needs to be done, but I can't leave them there for a couple months and then put them back, they won't make it the 24 hours either (found this out with a breeding pair of pearlscale albino angel fish and lost the male). I feel like it's "old tank syndrome" where nitrates are too high in the substrate. Small water changes don't do much at all, vacuuming it is a real pain.
My only thought is that my nitrates are built up to an intolerable level for everything except for the fish that have been there forever which had a slow acclimation to it.
Is this even possible? I know nitrates either need to be used up or removed, Would planting use up the nitrates efficiently and bring it down so I could put in new fish without them dying?
ideally I'd like it to be "hands off" and just have to change filters and touch up, I want away from the water changes on that thing it's why I got decent filtration for it that could cycle the tank water 4x an hour at least through the filter but I feel like the nitrates have built up over the last couple years to intolerable levels for any new fish that haven't slowly adjusted to it.
Will planting get it under control or just add to the problem? I also don't leave lighting on in a manner that would promote algae growth or have necessarily "grow lights" for the tank, just a aquarium 4ft fluorescent bulb.
So would planting be worth trying? would I need to change lighting of I did plant? or am I pretty much trapped into sinking my arm into the tank to vaccuum the bottom and lug 20 gallons of water around or more every week for the next forever?
haha that noise is like the old 2p arcades XD
What are your thoughts on using activated carbon in your aquarium filters? A few years back everyone used it, and these days I do not see anyone anymore using it.
The only time I use it is after treatments or clearing stained water. Happy new year.👍😀
Great video mark. Like you say it will be good to see how Richard sets it up and see what results you get . Happy New year to you
Happy new year.👍😀
Very interesting idea, thanks for sharing Mark 🙂
Happy new year.👍😀
Hi Mark, fascinating. I hope this works. I haven't got all your gear, but I'm sure I could make something similar with a bit of cobbling stuff together. Be very interested to hear what Richard thinks.
Happy new year.👍😀
@@MARKSAQUATICS A happy New Year to you and all your subscribers. Only recently found your channel. Definitely one of the best fish keeping channels on UA-cam.
AWESOME Creation!
Happy new year.👍😀
Hi mark , I have a 23000l koi pond , my nitrites are0 but nitrates are 60/80 and need to lower them , what you have made is very similar to a bakki river , would a river with bhm help on my pond cheers
A bakki shower filter will really help with anaerobic bacteria to lower your levels. But it will take time to get going.
MARK'S AQUATICS thank you , would the shower with water sprinkling over media be best or the river where everything is submerged and water passes thro the media please
Hi guys, Does anybody know where Marks vid is on his diy trickle filter. cant find it anywhere ?
Thanks Mark, have a great New year
Happy new year.👍😀
Hi I remember watching you cut plexiglass with a hand held device. Ive been trying to find that video for some time without success I ve been wanting to cut mine a quarter inch but have been afraid of ruining it(They are expensive)I have the saw blades for various saws. Could you tell me what would be the best way and a link to the video? Thank you. Your videos are very informative and I greatly enjoy watching them. Hope you continue to make great videos for a long time to come. Thank You
You can cut acrylic with most fine tooth saws. Jigsaw, circular saw, dremel, just cut slow ok.
Hi Mark, Thank you for the wonderful video. Can I use activated carbon as media for anaerobic bacteria colony or else what other media I can use. I don't get bio home media in my place.
Thank you.
No it will get clogged very quickly. It's best to use carbon after treatments. Or to polish water of tanning from wood or leaves. 😀👍
@@MARKSAQUATICS Thank you. Can I use gravels or aquarium pebbles as alternative media. Or do the media have to posses any chemical properties ?
@@karthi84 they're ok to use. 😀👍
@@MARKSAQUATICS Thank you
hi m8 i do lot 3d printing been looking geting litle hobby lazer engraver any recommendations the ebay kit ones any gd
Hi Mark. Ive been feeding my Betta fish with springtails and they seem to love them. I havent seen anyone feed these small insects to their fish... to this end, is there any issues with feeding springtails to bettas?
Not at all. Very healthy for them. And as they float on the surface it's great fun watching them stalk their prey. 😀👍
@@MARKSAQUATICS indeed. Many thanks... springtails are amazingly easy to breed too.
Fantastic.
Just asking what media did you use?
Hi its called biohome.
@@MARKSAQUATICS thank you
With that filter you made would it work as good on its side or not cuz I am going to make one for my tank
Not really . You could run it on its side but you'll have to make the lid very secure so the media doesn't fall out.
@@MARKSAQUATICS OK Mark thanks for the reply
Not even seen it, but I need this in my life... with 50ppm out the tap.... I need less nitrates
good idea...love your channel
Hello Mark, what size tank would this be for?
You need 1kg of biohome to treat 100L Happy new year.👍😀
Isn't majority (if not all) denitrifying bacteria anaerobic? How will you ensure anaerobic conditions in such short pipe? Not trying to hate here - just genuinly asking. Great design and making though!
Most bacteria are aerobic. anaerobic bacteria do not need air to survive and colonise deep within sand beds and in the media. they are great for removing nitrate. Happy new year👍😀
Nitrate (No3) = Nitrogen + 3 atoms of oxygen, in theory if you can starve aerobic bacteria of oxygen it will take from the N03 (3 atoms of oxygen) leaving just nitrogen, nitrogen being a gas should just gas off. it probably wont get rid of nitrate completely but should defiantly lower readings as long as the flow is low as possible
@@sephuk Some aerobes are facultative anaerobes as well, so these should start the denitrification process off. Other bacteria , such as Nitrocystis, play a part in the process and require less O2, for the intermediate stages; strict anaerobes such as Paracoccus convert these intermediates - nitrous oxide N2O and nitrogen oxide NO, back to gaseous nitrogen to complete the cycle. These bacteria take a long time to establish in the anoxic zone so results are often mixed.
After 2 years my biohome really started to clog up and loose its efficiency, ive heard the only way to clean it is to boil it which obviously kills the bacteria, i see in that design you have glued both ends in, so cleaning is impossible, be interesting if you have the same problem. I also have the standard course, medium and fine pads for mechanical filtration before people say i don’t have enough mechanical
The idea with this is to put it at the end of the filter outlet so only the cleanest water goes through it from a tee off back to the main tank. 😀👍
Yes completely understand that but after a couple of years the media started to clog up, reducing its efficiency. But best of luck to you and the project, look forward to seeing it hopefully still working in a couple of years, i will subscribe to find out 👍
Thanks you.😀👍
@@MARKSAQUATICS hi i made one 5 meters long out of 4 inch pvc pipe sealed with end caps to hang on the side of my koi pond
You seriously need to get in to business with pondguru. You share the same business and fish keeping and personal views from what I see..
I’d love to buy an internal tank version of something like that.
I’d love to see a in tank air driven one!
I wanna make one for my purigen!!
Wouldn't that make it a "wet/dry" and increase efficiency...?
Clean work... But not sure denitrification process is so easy to get working properly. It's bit pity you're not testing it yourself.. you'd have fun to complete the setup ;)
I'm going to build another one for my L046 tank so i can document the results and share them. Happy new year.👍😀
@@MARKSAQUATICS cool, happy new year as well! Excellent channel ;)
I still don't understand why a UV sterilizer that kills bacteria in the water isn't killing all the good bacteria in the water that we encourage. Is the only place the bacteria need to work then in the filter or reactor then? I always imagined the bacteria would be in the water, plants and substrate doing their thing as well as in the filter.
I would only recommend using UV lamps if you have an outbreak ok white spot or green water. Happy new year.👍😀
Is there the video of this in use ?
Great to see. I suppose you could miniaturise it for a smaller aquarium too? Also I have recently purchased some blood parrot cichlids. They are amazing. .....if you can actually get a view of them. They're super shy. And like to hide -_-. Ever thought about making a fishy hide? Not for a parrot of course cos they are huge. But a moss covered bamboo house for smaller breeds that are a little shy or something. Just a small idea for future builds I guess. We love your creativity, that's why many of us are here perhaps. But I don't really have the tools to make cool looking things. Be curious to see what your next creation would be. Happy 2018...
Yeah was thinking of making something like this and a fluidised bed reactor with sand, clean beach sand should have a nice rounded shape. Probably why you do not see smaller versions that much is because the smaller the grain size the higher the risk of clogging up the filter bed, and the grain size basically determines the effective size for the reactor or container pipe.
Happy new year.👍😀
Interesting thing is that you are located in UK and you use metric units instead of imperial
@@viciousfish6145 This info from your side is very interesting. I know any time I watch some UK show on TV ( like Car Sos or Wheeler Dealers) they use imperial units, when they are fixing or replacing some part on car. In my country we use imperial units only for pipes, but I think it's a standard in whole world
I'm from UK and whilst we used to use the imperial system we changed over to metric decades ago.
As Peter Smith rightly points out our speed limit signs are still in miles per hour and we still buy beer in pints but everything else is metric.
He is nearly fifty and was only taught the metric system in school; I unfortunately am a decade older than him and I was taught both. The transition from imperial to metric was an interesting time - I remember trying to buy plasterboard at 1/2 inch thick and was told that it had all gone metric, it was now either 8mm, 12mm or 15mm thick but the sheet still measured 8 feet x 4 feet.
It's now changed obviously and now everything is metric.
The whole world has adopted the metric system apart from just three countries which still use imperial measurements, these are Myanmar, Liberia and USA.
@@viciousfish6145 aircraft still judge height in feet
@@viciousfish6145 are system was based on twelve not ten simply put you can divide 12 by 3 get a whole number which you cant do with ten great channel by the way
You need to get a 3D printer now.
And print one canister filter
Happy new year.👍😀
His laser cutter is also a 3D printer!
So it's a critter. Or a punter.
i use a ro di canister for mine
I can't really hear you over the peaceful music👍🏼
I may need this for my Goldies' tank!
Happy new year.👍😀
Does it matter if the reactor is vertical or not? It will have water pressure from one end so will flow through anyway. Also, I thought I heard that anaerobic bacteria do not like light so should this one have a sleeve to darken the media for full bacteria usage? I think it's good to be able to see into it when needed though. I also think having one end not permanently attached but sliding into the unit and having a gasket for a seal would make sense to be able to continue to use the reactor in years to come by cleaning it occasionally between uses. I hate the idea of throwing it out if it gets clogged for some reason. Or maybe if there was an illness in the tank and you wanted to sterilize the media and restart it. Whatever, it's a cool thing. I like to watch you work on acrylic projects.
Maybe put some slat wall on the empty wall behind your work area and use it somehow. Also the areas above your pond would be cold but still humid enough for some epiphyte plants. I wonder how cold it gets in there.
vertical will give you much better distribution and contact time between catalyst (bio media balls) and the fluid water, thus it will be much more effective and increase lifetime since you are not depositing all fouling on only one side if it was horisontal orientation
Some good ideas there. Happy new year.👍😀
Happy New Year to you too. Sorry for being so full of suggestions. I don't want to be pushy or suggest that you need to do anything different because you are so very awesome already. Hard to get across attitude in just printed form like this. I think its all the creativity and DIY that gets my brain working and it seems teachers and parents never convinced me that nobody really needs to know what I think. Best to you and yours!
Looks like a pepper shaker haha.
Can u sell me one cos i cant fabricate one in my place
couldn't this be done with a hang on the back bakki river running a really low powered pump or use a valve to regulate the water flow like you have
No. Anaerobic bacteria needs extremely low oxygen
Any evidence this will work to reduce nitrates? Havent seen any yet. Otherwise everyone would have filters that produce no nitrates.
first