Nitrates, Nitrogen Cycle, Chemical Filtration, Trolls and More! Part 2 of the Pondguru Interview!
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- Опубліковано 11 бер 2020
- Nitrates, filter media, chemical filtration, bio-loads (light stocking vs heavy stocking), trolls and other interesting topics are discussed in this the second and final installment of the Pondguru interview.
Richard Thew, "the man, the myth, the legend," gives us his thoughts, observations and conclusions concerning filter media and it's relationship to maintaining a healthy tank with excellent water test results.
Express you thoughts, opinions, observations and conclusions below. We all want to hear them (but remember, I'm all for a spirited discussion, but if comments slip into the realm of being disrespectful, malicious or attack-dog-troll-like, it's an instant delete and block). So, share below because all of your opinions matter and you know, "We ALL LEARN FROM EACH OTHER" on this channel!
Link to Part 1: • Nitrates, Nitrogen Cyc...
Link to Pondguru on UA-cam: / pondguru
Where to get Biohome:
In the UK? Go to: www.filterpro.co.uk
In the US? Go to: greatwaveeng.com/
Link to the "Pimp my Filter" playlist: • Pimp My Filter #43 - H...
Link to Cory's (Aquarium Co op) nitrates video mentioned in Part 1: • THE AQUARIUM NITROGEN ...
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![Before Using Chemical Filtration - WATCH THIS! [Is it a Waste of Money? Do You Really Need It?]](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/UlKnM2Um1_g/mqdefault.jpg)
I can confirm.. Pond guru will only sell you what you need
And will advise accordingly
I bought kilos of bio home from Richard many years ago when he still had hes shop. The very same media is in my filtration system to this day.
I've had a similar experience, running 2 kilos in some canisters for 4 years, still my most stable tank.
@@BenOchart thanks for all the videos. Regarding the specific tank you used biohome in, is your nitrates totally reduced? What are the nitrates at present time? Thanks in advance
I totally I agree with Richard I experienced a full cycle on a 60 gal after about 6 months of using Biohome. I then sold the aquarium and got a 125g . I have a Fluval FX6 pimped out as per Richards video and I also have a Fluval 306 pimped out with Biohome. I’m approaching the 6 month time period with this aquarium and just starting to see the Nitrate not go as high when testing. Great video
Been using Richards media for two years and had fantastic results in my discus thank👍👍
I love Pondguru's 'pimp my filter' videos just for the fun analysis and critique of each filter, they are educational.
Great video as always .i have seen pimp my filter videos . getting the right amount and type of media is only 50% of the job other 50% depend on how you setup your filter . I had learn how to set up canister from Ben's videos and it's most accurate way . thanks sir
I also have bio home ultimate in both my canisters and HOB and have zero problems with it, best media out there imo, thanks for the video
Hi Ben, I have enjoyed your video's featuring Richard,he truly is a Very knowledgeable generous guy.I have visited his place a couple of times and he is always willing to talk with you and pass his knowledge on, keep up the good work.
Fantastic information Richard, I wondered what happened with that test of water blasting onto the bricks,now I know 👍 which you would talk more on the Bio balls if they are only good for small filters.
Thanks Ben for organising Mr Pondguru for us all to hear.
Cheers 🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺🇦🇺
My bio home has been in my tank for 4 years and it is the best I have ever used
I’m a believer Ben! Can’t wait to get my hands on some bio-Home!! 💪
Thank you to a man of Richards intellect and experience for giving us expert free knowledge. How on earth do some of these guys with huge bare heavily stocked Cichlid tanks do it? Filter capacity of swimming pool filters?
Ben, thank you so much for your very fair and even handed approach to hosting this very controversial topic. Thank you also for your remarks about peer review on research.......I’ve added that to my learning curve. The more videos I watch, the “smarter” I get 😊
he is actually guru and thanks for letting us know about Bio Home Ultimate filter. It really worked for my tank. Now i am educating fish hobbyist about how to setup our filter and what is the use for it. I am from Mumbai and lot of hobbyist who are in this fish hobby for long period but does not know anything about this all. I am happy to get knowledge from pond guru and passing it through other. :)
Were you able to buy it in India ?
@@shank240 codyimpex.com/product/biohome-ultimate/?gclid=CjwKCAiAv9riBRANEiwA9Dqv1YQya1GLexXIW4HHdhjWd17exlUJCgugvBBQXxL_jhptn-t6tBa_8hoCFzkQAvD_BwE&v=c86ee0d9d7ed
And
www.tulipaqua.com/biohome
Great info.... cheers mate...
I've had a Full cycle with 0 Ammonia, 0 Nitrites, and 0 Nitrates naturally in a small 10gal quarantine tank. It only had a few fish in it at a time, but was usually only host to a colony of small snails, a couple Java Ferns, a little bit of Java Moss, and a small sponge filter that had an extremely low bubble flow (due to calcium buildup inside the filter)
I know a full cycle is possible, because I've seen it.
Now if I could just get my fully stocked 55Gal to do the same!
Hi Ben. I have used bio home ultra for about 6 years and am super satisfied with it. Whether it is better than other media, I don't know. But I only have 3 soon to be 4 canister filters so I can live with the price and what I bought 6 years ago still looks like when I bought it, so I don't really think the price is completely unreasonable. I have a hmf filter mat either in the corner or at the end of my aquariums which acts as a pre-filter for my canister filters, and I have some eheim mek behind the hmf mats to collect dirt, so that only a minimum gets into my canister filters. Otherwise, I have set up my canister filters as Richard recommends 😀 I agree with Richard that we can only work on the basis of experience.
Thank you very interesting ideas and filtration guides keep it up God bless
I have been using bio home in both my 3ft aquariums i also setup my filters using Richard's guide on pimp my filter, you cant argue with it as its common sense! Im also attempting to build my own cannister filters from scratch and will certainly be using bio home media in those on top of this i also have Alfagrog in the filters and also as part of my substrate in addition to fine gravel which i have 2 inches thick on the bottom of the tank
Hi Ben and thank you for creating great content videos continuously! Interesting video and I'm sure that Biohome is a good media but the fact is, there are many good medias available.The interesting thing with it all is trying to achieve a balanced system without going broke trying to do it lol! I have a custom 53 gallon aquarium using a single matten type sponge corner filter with a water pump and my tests are zero for ammonia and nitrite with a nitrate value around 10 to 20 PPM. I just hope to keep it maintained at the low nitrate value as much as I can. I have a lightly planted setup using pool filter sand that is lightly stocked and I try to do 30% water changes each week. We all need to realize that we all can make things work by being patient and being educated by very advanced aquarium hobbyists such as yourself on UA-cam. The nitrogen cycle is never totally completed as it is going on around us all the time. It just happens to be a ton of fun trying to keep things going with the hobby for myself. Balance is key!
Brian, you're right. It's like we're playing the "game" of fish keeping where we try to keep all these moving parts working correctly. One thing I've learned is that there is no holy grail, one-answer-fits-all. Every tank is different and requires the fish keeper to stay on his/her toes.
Ben now these topics I enjoy. Great job.
Thanks for sharing Ben I enjoyed both parts and informative and delivered with humour. I will be checking out more of your and pondguru's video's.
Thank you Rick!
Biohome ultimate marine... the best filter media I have used in my tanks.... When set up correctly it just does what is claimed!
P.S. 3 marine reef tanks, all of them on the 60 gallons mark, use approx 1kg per 5 gallons. (probably an overkill). I would say moderated stock, some corals, invers and such, zero problems with nitrates. (minimal live rock on the tanks - probably 20kg on each mainly for aqua scaping purposes. Started as dry rock)
Thinking about setting up a new tank, might give the sump brick a shot, as its wider it should support more anaerobic regions than the small stuff.
I’m looking to get back into the hobby and have been following Richard’s Pimp my Filter videos.
This was a good insight into the theory behind bio home media and I will be making use of it.
Thanks.
I had success with it.
Respect his honesty...
I have 5 125 gallon tanks and 3 29 gal tanks, all set up pretty close to the same, only 1 of the tanks will gives me 000, it has 1 large sponge, 1 small canister, and hang on the back filter, less than a pound of media, I have ordered my first 10lbs of bio home and will be running a new 125.... time will tell, Pondguru love hearing you talk !!! lol great videos !!
Hey Bryan, any update on the new 125 with biohome?
I'm skeptical of Biohome but I've never used it myself and I'm only a gerbil too so there's that.
LOL
It works when given the right environment.
Hi Richard, been following you for a while how is the big pond doing and do you have the back yard cleared out yet
been waiting to see the pond a little clearer......
Love the pond guru. He speaks the truth. I've watched them all and this guy knows what hes on about.
He’s a good guy and Very knowledgeable
Here we go on being told how over stocked I am but here are the facts. I’ve got a 90 gallon tank with 52 fish ranging from zebra danios to 4 inch angels. This tank is simply mesmerizing with all the teaming activity and the water is crystal clear. With that said I have an fx6 and a fx4 pimped exactly to Richard’s specs and do 40% water changes every 2 weeks. Readings are as follows with consistency 0 ammonia 0 nitrites and 10 to 20 nitrates. Love me some Biohome Ultimate and Richard, hit me up for videos of one gorgeous tank. Thank You Richard.
I have been using 6Kg of Biohome Ultimate in 2 externals filters for about 8 months now. I can vouch for the fact that from a full cycle point of view it seems to work. My nitrates are very low. Not zero but very low and that is a heavily stocked African Cichlid tank. HOWEVER, and it is a big however, I have found that Biohome Ultimate seems to disintegrate. I was noticing my tank was very dusty all the time and when I cleaned the filter it was always full of red dust. I can't live with a tank like that so I am in the process of swapping the Biohome for Alfagrog. It is taking time as I need to wait for the new media to mature but the tank it clearing up and looks much better!
20 gallon cube here with 2kg of good media in a canister filter. 0 everything, 5ppm nitrate. I can live with that seeing I dose nutrients for the plants.
Ben great effort.
Richard, in india where to find bio home ultimate? You will always be the guru 🙏🙏
This was just great
I have pimped my filter following yiur gudies I filled my filter with alfafrog and filter pads at the bottom used fluval biological enhancer to kick start my cycle took about 4 days and it's peace mind knowing my filter medium and tank water is full off good bacteria now good job there is youtubers like pond guru help us all start out
Very interesting
Brilliant discussion. I'm enjoying learning more about how to keep my fish healthy!
Yay!
What an honest guy. Yet I'm still gonna get some bio home. Where do I find the bumpy foam padding? I try to go as natural as possible. I even have 2 live plants in my cichlid tank. They've got a good root system and the fish haven't been able to pull them out yet. They try so will eventually succeed. Probably.
On my Planted (Java fern, Amazon Swords & Amazonian Frogbit + bog wood, sand substrate) ) 300L I have an All Ponds 2000EF containing one layer of OEM balls at the bottom,approx 4kg of Alfagrog in the first 2 trays & approx 5kg of BioHome Ultimate in the top 2 trays plus an All Ponds EF-2 with the coarse . medium & fine foams inline before the main canister. Also have a supplementary/back up Hygger Air Sponge running in there should I need a cycled filter to use in a quarantine/hospital environment.
The tank itself due to the way I scaped it has another 5-6kg of alfagrog in mesh bags used to build up a slope behind a lava rock wall and then covered with the substrate however water can still get into this though the caves in the lava rock which may well help when it comes to anaerobic conditions.
At the end of my fishless cycle the nitrates plummeted to 0 from 80+ without a water change and have stayed at that level since.
Current residents are 3 Dwarf Cichlids, 10 Bleeding Heart Tetras, 5 Sterbai Corys, 5 Albino Corys and 25 Rummy Nose Tetras
On the other hand my 80L (bogwood, java ferns, Frogbit, sand) is running on an air powered sponge filter + a small electric internal filter (also with just foam in) and that is also pretty much always at 0ppm nitrate with the odd "spike" up to 5ppm
Current residents in there are 3 Platys (+a few youths), 6 Panda Cory, 10 Neon Tetra, 10 Ember Tetra and a solitary Ottocinclus
SO in summary whilst I do use Biohome ultimate and its certainly helping to contribute to my good tank conditions in the 300L I can't honestly say it's completely down to the Biohome as it was set up from scratch in the above config.
Great video the truth always comes on top!
Thanks Richard. Being Biohome is sintered glass not pumice stone and Growstone is a sintered glass hydroponic growing medium that is very porous have you ever looked at or tested Growstone?
Thanks
Richard have you ever seen or tested mixing biohome ultimate in with an existing rocky substrate. I currently have a 180 gallon tank with 3 full grown turtles, a 14” Chinese golden thread, and 2 8” pink belly sidenecks. In this tank I also have roughly 40 peacocks around 5-6”. I am running 2 fx6 completely full of biohome, and 2 406 completely full of biohome. I realize this would be considered and extremely over stocked tank as I also feed turtles in the tank. This tank produces close to 40 ppm every 4 days. So I do water changes every 4 days. I also realize I will need to add more biohome ultimate to achieve a full cycle. However I believe the mechanical filtration is on par as water is Crystal clear. The reason I ask is I have an extra 10 pounds of biohome kicking around but no more room in filters to add it. This current set up has been running for a year and a half. I use no chemical additives as I use well water, usually my water parameters when I do my water changes are at ph-8.2, 0 ammonia, 0 nitrite, and Nitrates between 60-80. I perform 75 % water changes, I do not know if temperature plays a factor but I keep this tank at 80 Fahrenheit. The types of food I feed are limited fresh vegetables such as shredded carrots and zucchini. I monitor this closely and remove excess food after 15 minutes - feed this every 4th day before water changes. I also drop algae wafers in a couple days a week- very sparingly, I use bug bites tropical fish pellets to feed the fish every second day, I only feed what they can eat in 30 seconds, I feed the turtles every other day opposite of he fish, I feed the turtles bug bites turtle formula, only as much as they can eat in 1 minutes
He truly is the pond guru 💯👌
Truly!
My opinion about choose bio media is just pick one that claim to remove Nitrates.
Biohome, Seachem Matrix or Chinese stuff is still way better than Sponges and Dish Scrubbers in regard to nitrates.
Cheap stuff will give you cheap results.
I’ve been using biohome for 3yrs now and I just found some new media from Germany that I’m going to try . Supposedly they use it for sewage plants . I’ll let you know you which better in few months
@empirestatebullies does the biohome product work. Why are you going to change it if that's what you are saying?
If you are able to use a plant friendly substrate and can make it 3-4 inches deep and your fish don't go digging into the substrate, you probably don't need additional bio media because the tank will be full of lush plants. There's no bio media cycling natural rivers, etc. right? For us African cichlid keepers, it's very hard to achieve nitrate reduction. I've been trying to tackle this problem for a long time. Having good bio media is just the first step for us.
Great interview Ben!
I’m thinking of adding several inches to my black sand (100 gal). For some reason the Cichlids in that particular tank don’t dig much.
@@BenOchart I've noticed that... maybe because it's black? Just be sure the sand can hold bacteria... not all sands are the same...play sand won't hold bacteria.
So I have just got the ef2000+ but the filter I am using at the moment has no Issues nitrates low nitrate Non-existent I think that’s right I’m using Alfagrog but would like too switch to this are you saying I can’t?
Well this sort of like seeing Elvis and Elton on the same stage! Always enjoy as well as learn so much from both of you guys. I'm just starting up an old 60 gal tank of my daughter's that she just didn't have time for. I'm making it into a Tanganyikan tank. I am using a SunSun 704b with six kilos of Biohome Ultimate with the little "starter balls", also forty pounds of the "bio active live sand and ten pounds of aragonite. I just added the water last Friday, six days ago. I am trying to start a fishless cycle using some old Beta flakes and freeze dried shrimp that my daughter left behind. Ph/8.0 (close to TW), Ammonia get no higher than between .25 and .50, Nitrite has never been anything but sky blue 0.0. Strangely to me is, the Nitrate tests at around 5.0ppm. With no Nitrate conversion I'm guessing the Nitrates are coming from the city tap well water.
I'm trying to avoid adding ammonia or the old "cheap fish" methods. I thought I would have seen some Nitrites by now. Am I just being impatient?
LOL
It took me 6 weeks to achieve zero ammonia and zero nitrites in 24 hours with nitrates present using ammonia. It took about 2 weeks to see nitrites start to show up.
@@danielbarrett6026 Thank you for the reply. I broke down and started the Dr. Tim's and within 6 days I'm now seeing coming up over 1ppm and nitrite at around climbing as well. I also found out that my high nitrate reading was coming straight from the tap. Don't know what to do about that...changing water will just add more nitrate.
I meant to add that the only ingredient that I was missing was patience. Now, I'm in a big hurry to cycle a tank and I can't get out to buy fish. I hate to have the first fish in there to be mail order.
@@soonerfan1675 Dr. Tim's is supposed to be a pretty good product. I had 5ppm nitrates from the tap as a baseline before and the levels may fluctuate over time. Patience is key in many ways. That was the first major point that others made to me. It can be frustrating to hurry up and wait.
Very informative. Not sure if that brick style media is only for sumps but if for in tank you might be able to incorporate a pleco/cichlid cave? Dual purpose for one cost?
Good idea 😀
Dear Pondguru,
After a thirty year hiatus, I am back into the aquarium hobby. And to give credit where credit is due, your considerate and expert advice and guidance has much to do with my desire to return. Finally, the hows and whys of filtration make sense. Thank you.
I have a 72 gallon, bow-front aquarium and an Eheim ECCO PRO 2032 external filter. The tank and filter were both purchased thirty years ago, but were never used. But because you so inspired me, just recently I pulled them out of their boxes and set them up. Before setting up the filter, I followed your advice and purchased 5 pounds of Biohomme Ultra plus some course, medium and fine foam pads.
Now the tank and filter setup went well. But after sitting there staring at my empty tank and dreaming about Cory cats, Kuhli and clown loaches, angel fish and such, I could almost hear you screaming at me from across the pond: “Jerry, Jerry, Jerry, you must know that that little Eheim is NOT going to provide adequate filtration for that big tank!”
And so, today, I ordered SunSun HW304 Canister Filters from Amazon. That should do the trick... and I know you would approve!!! Yet, herein lies my fascinating dilemma: I have this perfectly good Eheim 2032 just sitting here BEGGING me to use it to function as a mechanical pre-filter!!!
Pondguru, can I do that? And if I can, should I make each of the three tiered Eheim into separate course, medium and fine trays? How do I direct the mechanically filtered water from the Eheim into the SunSun? I’d like to try this, but I would like to have your counsel beforehand.
In that regard, will you let me, as well as the aquarium hobby community, know what you think about this?
Sincerely,
Jerry
Is anoxic filtration with biohome or matrix possible? How?
Richard has a great accent, I've just bought a load of biohome for my new 600l
Hi may i know how many kg of media did you buy? I have a 600l as well.
@@sspwang8013 15kg but I needed some for my other tank too. Using two JBL 1502 with APS filter boosters as pre filters so the cannister filters can be filled totally with biohome and each one will hold about 6.5kg.
I found pond guru via my disaster danio killing biorb.... Ive used biohome biogravel now and I'm cyclying it fishless. Fun little experiment to see how fast I can turn 2.0 ppm ammonia to zero. Then I'll add fish. Using fitz fishless fuel, fitz 700 turbo, and fitz 7
Since using bio home ultimate I don't do water changes , I don't need too lol yes I have plants as well ,
After hearing this video I have tried a test, I slowed down the flow in my hob filter to see if I get more bacteria growth. I still have 2 sponge filters going also. way to much filtration, also do water changes every 4 days. Retired with nothing else to do. Probably don't need any filters changing water that often. Ben when you retire you too can change water more often!!!!!!!
I want to get some white pumice on my new filter. It is only 1/4 the price of biohome. But will try those matrix media on my new filter to see how it goes. But based on Rich's pimp my filter - it is not ideal on that filter as it is designed for moving bed. Oh well 😱
Hi guys watch both videos love the info given and really explains the cycle, just one thing that confuses me when you talk about you have a complete perfect cycle including aerobic bacteria, with 0 ammonia 0 nitrite 0 Nitrates, iv always been taught that you should always have at least some nitrates not 0 to know your cycle is working. Can you elaborate more on this please
once the anaerobic bacteria is well established it should be eating up the nitrates as fast as they are being produced, just like the aerobic types of bacteria are consuming the ammonia and nitrites and keeping them at 0.
All I can say is get Biohome coming from a 🐠 keeper, it works 0 nitrates 0 ammonia 0 nitrite I’m using 2kg per 100 liters and I’m sold from here on out!
So, if I wanted to use lava rock from the BBQ store would not be ok if it affects the PH of the tank vs. other media?? Goldfish is ok but discus fish not good??
If the lava rock is not treated with anything, just plain lava rock, it should work well as a filter media in any type of tank.
Is it possible to mix bio media on the floor of your aquarium mixed in with with regular gravel ?
It can be done but your substrate in some ways already acts as bio media.
if you use seachem prime with biohome does that prevent the full cycle from happening since it possibly can negatively affect the bacteria?
I did just that. Yes, I got 0 nitrates after a very very long time. However I had a hair algea problem since establishing the tank and could not figure it out. About 3 months ago, I ran out of prime. I did a cleaning the other day, cut back the plants only to realize - no more hair algae issue. Its all gone. I've been using API de-chlorination (non-stress coat) for water additions. My maintenance schedule got very lax, about 2.5 months, maybe 3 and there were no nitrates. The only thing I was doing was replacing evaporation to get rid of the trickling water annoyance.
or continuous drip water change - no nitrates
I wish he lived in the states
Me too
I only watch this for entertainment purposes.
Especially the comments section is hilarious.
I agree, there is a lot of cheap rubbish unreliable Filter Media out there.
And having a really good Media covers all the important aspects that is essential to the life of the Aquarium but most of all to the life in the Aquarium.
Good amount of surface area for beneficial bacteria will support your Bio Load accordingly but with the right amount, meaning don't go for just enough. 👍 That's putting it in a simple way.
I always go for an increased amount.
Basically an Aquarium of say One Gallons I would have bio media for 200 Gallon Aquarium minimum like this is a success. 😊
Certainly gives you room for growth UFS! Thanks for watching and commenting.
Still waiting for you or Pond guru to answer my question about why biohome ultimate is not recommend to use with chemical media.
It isn't any particular media which is affected by chemical media - it is the bacteria living on / in media which is affected.
Sorry, I thought Ben was putting the whole video out but the latter parts were probably too controversial since they concern products when have a rabid fanboy base and the companies making them often are keen on legal threats. I'll put the whole video out on my channel in the next few weeks once I confirm more parts won't be uploaded here.
The basics of the issue are that chemicals (mostly conditioners) with 'detoxifying / binding' claims have a definite starving effect on bacteria which results in a slow set up time, extra chemicals (e.g. regular bacteria additives) being used when cycling and the failure to actually achieve a cycle when everything is otherwise in place to do so.
I didn't accept that fact until the many years of reports back of 7-8 week aerobic cycle (0 ammonia, 0 nitrite) and failure to achieve a full cycle became too many to be coincidence when using certain conditioners. Added to that the reports I was getting, and still get, from people who have had a full cycle for years then suddenly noticed a rise in nitrate which had to then be controlled by large water changes (indicating that the population of anaerobic bacteria had been knocked back) - when the conditioner is switched back to a 'normal' dechlorinator (e.g. API stress coat) the nitrate naturally falls in those systems which shows that the bacteria which had previously been starved was now bouncing back to a level where the population was large enough to process the excess nitrate.
Same story happens when carbon / charcoal is switched out for a chemical media which 'removes / detoxifies / binds' ammonia, nitrite and nitrate - it basically starves the bacteria which limits the effectiveness of natural filtration and makes you rely on chemicals to restore stability to the tank. When the chemical media is swapped back for carbon / charcoal the cycle restores and nitrates fall back to the previous level.
Very few people achieve a full cycle while using the chemicals which promise to remove / detoxify / bind ammonia, nitrite and nitrate and they seem to also be the people using all sorts of chemicals to try and balance the tank conditions when the filter should do that alone. In those circumstances they're spending a fortune on unnecessary chemicals to mask the symptoms of a failing filter (bacteria) and the balance of the tank is constantly shifting through chemical means instead of being stable through natural means.
Therefore the advice we give is to use a normal dechlorinator and avoid anything which promises to remove / detoxify / bind ammonia, nitrite and nitrate no matter what media you are using since it will starve the bacteria. Simply making the water safe for life with a conditioner is the way to go for maximum filter efficiency as far as healthy bacteria population goes.
Hope that makes sense.
Very true people think they know it all n anything new they hears gotta be wrong the bio homes good media iv been using it for years n it does lower nitrates
I use one sheet it does plenty 😉👌
Is Biohome for sale in the U.S. off Amazon the real deal?
Seems to be, that's where I've ordered ultimate and maxi ultimate and it seriously works, seems to stand up to time as long as it's not rubbing against each other.
Great video. I use biohome ultimate on all my tanks. Never have an issue with nitrate. The most I have seen is 20 ppm on my 210 . That tank is an overstock Afican tank. I have 3 FX6's on it full of biohome. Once u set my sump up and am able to add more ultimate I am certain that I will be able to get down to 0 nitrates
Fish Ed, I assume that since your 210 has African Cichlids you do not have live plants that would help to absorb nitrates. Would you please let us know what your nitrates look like after that 5/6 month run with the Biohome? Thanks.
I do not have any plants in tank at this time. I do have 2 pathos plants on the top though. I have a 75 gallon sump going on the tank this weekend. I will be able to double the amount of ultimate then. I will keep u up to speed. I have a fresh 25 lb. Box just waiting. Lol
FISH ED when you say Pothos on top, do you mean the roots are in the tank?
@@frankhoo-mook5039 Yes the roots are in the tank. I'm sure it helps some with the Nitrates, but this tank has almost 30 peacocks and imbuna in it.
Wow!! Yes ......with that many cichlids you would need a boatload of Pothos to handle that bunch. Looking forward to see how this works out for you!
Would you recommend using a UV steriliser along with my filtration system.
With very sensitive or delicate fish, yes. With very hardy fish I wouldn't bother. Some canisters offer UV but it doesn't do much beyond clarifying the water. For real UV benefits you need one of the bigger more expensive UV "twist" models that all the water to really get treated by the UV light.
@@BenOchart thank you for replying, much appreciated. The reason I ask is that I run 2 SunSun 2000 Litre/hour canisters on my heavily stocked 300 Litre African Cichlid tank. 1 of them comes with an inbuilt UV light and the other didn't come with one but has the spot to put one right in and I was wondering if I should purchase another UV light to put in that canister filter that didn't come with one already in place.
I would run that one UV on weekends only. If you want the full benefits of UV consider a UV twist.
Lava rock
Add a refugium and an algae scrubber, and everything becomes a full cycle lol. Talk to reefers with large systems, we MUST get a full cycle system with (0,0,0) when a 25% water change costs a couple hundred dollars.
Edit: Just realized that refugiums and algae scrubbers are nutrient export measures, which isn't actually a full cycle. Regardless, a 0 nitrate system is totally possible.
I think i have a full cycle but im not sure, ive been testing my 4 gallon betta tank for past 3 week so i know when to do water change but every single time i test it, its 0 amonia, 0 notrite, 0 nitrate an all i have it 2 red amazon sword, anubius an 2 dwarf hairgrass an idk if its a full cycle but every time i test the results are the same so maybe a full cycle like hes saying is real an thats crazy
Should be showing some nitrates ( unless the plants are consuming it)
@@BenOchart thats what i was thinking as well its been baffling me that its been 0, 0, 0 for almost past month
Lets not also forget that hobbyist nitrate test kits are inconsistently inaccurate and really dont give you a good idea of your nitrate levels. Your test kit could say “0” one day and 60 the next.
I have biohome and plants... I think my nitrate test kit is broken. My canister filter is not cleaned for 5 months, and I only added water during that period. Stupid kit always reads 0.
If you’re very lightly stocked your test kit might be right!
@@BenOchart Yep. I was being facetious. 😋 In fact, Richard tried to talk me out of buying the biohome ultimate, since nitrates would eventually drop to 0 and potentially leave the plants starved. He's... not wrong.
Richard is a good speaker. However, customer feedback reported to a person promoting a product isn’t science. What would be more scientific would be all that feedback, accounting for all the important variables (confounding factors) collated in a table, and reviewed by knowledgeable and experienced independent reviewers. That’s a big job, and Richard probably doesn’t have the time, money and research experience to do it. So what is left for us to conclude? Many people have good results up to the conversion to nitrate, and fewer people have the full cycle to low nitrates. Richard explains his formula, so one just has to take it on trust. Or not. I would be interested in hear an explanation of how denitrification happens without a carbon source in a closed system. Simply referencing nature doesn’t do it because it’s an open system, that constantly adjusts in a way that tiny systems like aquaria can’t do unless there is massive planting.
How about you Ben? Do you use BioHome? If so has it worked? Given that the last few vids of yours were about nitrate levels in your tanks, either you don't use it, or, you do and it doesn't work.
This link is from Manky Sanky www.mankysanke.co.uk/html/anoxic_filtration.html and it describes a nitrate reduction system that I use in my pond - its as cheap and easy to setup as you can get.
Im sure this system can be easily replicated in a sump.
To be honest I don't know if it works, there may be other factors in my pond that influence nitrate levels. I set it up when I set up my pond which also has a large gravel and zeolite based filter.
as per www.koiphen.com/forums/showthread.php?68132-Birdman-s-Sand-Gravel-Filter. Note I use zeolite in lieu of the chicken gravel he suggests. Only because I could not
source it and the closest I could get was zeolite for a swimming pool filter.
However I never do water changes (only naturally occurring ones one such as heavy rain) and nitrates are only just detectable. It is stocked with small fish who are never fed. The fish population varies throughout the year. The reason for the fish is to eliminate breeding mosquitoes.
The pond has no submerged plants but has water lilies, hornwort, Nardoo, creeping jenny and a dwarf papyrus. which I'm sure also pull nitrates. I do fertilize the plants with pelletised chicken manure every spring and I don't suffer from an algae problem. In fact there is practically no algae in the pond at all this despite it being in full sun.
No one has produced anything other than anecdotal evidence that denitration is possible with this method. Its just marketing claims woth no proof.
Okay so hear me out. I am a fan of asian arowanas and i have seen several videos on youtube from chinese and other asian countries of people who own the most beautiful super red arowanas which are arguably the most expensive single fish in the freshwater hobby. In usd we are talking several grands. These kind of fish are auctioned not even sold openly. That’s the kind of expensive i mean. I have seen these people use those bakki rolls as they are called (which pondguru breaks) in their sumps. So why would these guys for whom money is clearly not an issue not buy biohome if it is the best product in the market? And the asians are clever people if they are using something it can’t be total trash
Okay the guru is thrashing other medias, just to try and boost and promote how good the biohome medias are. But look at those bricks, you cant relocate it once it's in the sump and it would fall apart. LOL
I mean no disrespect but I am still skeptical of the need for this very expensie media. Regardless if you use Biohome or not you need to do water changes. That is because water evaporates from your tank and you need to replace the water. Agree? That water change then achieves nitrate reduction for free because you just can't keep adding water to a tank. The other question I have is that I believe, with no proof but using my coffee maker as an example that needs to be decalcified, is that the tiny pores where the denitrification takes place will clog over time - 6 months a year - I do not know, but it they do the main benefit of the media goes away. I can not imagine a scenario in which they would not. Would love to see a video of biohome absorption after say 1 year of use in a system. Wondering if at that time is it absorbing similar to other bio media. Again, no offense meant. Just my thinking.
Mechanical filtration before reaching the biohome media should prevent any kind of clogging. That being said I used to use a mesh sock (lets lots of crap through) and my 4 year old media works very well today.