Bio balls

A very quick google search actually disagrees. Ceramic Rings is an extremely porous substance that allows bacterial to colonize within the material. Obviously your Siporax or Matrix is more porous, and thus more effective, but Ceramic Rings is widely known as a bio-media and not mechanical. (Think of when you buy your canisters.... they always set it up: sponge/floss, followed by bioballs if they supply, then ceramic, and finally charcoal.)

 

Thanks for replies guys, it makes sense, more surface area = more bio filteration

 

I just taught that certain ceramic rings where highly porous with high surface area and the other no name brands had very little surface area

 

Hi

If you think about it, then all media will provide some mechanical filtration, and also bio filtration. With regards the mechanical filtration, anything that is placed in the path of flowing water will trap suspended particles. Some media are just better at this than others, for example a sponge (referred to by @Big G as the Blue Sponge). A fine filter pad will trap smaller particles than the "blue sponge", but both will provide mechanical filtration. Even ceramic rings or sintered glass rings (Siporax) will provide some mechanical filtration. This is clear to see as after a while you will need to clean them. Nitrifying bacteria will colonise every surface available, including that of your media intended for mechanical filtration. However, where you have dying organic matter trapped somewhere, you will find mostly heterotrophic bacteria, and they are responsible for breaking down organic matter. They appear in such large numbers that nitrifying bacteria do not inhabit those areas in large enough numbers to make much of a difference in the nitrification process. Nitrifiyng bacteria also exist inside your tank; on the plants, on the rocks, on the substrate. But as I understand it they prefer dark areas with plenty of available oxygen. For this reason a sump is a good solution.

Now, keeping the above in mind, it is probably better to use mechanical filtration first in the chain of filter media. Many vendors sell ceramic rings as bio media, and rightly so, as they will do the job. However, they are also very effective as mechanical media. Siporax and Matrix are much better bio media than your average ceramic ring or bio ball. I have also read that the nitrifying bacteria do not colonise plastic surfaces very well.

Many vendors then suggest you use ceramic rings and coarse sponge as the mechanical filtration, and these would also provide some form of bio filtration. After this you should have really good bio media, such as Siporax or Matrix, or even gravel. You can add fine filter floss to "polish" the water, and also chemical filtration as the last step, should you need this.

The point I tried to make in this long post was that all media provide mechanical and biological filtration; some media are just better suited at each task.

 

Agreed, some are just better than others

 

@Zoom... Sorry I wasn't able to reply yesterday... My afternoon went crazy!

I am interested with your cannisters setup, or rather the order of media.... I always used to think that logic would say place the floss first, and remove all the crap so the media can stay clean and do the rest, but as Laure has so eliquently stated above, having the floss last allows far greater breakdown of Mulch, with the Floss at the end to remove any smaller particles that escape. This is the setup that Eheim (amongst others) suggest, with Ceramics first, then blue sponge (or whatever colour sponge it turns out to be, but normally its blue) then Bio Substrate, then Floss at the end. I guess some manufacturers state differently? Infact, are not most sumps setup with Floss first?

I've always had my Cannister setup this way, and not had any issues. Just do a gentle wash in tank water every two weeks to a month, to remove as much mulch as possible, yet keep the bacteria from being totally depleted. Usually to help this, I will wash one tray, and leave the other tray for the next time I WC, alternating between the trays every two weeks. The floss I replace whenever necessary? I know a lot of manufacturers suggest that a cannister can be left for a month or two without any cleaning, but usually with tanks full of delicate fish, or close to capacity in terms of stocking/overstocking, I like to give regular cleanups.

Anyhow, getting back to topic, I guess its correct to say that ceramics perform both jobs, Biological and mechanical, depending on how you use them? Yes, ceramics are porous, and contain lots of suface area, but my point was that they are not as porous as Bio Substrates designed for the very job of bacterial colonisation, and have a smaller surface area available. One way of looking at it is that Bio substrates being small and round fit well together, so there is not much water volume left unutilised. Compare this to ceramics, which being tubes leave large areas for water to flow through without coming into contact with a surface, so the filtration efficiency is reduced (from a biological perspective).

Now, from a Mechanical perspective, having these holes allows free flow of water, so this assists the breakdown of large particles as the turbulance created in and around the ceramics will be quite strong. And, again as Laure pointed out, the surfaces of the ceramics will be populated by other bacteria that will further assist the breakdown of this mulch. Bio Substrates on the other hand, would simply clog, and water flow through the substrate would be greatly reduced, if not entirely stopped if simply left as Mechanical filtration.

So, again, each media plays its part, but usually plays more than its part, assisting in the total decomposition and clearance of mulch. Just choose the correct media for the part its most effective, and this will help.

And to finally answer the original question.... I guess that if by Bio Balls you mean the plastic balls with slots in.... Then yes you could use them, but it would be far better to use either more cceramics, or ideally, bio substrates like Matrix or Eheim 'Substrate Pro'. As has already been stated here, plastic bioballs tend to be poor at allowing the bacteria to colonise.

Hope that all makes sense? I'm having a bad day with words!
Regards
G!

 

so the final verdict......why leave the bio balls in the cupboard......it will do more good than harm to use them?

 

If the tray is sitting empty with nothing in it, then it will do no harm to add them, provided they are clean and have not come into contact with harmfull substances, but if you are removing something to put them in, rather leave it? I still think it would benefit you (or rather the fish) FAR more if you were to get a 'bio substrate' in there though.

Hope that helps?
G!

 

empty tray plus unused bio balls equals a win

 

I think you misinterpretted my canister set up. Water goes through prefilter sponge first (in tank). Then through more sponge, then through filter floss.
Meaning.... larger particles will be trapped by prefilter and broken down.
Medium size particles (that have gotten through the pre filter, and been broken down at the pre-filter) will be trapped by the sponge INSIDE the canister.
Finally, small particles, (That got through the sponges, and are broken down in the sponges) are caught in the filter floss.
I personally don't see the point of having filter floss as the very first blockage point, because it just get's clogged up faster. (IMO)

I recall reading somewhere that a cup of ceramic rings is equal in surface area as 10 litre capacity of bio balls (Yes Big G, those plastic ball things). Remember that being pourous... the bacteria (and water) goes INTO the ceramic ring itself. Not only the surface area that we see. But Yes, a proper Bio substrate is better.

I opened my canisters up the other day after they have been running for 4 months (without cleaning) and all I needed to do was rinse the sponge and replace the floss. The ceramic rings were actually still in very good "hygiene" condition

Agreed

If you have the space for it.. then put them in. I'd rather get something that would work better like ceramic rings. Even cheap and nasty ones will work better.

 

Just to add...Think confusion sets in between what we call "ceramic rings" and "sintered glass rings"....

Ceramic rings(also refered to as Hex nodes - ala Fluval) are mechanical filtration...as Big G said,they are there to break up large debris pieces in 1st stage filtration... Ceramics are fired clay...generally to stoneware temperature(1150Deg.Centigrade +... i was a ceramiscist for many years) - what happens here is that the silicon structure of the clay "melts" in a thermically driven chemical reaction...leaving an impenetrable,fused mass... - therefore,as far as bio available colonization area is concerned,you just have the outer surfaces of the ring... Compared to a bio ball,much less surface...

Sintered glass rings(Siporax or the locally manufactured Looli Tubes) are crushed glass that is placed in a mould and partialy fused(temps around 910Deg.Centigrade) - leaving a structure that resembles a ceramic ring,but due to its granulated structure,has a surface area FAR superior to any ceramic ring could hope to ever have....Water penetrates the structure as well,giving an even greater colonizationable surface area...

Ceramic rings(Knockoffs of Fluval's Hex nodes...etc) have been marketed in recent years by Asian aquarium goods manufacturers(who often havn't even seen a live Goldfish...lol) as bio media... think that is where the confusion has stepped in between the two products on the "surface" (excuse the pun)