Fluidized Bed Filter

[erikharrison]

http://www.cichlid-forum.com/articles/diy_fbf.php

Has anyone tried this before? My boss told me it works great for s/w as the sand has a zillion times more surface area than most natural filtration. He was telling me that they used this on some very heavily stocked tanks that had level issues and this anhillated them.

[Bill S]

Similar in many respects to a Hiatt.

[txstateunivreefer]

well when you say similar respects do you mean it rips everything out of the water?

[erikharrison]

I think this wouldn't do as the hiatt does due to the fact that you are not introducing new hiatt branded bacteria, and that you are using the bacteria from your tank?

[Bill S]

No, I'm talking about surface area, rapid flow, and nitrifying bacteria. What differs is that typical tank bacteria process nitrogen down to nitrates, and not all the way to nitrogen gas, like the Hiatt does.

[erikharrison]

Sweet. This looks like a viable project to work on. I take it you could plumb this directly into your skimmer to remove the nitrates?

[Ram_Puppy]

erik, these were all the rage a few years ago, they have one major downfall - when powergoes out, it litterally takes them only MINUTES to die... you need to have this on a battery backup of you do it.

Also, Austin Aquariums, or whatever it is now, under whoever owns it now, has a HUGE one... maybe they would let you see it?

[erikharrison]

I have a spare backup that I can put this thing on. I just need someone to make it. I could plumb it directly into my skimmer though could I not? Would that affect the adjustability of a skimmer? I could plumb it into my return...

[hobogato]

I just need someone to make it.

seems pretty simple to make....lmk ;)

[Richard]

Fluidized bed filters are great for having lots of nitrifying bacteria. So they are really good for freshwater or sw fish only tanks. However, they don't really have a place in reef tanks/fowlr setups because the liverock provides all the nitrifying bacteria you need plus extra benifits. So I would say save your money and use it to buy more liverock, a better skimmer, a fuge etc.

JMO

[erikharrison]

Ok well this all goes back to my original idea with the Hiatt then. Since the Hiatt cannot be "turned off" due to bacterial die off, can I run this one on a timer since the bacteria it uses comes from the tank? Or does it take time to build that bacteria onto the sand???

[Ram_Puppy]

you can't really turn off any biological filter that will die back rapidly and not expect to take a hit when it comes back up.

as much as i like the principle of a hiatt, I am pulling it off the reef tank permenantly. even w/ the smaller usage of carbon reccomended it is about the only thing left i can think of that is causing my SPS to die back.

i just don't understand how some people have such great success w/ it, and bstreep and I failed so hard. :(

[Richard]

i just don't understand how some people have such great success w/ it, and bstreep and I failed so hard.


I don't know of anyone who has had great success with hiatt and sps. Just Bill, Mark & then you who have tried it. On my wife's seahorse tank I am so happy I used a Hiatt setup. She doesn't have to know anything, just dump food in it. Everything is great and I only go do a water change rarely BUT no stonies in there. Just softies, gorgonians, feathersdusters, scallops etc.

It seems to me in theory at least that you could control the number of bacteria by reducing the amount carbon but that's just theory and I don't have any plans to test that. Although I think Bill's sps were doing ok when he only had one torpedo and his problems started when he went to the full amount of carbon. Is that right Bill?

I thought you said your tank was running at 85-86 degrees. That's a problem with or without Hiatt IMO.

[Ram_Puppy]

hmm.. i thought you had it on your big reef... but now that i think about it, that was the deep carbon bed.

oh, and on the temp... i think it was my thermometer... I just started using a glass/mercury jobby and my temps are holding steady at 81 - 82. I had thought they were in the high 80s.

[Richard]

Yeah the carbon bed thingy is totally different. I kinda forgot about it and had been having problems with recession/poor coloration. After a long time of scratching my head trying to figure out what was wong I remembered that the carbon bed was almost three years old so I replaced it and now everything has colored up again and regrowing.

[Ram_Puppy]

see.. you just need to let me come over w/ a pair of clippers... and then you just leave the room. I will quietly and unobtrusively show myself out. :)

lol...

[Bill S]

I've been THINKING of hooking up a single torpedo for a day or 2, just to see what happens to my nitrates. It would be cool if they dropped to zero again. But, I don't want to stress out the SPS which is doing GREAT, over a longer period.

[justahobby]

After a recent post of using FBF I was curious if they had been used around Maast and found this thread.

Are you still using your FBF? A seahorse tank sounds like good application, especially since gas bubble disease seems to be so closely linked to using skimmers.


Yeah the carbon bed thingy is totally different. I kinda forgot about it and had been having problems with recession/poor coloration. After a long time of scratching my head trying to figure out what was wong I remembered that the carbon bed was almost three years old so I replaced it and now everything has colored up again and regrowing.

Did you decide against your FBF?

I've been THINKING of hooking up a single torpedo for a day or 2, just to see what happens to my nitrates. It would be cool if they dropped to zero again. But, I don't want to stress out the SPS which is doing GREAT, over a longer period.