Whhich Media Are You Using?

[kevin82]

Hi All

My water levels have been perfect for over 9 months now, but I'm having problems with the flow rate of my Eheim 2213 Classic.

It has been suggested that my current media setup is causing the problems. I'm using eheim's own pads but JAD Ceramic rings instead of SubstratPro and Efimech as I stupidly didn't buy the plus pack with the filter.

My thinking (correct me if I'm wrong) is that the ceramic rings are the mechanical filtration just like the efimech.

does this mean I have no biological filtration other than the bacteria on the filter pads?

If yes then is there anything out there other than SubstratPro which would do the job?

Thanks

Kevin

 

[raptorrex]

Hi All

My water levels have been perfect for over 9 months now, but I'm having problems with the flow rate of my Eheim 2213 Classic.

It has been suggested that my current media setup is causing the problems. I'm using eheim's own pads but JAD Ceramic rings instead of SubstratPro and Efimech as I stupidly didn't buy the plus pack with the filter.

My thinking (correct me if I'm wrong) is that the ceramic rings are the mechanical filtration just like the efimech.

does this mean I have no biological filtration other than the bacteria on the filter pads?

If yes then is there anything out there other than SubstratPro which would do the job?

Thanks

Kevin

well, in theory, you have no bio media. but the truth is it grows all over your filter.
to me, you are correct in saying the rings are for mechanical filtration.
you could add sponge for media. but i cant stress how good Efisubstrat pro is. even so, any ceramic media will help here.
I would suggest the purchase of a media kit, around £25 or less. this has a full set of media, and pads, from eheim. whilst i can not say, hand on heart, "its the best". i have yet to find anything better. some use bio balls as mechanical media. but the get clogged, more than Efimech. and are larger so you get less filtration per sq inch. too me, anyway.

 

[OldMan47]

When you get right down to it, biological media is any media that has a surface. That means to me that all of your media are by definition biological media. One of the best overall bio media is nothing more than simple pot scrubbers like these.

That means that everything in your filter at present is biomedia but that you might be able to improve it slightly by changing some of your present media a bit at a time. Do not, repeat do not, change all of your present biomedia for a "better" one. If you do that, you lose the benefit of your present biomedia completely while you cycle the new stuff.

 

[bitteraspects]

Ceramic rings are bio-media, not mechanical media. While they have a good amount of surface area, "professional medias" like substrat pro and bio-max offer a much higher surface area. I prefer to use bio-max in my canisters and HOB filters, while I stick to "scrubbies" (pictured above) in my sumps.
if your water parameters have been fine for so long, you definitely have enough biological filtration, and your filter is running efficiently. However, if you're noticing a drop in flow rate, it likely points to the filter not being cleaned frequently or thuroughly enough.

How and how often do you clean your canister?

 

[kevin82]

the cannister gets cleaned fornightly and to be honest apart from the filter wool the isn't that much there to clog anything up.

My guess would be that I'm just using wrong quantities of media.

My cannister is 2/3 full of ceramic rings, then a coarse pad, then topped off with filter wool.


I've just ordered 2L SubstratPro and I'm gonna set the cannister up as advised in the instruction manual. 2" ceramic rings, coarse pad, substratPro and enoug space in top for an ince of filter wool.

I'm also going to get a pipe cleaner and give the lines a good clean.

I guess this only teaches me one thing, don't jump in too quickly when you see what yuo think is a bargain. I wouldn't have had any of this bother if I had of spent the extra tenna and got the plus pack with the double taps and media included. (currently standing me at an extra £42, bloody idiot)

 

[raptorrex]

Ceramic rings are bio-media, not mechanical media.

that's not 100% true. though they have surface area. all propriety made ceramic rings are sold as Mechanical media. and are used as such (if you follow instructions). I would suggest they, ARE, Mechanical Media, but support some of your bio mess.

the cannister gets cleaned fornightly and to be honest apart from the filter wool the isn't that much there to clog anything up.

My guess would be that I'm just using wrong quantities of media.

My cannister is 2/3 full of ceramic rings, then a coarse pad, then topped off with filter wool.


I've just ordered 2L SubstratPro and I'm gonna set the cannister up as advised in the instruction manual. 2" ceramic rings, coarse pad, substratPro and enoug space in top for an ince of filter wool.

I'm also going to get a pipe cleaner and give the lines a good clean.

I guess this only teaches me one thing, don't jump in too quickly when you see what yuo think is a bargain. I wouldn't have had any of this bother if I had of spent the extra tenna and got the plus pack with the double taps and media included. (currently standing me at an extra £42, bloody idiot)

I would consider lengthening your cleaning period. there is little point in cleaning a filter, unless the flow is restricted, noticeably. how far you "push" the cleaning interval, will come with filter experience.
you wont go far wrong, from my experience, if you follow the Eheim media map. and you will notice a vast difference in how quickly the Substrate pro, gets clogged. v how fast filter wool does. substrate pro, offers a lot less clumping than, even, efisubstrate.

 

[bitteraspects]

that's not 100% true. though they have surface area. all propriety made ceramic rings are sold as Mechanical media. and are used as such (if you follow instructions). I would suggest they, ARE, Mechanical Media, but support some of your bio mess.

BAHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHAH

http://www.bigalsonline.com/BigAlsU...mpharmaceuticalsrenafilstarceramicrings1liter

"Extremely porous ceramic, hollow design effectively distributes water flow and allows massive colonies of beneficial bacteria to grow on and inside each ring"

http://www.thatpetplace.com/pet/group/10567/product.web

"Ceramic Rings Biological Filter Media

Enhance bacterial growth for biological filtration with these Ceramic Rings. Designed to maximize surface area, they require no cleaning and are virtually maintenance free. Safe for both fresh and saltwater tanks."

Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Filstar Ch...and enhance the aquarium's biological filter.

"Aquarium Pharmaceuticals Filstar Checmical Rings (1 Liter) are super-high porosity rings have greater surface area than conventional ceramic filter media, giving beneficial bacteria more room and chance to grow and enhance the aquarium's biological filter."

http://www.shopwiki.com/Biological+Ceramic+Rings+-+Bio-Media

"Highly porous ceramic rings provide maximum surface area for beneficial growth. Helps produce and maintain an active and healthy biological filtration system. 325 grams"

"Special Marineland Canister Filters 160, 220 and 360 Ceramic Rings filter media provides ideal surface area for beneficial bacteria colonization."

... i could do this, literally, all day.

 

[raptorrex]

... i could do this, literally, all day.

EHEIM Mech: Mechanical filter medium for effective water treatment

taken form
i could do this all day as well. but it only took 10 seconds. same is true of, most, other rings.

i have not said, indeed quite the opposite, that the have no bio action. but they are made and marketed as Mechanical media. i see no reason to ignore the makers intended use.

i always find the maker offers better information, than those hoping to sell stuff to you.

 

[kevin82]

As Jeremy Clarkson regularly says "...And on that note"

 

[bitteraspects]

Lol.
With the exception of one eheim product (because they use sintered glass/ lava rock, and other ceramic media for bio), ceramic rings. Are sold as biological media, and are relatively ineffective as a mechanical media when compared to true mechanical media like the sponges, bonded filter pads, and filter floss or even micron cartridges (depending on how samm you want to go) used in most canister and HOB filters.
Go back and. Read through the links again. Its more than just website marketing. The information is written directly in the packaging from rhe manufacturer (see the fluval pic in the first link, and basically every picture in tthe last link)

Fluval, filstar, marinand (aka tetratec), resun, as well as third party manufacturers, make and market this product for biological filtration.

 

[raptorrex]

Lol.
With the exception of one eheim product (because they use sintered glass/ lava rock, and other ceramic media for bio), ceramic rings. Are sold as biological media, and are relatively ineffective as a mechanical media when compared to true mechanical media like the sponges, bonded filter pads, and filter floss or even micron cartridges (depending on how samm you want to go) used in most canister and HOB filters.
Go back and. Read through the links again. Its more than just website marketing. The information is written directly in the packaging from rhe manufacturer (see the fluval pic in the first link, and basically every picture in tthe last link)

Fluval, filstar, marinand (aka tetratec), resun, as well as third party manufacturers, make and market this product for biological filtration.

but, as we a talking Eheim rings, in this thread, they are Mechanical filtration. of that there is no argument.

 

[kevin82]

Lol.
With the exception of one eheim product (because they use sintered glass/ lava rock, and other ceramic media for bio), ceramic rings. Are sold as biological media, and are relatively ineffective as a mechanical media when compared to true mechanical media like the sponges, bonded filter pads, and filter floss or even micron cartridges (depending on how samm you want to go) used in most canister and HOB filters.
Go back and. Read through the links again. Its more than just website marketing. The information is written directly in the packaging from rhe manufacturer (see the fluval pic in the first link, and basically every picture in tthe last link)

Fluval, filstar, marinand (aka tetratec), resun, as well as third party manufacturers, make and market this product for biological filtration.

but, as we a talking Eheim rings, in this thread, they are Mechanical filtration. of that there is no argument.

sorry, as per original post I'm using JAD ceramics which were boxed as 'complete' media

 

[bitteraspects]

but, as we a talking Eheim rings, in this thread, they are Mechanical filtration. of that there is no argument.

Sure there is. Eheim is the only manufacturer claiming their use for mechanical filtration while everyone else is very clear in its use for biological filtration (due to its high surface area). Also, Eheim is known for its build quality and biological filtration. Not so much its mechanical filtration. And don't eheim classics also use a bonded filter pad for mechanical filtration?

The OP questioned the use of ceramic rings as a whole, and used the eheim rings as an example, and the fact of the matter is that while eheim markets them as mechanical media (because they use other more porous materials for their bio-media), ceramic medias serve better as a biological media. Especially considering the filter already incorporates a bonded filter ad for mechanical filtration.
Clearly as the OP's water parameters are in order, there is enough biological media in the filter. And if that filer consists only of the bonded filter pad and ceramic rings... Guess where the bacteria lives? (hint: its not the filter pad)

I always find the maker offers better information, than those hoping to sell stuff to you.

Couldn't have if it better myself

http://www.hagen.com/uk/aquatic/product.cfm?CAT=1&SUBCAT=114&PROD_ID=01014560030101
http://www.marineland.com/sites/Marineland/products/productdetail.aspx?id=2054&cid=2056&mid=3226
http://www.fosterandsmithaquatics.com/product/prod_display.cfm?pcatid=5073
(the last link is not the manufacturers site, but the info is taken directly from the manufacturer.)

"I see no reason to ignore the makers intended use" either.

 

[bitteraspects]

sorry, as per original post I'm using JAD ceramics which were boxed as 'complete' media

Whatever the case may be, its fine.
All this ceramic talk is straying from the real issue.

If your water parameters are in order, then the filter regimen you're using is fine.
However, if you're experiencing a drop in watweflow, the problem is likely the frequency or quality of cleaning build up of detritus and debris in your filter media can lead to a decrease in flow. And while your bacteria Colonies are still capable of completing the nitrogen cycle at these slower flow rates, it will drcrease the mechanical efficiency of the filter.
All you have to do is rinse the bonded filter pad and apx 1/3 of the rings in a bucket of tank water (if you rinse all the rings, it Will likely cause a mini cycle. But up to 1/3 should be fine). Increase the frequency of your cleaning until you are able to maintain the flow. I personally clean my filters every week (sometimes 2 weeks if I was busy) to maintain optimum Performance of my equipment.
As long as you do it properly, frequent cleaning will only help your equipment.

Another thing you may want to check are your filter hoses. Buildup in the hoses can also cause a drop in water flow. Luckily the hoses are easy to clean and cheap to replace.
To clean the hose, tie a long piece of string to a bit of cloth or filter pad, and tie the other end around a nail or wood screw. Then drop the nail/screw down the pipe and pull the cloth through. Repeat until clean.

If you need to replace the hoses, most good LFS will sell hoses by the foot. So just measure the hose (or being. Bit with you to the store) and get a replacement. Most hardware stores Carey vinyl tubing that yyou could use as well.

 

[OldMan47]

That was quite a debate about what you can use ceramic media to do. Can we get back to the original question about what might work better in an Eheim filter please.