Could you possibilty be meaning to say that because the bacterial population is so big in a FBF, that the O2 is depleted from the water, therefore resulting in an anaerobic situation. If you are then there is a "possibilty" that this could happen, as in aquaculture situations, but if your tank is not over stocked and you provide sufficient surface agitaion, you wont have a problem.
Fluidized Bed Filter
- Thread starter Madness
- Start date
I got the FBF today. Setup was pretty simple and it runs great. I did end up just getting the 300. I think it should be plenty.
Thanks again, RTR.
You can see it up in the right hand corner behind the pumps.
Thanks again, RTR.
You can see it up in the right hand corner behind the pumps.
Madness, your setup looks great ! Please keep us posted as to how your FBF works out over the next few weeks. I see from your pic that your tank is getting a lot of aeration, which is a very good thing where an FBF is concerned. You might just make an FBF believer out of me !
To respond to the anaerobic chamber issue, yes that is the concern that whatever oxygen is being provided to the bacteria in the FBF has to be pumped in with the tank water, as opposed to a bio-wheel which has free access to atmospheric oxygen. And unlike submerged bio-balls, the ratio of FBF bacteria versus available O2 in the FBF's water volume is really high ... especially if/when power fails or the pump quits thus complete O2 depletion is virtually guaranteed. I'll be the first to admit that I don't know what the actual consequences of sustained O2 depletion might be, but it doesn't sound good.
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To respond to the anaerobic chamber issue, yes that is the concern that whatever oxygen is being provided to the bacteria in the FBF has to be pumped in with the tank water, as opposed to a bio-wheel which has free access to atmospheric oxygen. And unlike submerged bio-balls, the ratio of FBF bacteria versus available O2 in the FBF's water volume is really high ... especially if/when power fails or the pump quits thus complete O2 depletion is virtually guaranteed. I'll be the first to admit that I don't know what the actual consequences of sustained O2 depletion might be, but it doesn't sound good.
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melonie said:
Hi, Melonie.
Thank you for the kind words. The setup seems to be working well. I'm doing my first water change with it today. I set the pump low enough to allow for water changes without it becoming exposed to the surface. But it remains to be seen if altering the water level adversly affects the flow through the FBF.
Setting the powerhead low has paid off. I did a 20% water change today which brings the water level down about 6" and the FBF ran fine through the whole thing. The sand dropped about a 1/4" when the water level in the tank was at it's lowest. The sand returned to it's previous level after refilling the tank.
Now if only I didn't have to refill that darn HOB filter after a water change.
Now if only I didn't have to refill that darn HOB filter after a water change.
This may sound stupid, but to avoid this I use an HOB filter body but don't run the built-in pump or the suction tube. Instead I use a powerhead (actually a Danner mag 7) and dump the hose right into the fitting designed for the suction tube. No priming/filling required.
