Scarletmonuka Posted May 5, 2013 Report Share Posted May 5, 2013 The canister filter that I currently have has 3 compartments in it.. bottom one has bio noodles in it the middle one has filter will and the top one has a couple of sponges in it. my question is would that second compartment be better with another lot of noodles in it or is it right with the filter wool? it never had anything in it when I bought the thing Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smidey Posted May 5, 2013 Report Share Posted May 5, 2013 It will help if you as something in there. I have ceramic noodle in the middle, plastic balls in the top and nothing in the bottom one. Think about the way your filter flows, if it is bottom up have the course sponge at the bottom and filer will at the top. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueether Posted May 5, 2013 Report Share Posted May 5, 2013 the flow og the CFs if bottom to top so you could go (bottom to top) bio balls & blue sponge; noodles; black sponge & wool I replaced the bioballs with another lot of noodles in my cf1200 but if you are running 2 cf1000 I wouldnt bother. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
si_sphinx Posted May 5, 2013 Report Share Posted May 5, 2013 When I had canisters I had noodles in every compartment. First had noodles with sponge on top, second had noodles with wool on top third was all noodles. And my fluvals were all noodles because they have a separate side bit that has the sponges. Anyone who has a fluval will understand what I'm on about Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Jaxxnz Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 I reckon 70% of noodle and bio ball and 30% of sponge filter would combat some stuff in the water.. but no matter what you gear up with! the regular water change is the main ingredient to your tank.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disgustipated Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 your existing set up sounds fine. bio media first, then wool then sponge. i dont like putting filter wool in the top/last basket as strands of wool can break off and wrap around the impeller. i like having a sponge in the last basket. i would not recommend putting ceramics in the last basket either coz bits can break off. if you can fit any more bio media in there amongst the wool or sponges then go for it, just don't clog it up too much so that it restricts flow. i like having two external filters on one tank, one of them full of bio media, and the other full of mechanical filtration. i'm rambling. but, if your tank is not huge and/or very heavily stocked, then your filter sounds fine the way it is. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamH Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 My canisters always go sponge, filter wool, bio media. This helps to keep the bio media a bit cleaner than having the mechanical filtration last. You won't need more than one tray with mechanical media in it, perhaps even half a tray. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
David R Posted May 8, 2013 Report Share Posted May 8, 2013 ^ what he said, makes sense to have the mechanical media before the bio. I usually have a coarse then fine sponge, then a couple of trays of noodles. That way the top 1-2 baskets with bio media usually just need a quick dunk in a bucket of tank water (if anything) while the sponge gets a thorough rinse with the hose. I do tend to clean my canisters more frequently than most though. I'd probably run wool or something a little finer if it were my only source of filtration. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarletmonuka Posted May 9, 2013 Author Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 both intake and output are at the top. though i'm guessing water shoots down the centre then comes back up through the filter. so going by that the sponges at the bottom then the wool in middle then noodles at the top? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disgustipated Posted May 9, 2013 Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 all my filters have mechanical filtration both first and last. but i have 5 stages. but since you only have three stages, i think you should put bio first, then mechanical last. reason i say this, is because bio media holds bacteria that feed from fish poo. putting mechanical filtration before the bio will filter out the poo. gunk gathering up around the bio media is good, it's what the bacteria feed on. and i am more concerned with the filter being effective, than i am concerned about how easy it is to clean. basically my general rule is: course media first, fine media last. so that the water flows through the most open media first, then flows through finer and finer media as it progresses, media should start course and get finer towards the end. this is the same as all filters work whether aqua or not. this way, the big pieces of gunk get caught up in the first stage and don't clog up your fine filter material as quickly, instead it will get trapped in with the bio media which is easily washable. cotton is disposable so best to put it where it only has to filter out the tiny bits of gunk, not the big bits. HTH Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asmodeus Posted May 9, 2013 Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 I have a 4-stage canister, so would you guys suggest bioballs->noodles->coarse foam->wool? Just a bit concerned about the post above saying the wool can get into the impeller. There are loads of contradicting posts online so perhaps it isn't too important as long as it's kinda sensible? What would you suggest for a 4 tray canister? Thanks Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disgustipated Posted May 9, 2013 Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 I have a 4-stage canister, so would you guys suggest bioballs->noodles->coarse foam->wool? Just a bit concerned about the post above saying the wool can get into the impeller. yeah i would suggest that. wool getting into the impeller is a small chance, if it happens, and not a big deal if it does happen. i don't clean out my filters anywhere near as often as i should. hence my system of media placement, and hence my worry about wool breaking off and wrapping around impeller. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamH Posted May 9, 2013 Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 I have a 4-stage canister, so would you guys suggest bioballs->noodles->coarse foam->wool? No, but the foam first, then the wool, then the noodles and bioballs. And by first, I mean the first thing the water coming from the tank contacts which is usually the bottom. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disgustipated Posted May 9, 2013 Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 No, but the foam first, then the wool, then the noodles and bioballs. And by first, I mean the first thing the water coming from the tank contacts which is usually the bottom. we're gonna have to agree to disagree here bro. reasons as above 8) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamH Posted May 9, 2013 Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 Can't I disagree to disagree? I don't think that bacteria is restricted to the filter sludge, I believe it has the capacity to move, spread and multiply throughout the system via water. Any sludge that's blocking surface area for bacteria that needs water movement over it (aerobic I believe) would decrease the amount of bacteria that is able to survive on the media. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smidey Posted May 9, 2013 Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 I don't use wool on any of my canisters anymore and I don't see any difference in water clarity at all, just the course and fine sponges. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smidey Posted May 9, 2013 Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 What ever mechanical filtration you have it makes sense to me that you take the largest partials out first with the course foam and then the smallest so the fine foam our wool should be as choose to the exit point as possible. I keep my bio balls at the bottom and ceramic noodles at the top, that setup works for me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Asmodeus Posted May 9, 2013 Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 Now you see what I mean about loads of conflicting setups online, and this is just one thread :lar: Thing is most of these setups seem to work fine, so I guess I'll just experiment a bit and see what works well for me Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disgustipated Posted May 9, 2013 Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 Can't I disagree to disagree? I don't think that bacteria is restricted to the filter sludge, I believe it has the capacity to move, spread and multiply throughout the system via water. Any sludge that's blocking surface area for bacteria that needs water movement over it (aerobic I believe) would decrease the amount of bacteria that is able to survive on the media. i agree that you can't disagree to disagree. although i agree with what you are saying. sure it would decrease the area bacteria have to live in. and i agree, bacteria is not restricted to anywhere, it sets up home wherever it wants. bio media has literally billions of nice cosy places for bacteria to settle down, so i'm not worried about blocking a bit of surface area in order to get better mechanical filtration.. the size of the bacteria colony that establishes is totally dependant on the amount of fish waste that is going into your tank. so if you have a lot of bio media, but a low bio load, most of the bio media won't be getting used. and because bacteria can live anywhere in the tank, there are tons more cosy little palaces in the substrate for bacteria to live. in a standard tank that is not overstocked, i think it is beneficial to concentrate more on mechanical filtration, than biological. for these reasons, i put bio media first, and fine mechanical filtration last. i also no longer use wool. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
disgustipated Posted May 9, 2013 Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 I guess I'll just experiment a bit and see what works well for me that is absolutely the best thing you could do 8) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamH Posted May 9, 2013 Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 i agree that you can't disagree to disagree. although i agree with what you are saying.Okay you win, you lost me Well if mechanical is what you're after then chuck the bio media in first. At the end of the day, the loss is likely negligible no matter what you do so it's all down to personal preference. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
blueether Posted May 9, 2013 Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 I mostly have the fine sponge and wool in the top tray as then I don't have to pull the whole thing apart just to clean the fine mechanical filtration. I'd love to know how much free O2 is left in the water as it exits the filter? I suspect that it is getting very low, another reason I like the bio media near the beginning of the filtration system to maximise the O2 to break down ammonia, nitrite and nitrates Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
SamH Posted May 9, 2013 Report Share Posted May 9, 2013 I'd love to know how much free O2 is left in the water as it exits the filter? I suspect that it is getting very low, another reason I like the bio media near the beginning of the filtration system to maximise the O2 to break down ammonia, nitrite and nitrates But if it's clogged with filter sludge then how much of that O2 is actually reaching the bacteria? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Scarletmonuka Posted May 10, 2013 Author Report Share Posted May 10, 2013 and the reason for using bio balls as well as ceramic noodles? cause the bio balls capture smaller pieces of yuck? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smidey Posted May 10, 2013 Report Share Posted May 10, 2013 and the reason for using bio balls as well as ceramic noodles? cause the bio balls capture smaller pieces of yuck? i thought the bio balls and ceramic noodles were for the bacteria not being a mechanical filter media. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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