Ceramic Rings

[darkdep]

Where's the best place / what's the best brand, if I'm looking for Ceramic Rings (for biomedia)?

I've recently acquired 3 large canisters and have no media...

[Marx]

i like eheim media..

[darkdep]

Sorry, I forgot to mention I wanted it to be cheap

[Marx]

I Have boxes of those new 1" bio-balls forsale..

Coralife Bio-Balls enable aquarists to maintain large biological loads in much smaller filter areas. The dramatic increase in surface area is achieved by the unique, geometric design of the smaller, one-inch bio-ball. One gallon of Coralife Bio-Balls, (approximately 225 balls) has a surface area of approximately 21.5 square feet. This increased surface area supports between 45 and 60 gallons of marine life.

small enough to add to most canister and hang on filters.

[Marx]

i forgot to mention cheap.

[darkdep]

How cheap?  I'm pretty partial to the rings actually, but money talks

[Nelson]

Have you folks looked at fish pond supplies...namely Laguna for one?  I've started buying Laguna filter media and it's much cheaper and as effective as anything else out there with an "aquarium" label on it.

[darkdep]

That's a good idea...I'll check to see if they have rings.

[Mettle]

Pond products are also good in many other ways... Anyone sick of paying loads of $$$ for Aquaplus? Why not just get the pond equivalent? For roughly $10 plus taxes you can treat close to 1400 US gallons I do believe it is.

Very cool.

[jdx]

There are soooo many other dirty cheap material that can be cut to various size and provide more bio surface than ceramic rings and bio balls, just to name a few:
Lava rocks, blue furnace filter, open cell foam (none fungicide evaporator pad for humidifier), all can be obtained from HD.

[luvfishies]

I like BioMax. Nope, it's NOT cheap, but it lasts forever.

[TR]

While I agree, the pond version of obtaining ceramic rings bio rings, etc... is probably cheaper and offer a better value since its larger in surface areas and you will prabably get a better return dollar wise....

Nothing last forever by simply dropping in bio max rings, bio balls, etc... they need to be replaced or cleaned up every now and then.  The ceramic materials should be pourus as well and as the bacteria continues to grow and multiply within time, they become less effective and over exhausted causing it to be less effective over time.

When porous material becomes clogged up your only left with exterior bacteria as the rest of the pourous parts inside the material are choked off.  You need to scrub the clogged material or replace the material in order for the bacteria to replenish or reproduce back to its original efficiency.

Lava rock, open cell foam, Coralife bio balls, all work well... but nothing without some form of maintianece lasts forever!

                                                 TR

[kennyman]

We use the lava rock as media for biological filtration in pond/waterfall instulations. This latest one though was a "special order" kit that included large plastic balls with slots running through them. I laughed when I opend it up! $70 for a box of plasic crap! Surface area was about 70sq ft for a whole box full. A box about the size of three loaves of bread.

I use fluvalmax myself in my hob's extra media slots. But I think the blue foam things at Big A'lls would do the trick. They are handy for all kinds of things.

[blueturq]

I think the blue foam things at Big A'lls would do the trick. They are handy for all kinds of things.

Yeah those are really great, and VERY inexpensive too!

[darkdep]

Hmm...maybe I'll forget the rings and just fill my eheim with floss and the blue foam...would that work?

[Underwater]

It would require frequent cleaning as floss and sponge tends to gunk up.  It would polish the water nicely though.

I use coarse blue filter pads, gravel and ceramic rings alternating in my canister.  I had fine filter pads and floss, but they clogged too quickly and I got tired of dismantling the canister to clean it.

[TR]

You can use whatever to colonize bacteria but depending on what material you are using it will give you certian results.

As we all know about various filtrations we use today....
                      - Mechanical filtration
                      -  Biological filtration
                      - Chemical filtration
                      - Additional oxygen i.e. UGF, airstones, etc, etc.
                     
Some of these other medias can work as extra forms of media or together with your current filter media helping to assist one another.

Most filter material can be used from filter wool, pads, sponge filter, foam blocks, lava rock, bioballs, even your gravel bed in your aquarium will support some form of bacteria.

Lastly, of course bio rings. (ceramic rings) ceramic material is another means we can use and is known to be very effective.

It can host and coloninze a large amount of benefical bacteria at least 50% or more porousity per volume depending on the size you use, and depending on how many pores and openings the ceramic media has it can double effectively enough to cover large surface areas.  Very effective should you want to supplement your current system for sure, but they to need to be maintained or replaced as the pores within time will get clogged up and the bacteria exhausted with non-decomposing waste material.


                                    TR

[jdx]

Good biological filtration must have mechanical filtration to be effective for long, any good biological filter media will get clogged up if without a mechanical prefilter, only very coarse media won't get clogged, but it won't have much surface to colonize bacteria.

I used polyester floss as prefilter and after that I use cut open cell foam and blue furnace filter as bio media, they have been running for more than 2 years, I have never cleaned bio-media, just prefilter bi-weekly.

[Julie]

What are your thoughts on using fluval biomax as prefilter after it has aged?

Julie

[jdx]

I don't think Fluval Biomax make a good pre-filter, unless you have a lot, it can hardly catch and suspend small particles.