snakeblitz33
Well-Known Member
I watched a few videos on YouTube about the subject and I am getting more interested in this new concept.
It seems like these little pellets are made from the sludge on the top of beer vats... lots of sugars and compounds mixed with different plastic polymers. The concept is definitely interesting... the bacteria colonize the pellets and start breaking down nitrate and phosphate naturally, by being provided a specialized growth medium. Kind of like how fluidized bed filters use sand to reduce the amount of ammonia and nitrite in the system.
It is making more and more sense why a lot of the time people are not having good results with these reactors... it's because many people don't fully understand the biology behind it. People say to not put one on an established system - but these people didn't know exactly how it worked, and bought the cheapest units available to start testing these biopellet reactors.
Fluidization of the pellets is important to keep it oxygenated, but more important is the outflow of the water coming from the unit. The cheaper systems that people have running don't have any regulation on the outflow of the water - and therefore reduce their nitrate and phosphate too rapidly in established systems.
Another thing that I have run across is that these biopellets produce a lot of biofilm. This biofilm can be good for some corals to eat, but too much of it can cause algae problems - so there is a balance. Some people have gotten away with this, however, by putting the outflow of the biopellet reactor to a T onto the protein skimmers inlet. The protein skimmer then becomes highly activated and removed the biofilm from the system but leaves enough in the water to be beneficial.
Ok, so that's the extent of my research on the subject.
1. Is there anyone on the forums currently running a biopellet reactor, and what has been your experience with it?
2. Is it essential that a good protein skimmer be employed in the system for tank health
3. Is it worth the money to invest in a system like this, or is it just another "fad" that the aquatic industry has come up with?
4. Has anyone seen any tanks with long term success?
5. Does anyone know if a system like this has been used on tanks with SPS corals?
I'm getting the courage to pay for my RO/DI unit to be fixed and maintained properly and if that is the case, I might set my 75g tank back up. I just was gathering some information.
It seems like these little pellets are made from the sludge on the top of beer vats... lots of sugars and compounds mixed with different plastic polymers. The concept is definitely interesting... the bacteria colonize the pellets and start breaking down nitrate and phosphate naturally, by being provided a specialized growth medium. Kind of like how fluidized bed filters use sand to reduce the amount of ammonia and nitrite in the system.
It is making more and more sense why a lot of the time people are not having good results with these reactors... it's because many people don't fully understand the biology behind it. People say to not put one on an established system - but these people didn't know exactly how it worked, and bought the cheapest units available to start testing these biopellet reactors.
Fluidization of the pellets is important to keep it oxygenated, but more important is the outflow of the water coming from the unit. The cheaper systems that people have running don't have any regulation on the outflow of the water - and therefore reduce their nitrate and phosphate too rapidly in established systems.
Another thing that I have run across is that these biopellets produce a lot of biofilm. This biofilm can be good for some corals to eat, but too much of it can cause algae problems - so there is a balance. Some people have gotten away with this, however, by putting the outflow of the biopellet reactor to a T onto the protein skimmers inlet. The protein skimmer then becomes highly activated and removed the biofilm from the system but leaves enough in the water to be beneficial.
Ok, so that's the extent of my research on the subject.
1. Is there anyone on the forums currently running a biopellet reactor, and what has been your experience with it?
2. Is it essential that a good protein skimmer be employed in the system for tank health
3. Is it worth the money to invest in a system like this, or is it just another "fad" that the aquatic industry has come up with?
4. Has anyone seen any tanks with long term success?
5. Does anyone know if a system like this has been used on tanks with SPS corals?
I'm getting the courage to pay for my RO/DI unit to be fixed and maintained properly and if that is the case, I might set my 75g tank back up. I just was gathering some information.
