Bio-Balls as Nitrate Factories

[MonsterMush]

Background: 120 gallon tank with 100 lbs of live rock that has been running since 2004 with wet dry filter w/ bio-balls. Originally a FOWLR system, soft corals were added in 2019.

There has been discussion, over the years, that bio balls act as “nitrate factories” in our enclosed systems: they contribute to the rapid buildup of nitrates. I do not agree with this, based on my experience, in an established reef tank with live rock. With good husbandry utilizing small, weekly to biweekly water changes low nitrate levels can be maintained while using bio balls. Bio balls are not needed in a system with ample live rock and are better suited for freshwater systems, but they may be more benign than what many have said. People on the internet tend to regurgitate information without the proper due diligence.
I have improved my husbandry the past couple years and conduct weekly to biweekly 5% water changes. I am, currently, maintaining nitrates at about 5ppm (Salifert). Do not seek bio balls for a reef, but old timers that have the equipment should not be scared into spending money on a new sump if they are doing a FOWLR or Soft coral system. Disclaimer: this is anecdotal and just my experience.

 

[brandon429]

Also nitrate factories: anyone’s sandbed and their live rock and any high surface area catchment in the reef that retains waste and prevents export. I have trouble believing the denitrification posts, after reading nitrate test kit comparison threads I’m convinced we are all param guessers well into this current decade. Heck we still can’t even know actual live time ammonia status what hope is there for the other metabolites so far


bioballs don’t offend me in the least.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Background: 120 gallon tank with 100 lbs of live rock that has been running since 2004 with wet dry filter w/ bio-balls. Originally a FOWLR system, soft corals were added in 2019.

There has been discussion, over the years, that bio balls act as “nitrate factories” in our enclosed systems: they contribute to the rapid buildup of nitrates. I do not agree with this, based on my experience, in an established reef tank with live rock. With good husbandry utilizing small, weekly to biweekly water changes low nitrate levels can be maintained while using bio balls. Bio balls are not needed in a system with ample live rock and are better suited for freshwater systems, but they may be more benign than what many have said. People on the internet tend to regurgitate information without the proper due diligence.
I have improved my husbandry the past couple years and conduct weekly to biweekly 5% water changes. I am, currently, maintaining nitrates at about 5ppm (Salifert). Do not seek bio balls for a reef, but old timers that have the equipment should not be scared into spending money on a new sump if they are doing a FOWLR or Soft coral system. Disclaimer: this is anecdotal and just my experience.

I don't know how one example of low nitrate "disagrees" with the premise that they contribute nitrate more than without them (whether they actually do nor not) any more than an example with high nitrate with them proves the opposite.

You just have adequate nitrate consumption/export capacity to keep the levels low.

 

[MonsterMush]

I don't know how one example of low nitrate "disagrees" with the premise that they contribute nitrate more than without them (whether they actually do nor not) any more than an example with high nitrate with them proves the opposite.

You just have adequate nitrate consumption/export capacity to keep the levels low.

Randy, I really appreciate all of your work and agree with your statement: hence my disclaimer that this is my experience and anecdotal. Thanks for all that you do for our hobby!!

 

[Harold999]

Foam filtermats over bricks/balls/pipes imho because my theory is that filtermats can catch parasites and the biomass in the mats will kill them.
Bricks/balls/pipes don't catch anything, parasites will happily swim through/around them.

So forget all those ceramic media, insert a couple of layers foam and be done with it.

 

[JNalley]

Disclaimer: I'm no expert

From what I've read (yes, regurgitating information on the internet), it has something to do with the types of bacteria and where they live. In Live rock, there is surface bacteria, sub-surface bacteria, and then deep bacteria? if that makes sense, and each performs a different task in the de-nitrification process. BioBalls, the plastic ones like you have pictured, are only suitable for the Ammonia>Nitrite, and the Nitrite>Nitrate process from my inference of the few articles I've read, and they do not help in the Nitrate>Nitrogen process. So perhaps this is where that information comes from? I dunno... I'm learning too :-D

 

[Harold999]

Disclaimer: I'm no expert

From what I've read (yes, regurgitating information on the internet), it has something to do with the types of bacteria and where they live. In Live rock, there is surface bacteria, sub-surface bacteria, and then deep bacteria? if that makes sense, and each performs a different task in the de-nitrification process. BioBalls, the plastic ones like you have pictured, are only suitable for the Ammonia>Nitrite, and the Nitrite>Nitrate process from my inference of the few articles I've read, and they do not help in the Nitrate>Nitrogen process. So perhaps this is where that information comes from? I dunno... I'm learning too :-D

Bacteria deep inside live rock and those special ceramic bricks are way overrated simply because there is no or hardly any flow there. The amount of tank water that actually reaches those deep pores and then being released again is close to zero.

BRSTV once did an investigation about those bricks. It didn't do anything for your nitrates.

The same by the way for ultra deep sandbeds. There is zero or almost no flow deep down in there so the efficiency of acting as a nitrate eliminator is very little.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

This is my rationale for the effect that many reefers saw in the old days when everyone had bioballs, and when folks removed them, even ones they cleaned regularly, they often saw a decline in nitrate.

Nitrate in the Reef Aquarium - REEFEDITION

Filters Designed To Facilitate The Nitrogen Cycle.

Filters such as trickle filters using traditional bioballs do a fine job of processing ammonia to nitrite to nitrate, but do nothing with the nitrate. It is often non-intuitive to many aquarists, but removing such a filter altogether may actually help reduce nitrate. Consequently, slowly removing them and allowing more of the nitrogen processing to take place on and in the live rock and sand can be beneficial.

It is not that any less nitrate is produced when such a filter is removed, it is a question of what happens to the nitrate after it is produced. When nitrate is produced on the surface of impermeable media such as bioballs, it mixes into the entire water column, and then has to find its way, by diffusion, to the places where it may be reduced (inside of live rock and sand, for instance).

If it is produced on the surface of live rock or sand, then the local concentration of nitrate is higher there than in the first case above, and it is more likely to diffuse into the rock and sand to be reduced to N2.

In a reef aquarium with adequate live rock, there is little use for a trickle filter, so in general they can be safely removed.

 

[MonsterMush]

I don't know how one example of low nitrate "disagrees" with the premise that they contribute nitrate more than without them (whether they actually do nor not) any more than an example with high nitrate with them proves the opposite.

You just have adequate nitrate consumption/export capacity to keep the levels low.

Nitrate consumption and export are important variables to consider in the idea that bio balls are nitrate factories: Nitrate consumption and export could offset these “nitrate factories,” but I am not sure that my coral load, skimmer and small water changes could handle a “factory.” Maybe a small mom and pop shop. I just feel that the “nitrate factory” claim many have made is exaggerated, based on my anecdotal experience.

 

[MonsterMush]

This is my rationale for the effect that many reefers saw in the old days when everyone had bioballs, and when folks removed them, even ones they cleaned regularly, they often saw a decline in nitrate.

Nitrate in the Reef Aquarium - REEFEDITION

Filters Designed To Facilitate The Nitrogen Cycle.

Filters such as trickle filters using traditional bioballs do a fine job of processing ammonia to nitrite to nitrate, but do nothing with the nitrate. It is often non-intuitive to many aquarists, but removing such a filter altogether may actually help reduce nitrate. Consequently, slowly removing them and allowing more of the nitrogen processing to take place on and in the live rock and sand can be beneficial.

It is not that any less nitrate is produced when such a filter is removed, it is a question of what happens to the nitrate after it is produced. When nitrate is produced on the surface of impermeable media such as bioballs, it mixes into the entire water column, and then has to find its way, by diffusion, to the places where it may be reduced (inside of live rock and sand, for instance).

If it is produced on the surface of live rock or sand, then the local concentration of nitrate is higher there than in the first case above, and it is more likely to diffuse into the rock and sand to be reduced to N2.

In a reef aquarium with adequate live rock, there is little use for a trickle filter, so in general they can be safely removed.

This is great Randy and helpful for the community. Bio balls are not needed in a reef tank. I just feel that they are, somewhat, benign and not doing any harm in my case.

 

[Zarabyte]

Background: 120 gallon tank with 100 lbs of live rock that has been running since 2004 with wet dry filter w/ bio-balls. Originally a FOWLR system, soft corals were added in 2019.

There has been discussion, over the years, that bio balls act as “nitrate factories” in our enclosed systems: they contribute to the rapid buildup of nitrates. I do not agree with this, based on my experience, in an established reef tank with live rock. With good husbandry utilizing small, weekly to biweekly water changes low nitrate levels can be maintained while using bio balls. Bio balls are not needed in a system with ample live rock and are better suited for freshwater systems, but they may be more benign than what many have said. People on the internet tend to regurgitate information without the proper due diligence.
I have improved my husbandry the past couple years and conduct weekly to biweekly 5% water changes. I am, currently, maintaining nitrates at about 5ppm (Salifert). Do not seek bio balls for a reef, but old timers that have the equipment should not be scared into spending money on a new sump if they are doing a FOWLR or Soft coral system. Disclaimer: this is anecdotal and just my experience.

Agree totally good observation