need some advice please, Thanks

Pasfur

Very good. You should test your ammonia and nitrite tomorrow morning just to be safe. I agree another 12 pounds should make the tank much improved. After a few weeks you can look at removing biomedia.

marine666

Thanks for your help, didn't think it would be possible to get so addicted to something. thanks

marine666

Hi pasfur, thought you might be interested/ or get a laugh in reading the offical info on the marisys 240 from aqua one.

How does the MariSys Filtration System work?
Water enters the system through the Pre Filter at the front of the Overflow Box where any large clumps of waste are removed. It then travels over the water Bridge and into the Silencer. The Silencer is a specially designed device which reduces the "gurgle" commonly associated with overflow boxes. From here the water travels over the Water Level Adjuster and down through the Inlet Hose where it enters the MariSys. The water then splits path, some travels across to the Drip Tray while the remaining water is fed into the Protein Skimmer. The fine bubbles produced by the Wooden Airstone at the base of the Skimmer move up and contact with the water. As the fine air bubbles and water mix, dissolved organics and proteins are "skimmed" from the water. There molecules attract themselves to the fine bubbles and as more of them are skimmed they accumulate at the top of the Skimmer where they over flow into the Collection Cup. The clean water then exits the Skimmer and is returned to the aquarium.
The water which does not flow into the Protein Skimmer moves across the Drip Tray where it is then channelled down through the various layers of filter media. Three layers of filter wool remove the larger particles of waste before the water is filtered through a tightly woven Activated Carbon Pad, where finer particles are trapped along with any dissolved organics like smells or discolourations. The water then travels through the Bio Balls where the beneficial bacteria colonise and break down the Ammonia and Nitrite into Nitrate which is less toxic and easily removed with regular aquarium maintenance.
The activated Carbon Pillow then removes any remaining dissolved organic waste, while polishing the water before it passes over the CeramiSub. CeramiSub is an Advanced Sintered Glass media which is extremely porous enabling more beneficial bacteria to grow both on and deep within it. Nitrifying bacteria are aerobic, it is important that they are provided with as much oxygen enriched water as possible. Just about all of the biological media in the MariSys is sitting out of the water, and oxygen enriched water is splashing through the system constantly. This is the ideal environment for the bacteria, as a result they are more stable and capable of reproducing faster which in turn allows them to break down toxic waste faster and more efficiently. The filtered water is then drawn itno the Power Head and returned to the aquarium. The end

Makes you wonder why they waste money researching and product developing stuff like this.

wake49

LOL!!!

We produce nitrtates so you don't have to!

Pasfur

This is good news. We can modify the bio chamber and use it as a refugium. The entire system will work well with this one small adjustment.

wake49

Is that skimmer removable or are you married to it? Can we fit something a little more powerful in its place? What are the dimensions of the skimmer?

With a properly set up refugium, you can harvest macroalgae which becomes a safe, effective sponge for excess nutrients, such as nitrates and phophates. Along with a DSB and a few pieces of live rock, a refugium works as a small version of the display. It becomes a great place for pods to reproduce and populate the display.

Pasfur

I was thinking he could use the ball valve to regulate water height in the skimmer. Then take the output of the skimmer and split it, pumping 1/2 back into the skimmer and the other half into the fuge. Add a venturi to the recirculating skimmer pump. This should improve the skimmer tremendously for about no cost. The return pump could come after the fuge.

Thoughts?

wake49

That is a good idea. Just make sure you can glue a baffle in place to seperate the fuge and pump housing.

marine666

Yeah if only nitrates were what we were trying to achieve i would have the best system in the world
This is what happens if you listen to bad lfs staff
Skimmer is part of a housing, at the bottom is the pump for the return and at the top of the housing it has the air fitting for the skimmer and the flow and return pipes, I seen some one make one into a sump once not very well tho had duck tape everywhere but he got it to work . next time I'm doing maintenance on my tank I'll strip it all apart and take some pic's. don't know what to do, mod it , make the biggest sump i can fit in the cabinet, biggest external filter i can fit in- just to hold l/r and media, want to hook to a UV fairly soon too .

marine666

Oh ment to say after adding the rock yesterday, I checked in the morning, reading's were ok, done another check tonight and nitrite had came up slightly must just be above 0 still blueish . ammonia still reading 0, so i take it there may have been a spike during the day and its leveling off again i'll check it tomorrow and if theres anything i'll do a 7gal water change that's about 12.5% water change, will that be big enough or should i do a 10-15gal water change. Thanks