Fluidized bed reactor

[bond007069]

Has anyone out there played around with a fluidized bed reactor? I was reading The Marine Reef Aquarium Handbook by Dr. Goldstein, and i am kinda hooked on the idea of making one. I guess all you need is clear PVC pipe, a smaller pipe that shoots water to the base of the unit and a tube back to the tank and a simple powerhead, oh ya and some silica sand. What do you guys think? could that increase the "good bacteria" levels, bacterial filtration, would the project be worth it. 8O :roll:

 

[GSchiemer]

You don't need additional sites for bacteria in a typical reef aquarium with live rock. The fluidized bed filter is unnecessary. It may even be detrimental in that it will produce nitrates very effiently. If this were a fish-only aquarium with minimal natural decorations (something I don't recommend) then this type of filter can be beneficial.

Greg

 

[Mouse]

I had one once, damn thing kept getting blocked, and then when it did work id allways find a nice pile of silica sand freshly ejected into the tank. Not worth the bother even if they were any good.

 

[Mogo]

I bought one a while ago for my sw tank. Then I got to thinking about the negatives as Greg points out. I took it off and put it on a fw tank. Working ok I guess.