Retro Reefer
Slow and steady wins the race!
Agree with everyone remove the canister, nothing wrong with running the hob filter just for some carbon and floss to catch the large particles.. just change out the floss every few days or as needed.
Help please! Will a protein skimmer help me?
- Thread starter ehays1973
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alex.mccann99
Active Member
As others have said, the canister filter is a Nitrate factory. They are typically for fresh water tanks. Your liverock and sand are a source of filtration, from the bacteria that become established. You need to also consider how much and how often you're feeding. Without a skimmer, feeding too much can be a big source of your Nitrates. FYI, Sand Sifting Starfish are great for making your sand "look good", but actually eat up the healthy beneficial microfauna in your sand bed that you want. It's one of those things you learn and have to decide. Do I want pretty sand, or a beneficial live sand that helps in the filtering of your tank and is home to beneficial critters, worms, amphipods and copepods.
Dumaurier7
Well-Known Member
I disagree, the function of the filter is to remove solids of all types , organic or not. All the large aquariums use some form of active filtration for a reason, you just need to ensure your feeding routines are properly set up to prevent food getting into the filter suction or tank overflow. I use a Fluval FX6 on my tank and my nitrates are always undetectable. Even if maintenance wasn’t being done in a timely manner the ATS or De-nitrator would easily eliminate any nitrates, I use both!
