Is anyone still using the original biocube filter

[Grimreefer89]

I just started cycling my tank so i have time but im still a little lost about what filters i need to run. I plan to buy an intank media basket but in the mean time will i be ok using the original filter and filter floss? Do i need to buy bio balls if im using the original filters? I currently have base rock (no live rock) and live sand that i rinsed very throughly. Any advice would be much appreciated!

 

[Flippers4pups]

Bump

 

[Grimreefer89]

i appreciate the bump flippers! im just gonna assume everyone dumped the original filter.

 

[Thub]

Personally, I took one look at the biocube filter design and just said no. I 3d printed my own filter basket stack for half of chamber 2 (good justification for having the printer ) , and plan on using the second half as a fuge. It's been filled for ~7 hours now though so I can't report any amazing successes yet.

That said, my fiancee's coworker has had her biocube as a FOWLR system for like 5 years, completely stock, and it apparently runs well.

 

[Katrina71]

I use them + Intank with chemipure blue. I also use a ceramic media bag in the bottom. (That needs to be changed out when it gets too funky btw)

 

[mpatient]

I never used them, and took the 3rd chamber sponge out as well. I used the InTank rack, plus the InTank Fuge from the onset. Never had any issues.

 

[Grimreefer89]

I appreciate the advice guys i went ahead and got the the intank media basket... it definitely does a better job forcing water through the filters

 

[Grimreefer89]

I never used them, and took the 3rd chamber sponge out as well. I used the InTank rack, plus the InTank Fuge from the onset. Never had any issues.

What all filter media do you use with the intank setup? Ive got filter floss and carbon and probably gonna add purigen if my nitrates dont drop enough with water changes?

 

[mpatient]

What all filter media do you use with the intank setup? Ive got filter floss and carbon and probably gonna add purigen if my nitrates dont drop enough with water changes?

I use floss on top, next Purigen and then Chemipure Elite. I also have the InTank refugium with Cheato and some rubble rock. I did not add the chemical filtration until well after the cycle.

 

[Grimreefer89]

i appreciate it mpaient... ill probably do the same thing.

 

[AltitudeAquarium]

I just started cycling my tank so i have time but im still a little lost about what filters i need to run. I plan to buy an intank media basket but in the mean time will i be ok using the original filter and filter floss? Do i need to buy bio balls if im using the original filters? I currently have base rock (no live rock) and live sand that i rinsed very throughly. Any advice would be much appreciated!

I have the 29 gallon biocube. In the heater section, I added media balls to use for bacteria. Sorry, I don't remember the name. I got them used. As others stated, in the second compartment, I have chaeto, carbon and filter floss on top. I hang a media bag of phosguard in the flow from the first compartment to the second. I use a piece of open celled foam in the third compartment to protect the return pump from chaeto debris. In the first and second compartments, I clean the detritus when I do a deep cleaning and water change. So, it is not the original. I bought the aquarium used. It did not have some of the components.

 

[rfgonzo]

I have a 32 biocube running strong for 5 years now in my kids bedroom growing coral SPS and LPS with all stock parts. Yes thats right, (all stock) even stock LED's. The 3 chamber thing is still in there but I only use filter floss changed 1 time per week. Bioload is spot on and runs better than my 300 gallon LOL. I might do a water change 2 or 3 time a year. Stability is the key.

 

[brownjoshua475]

I just started cycling my tank so i have time but im still a little lost about what filters i need to run. I plan to buy an intank media basket but in the mean time will i be ok using the original filter and filter floss? Do i need to buy bio balls if im using the original filters? I currently have base rock (no live rock) and live sand that i rinsed very throughly. Any advice would be much appreciated!

I have a biocube 32 gallon in the mean time you will be fine I wouldn't use the bioballs at all I would use seachem matrix in media bag or other stuff. For my setup I have the intank media basket with filter floss on top then second I have a bag of chemi pure elite then u can add purigen or some other chemical filtration. Then next to the media basket I have my protein skimmer which is a tunze 9001

 

[Tom Reefer]

I just started cycling my tank so i have time but im still a little lost about what filters i need to run. I plan to buy an intank media basket but in the mean time will i be ok using the original filter and filter floss? Do i need to buy bio balls if im using the original filters? I currently have base rock (no live rock) and live sand that i rinsed very throughly. Any advice would be much appreciated!

Hi Katrina, you really don’t need any of that. Def. not bio balls, over time they collect nutrients. Just allow your rock to be your biological filter. I’ve had all size aquariums and have been in the hobby for 25 years. I have a new YouTube channel that might help you, or you can subscribe and post questions there or here directly to me. My YouTube is https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCu6_QDF0xARKINFLFfVjM0g

 

[Katrina71]

Hi Katrina, you really don’t need any of that. Def. not bio balls, over time they collect nutrients. Just allow your rock to be your biological filter. I’ve had all size aquariums and have been in the hobby for 25 years. I have a new YouTube channel that might help you, or you can subscribe and post questions there or here directly to me. My YouTube is https://m.youtube.com/channel/UCu6_QDF0xARKINFLFfVjM0g

Thank you.

 

[Grimreefer89]

its amazing how many different was a filter system can work. rfgonzo how are you able to grow them with the stock leds i thought they were to weak?

 

[Thub]

Keep in mind that a lot of the coral we grow van live 50 or 100 feet underwater, where they're not getting anything like the kind of light they would in a typical SPS tank. They probably rely more heavily on suspended food, and/or grow more slowly. Also, given that the pigments we like in corals are usually some form of UV protection, lower light corals might be expected to be less colorful than heavily lit ones would be.

The high light approach is aimed at growing corals quickly, and with a high success rate, but a skilled aquarist can take advantage of the natural adaptability of corals to fill in weak spots (low light) in the overall approach.
Mr. Gonzo has also shown the all too often ignored lesson that more and better equipment doesn't guarantee success, and the lack thereof doesn't guarantee failure. A lesson I need to be reminded of from time to time.
All of that said, I think the stock biocube filter pads are at best passable, and given some research, you can come up with better products to fill that space for less money.
I'm using some seachem matrix, a bag of chemipure, and some cheap rolled filter pad stuff that I can replace every day. For the stuff I use, replacing the pad every day will cost like $3.25 a month, and should work pretty well for nutrient export alongside weekly small water changes. (Those two things are in place of a skimmer)