Running Bio Pellets for the first time

Memphis118 · Apr 19, 2017

Hey all,

I recently picked up a IM minimax reactor, and plan on running bio pellets in it. This Reactor fits perfecting in the 2nd slot for my IM 30 L tank, so I figured it would be a good addition.

I had a few questions:

1. Bio pellets requires a skimmer, does it matter if my ghost skimmer is on the opposite side of the reactor? My ghost skimmer is on the 2nd slot, on the right side, and I plan to put the Reactor no the left side.

2. I read that over dosing the bio pellets can be harmful to the tank, should I start off with 1/4 the dose recommendation? It's 1 cup for every 50 gallons, should I be doing about 1/4 cup at first?

I have a few SPS and LPS, and don't want to kill off anything, so any help would be great.

Thanks

BlackLabelCorals · Apr 19, 2017

Have the skimmer immediately after the reactor, or best is to have the output of the reactor straight to the inlet of the skimmer pump.

Start with 1/4th the dose. It takes about 6 weeks to fully colonize the bacteria so do not add any extra until then. They work well, almost too well so I doubt you will need to add more. I had 15 fish in a 80G total volume system and couldn't read my nitrates or phosphates. I fed SUPER heavy too.

My SPS suffered from it because they stripped all the nutrients. But you can always dose to bring up nutrients as needed.

Memphis118 · Apr 19, 2017

BlackLabelCorals said:
Have the skimmer immediately after the reactor, or best is to have the output of the reactor straight to the inlet of the skimmer pump.

Start with 1/4th the dose. It takes about 6 weeks to fully colonize the bacteria so do not add any extra until then. They work well, almost too well so I doubt you will need to add more. I had 15 fish in a 80G total volume system and couldn't read my nitrates or phosphates. I fed SUPER heavy too.

My SPS suffered from it because they stripped all the nutrients. But you can always dose to bring up nutrients as needed.

Thanks for the advice. I will def take it slow. Given how the IM30l tank is set up, it's almost impossible to have the skimmer and reactor in the same area. The ghost skimmer i have is in the right side 2nd slot, and the reactor is gonna be in the 2nd slot left side.

Would that be a problem?