Taking the HOB filter off my tank tomorrow?

Decoda96 · Mar 6, 2017

Hey guys! Title pretty much says it all but I wanted to get some insight.. new to the reefing community but my tank has been running with no (obvious) issues for a month now! I have a 10gal nano that I water change every Friday after class (very consistent in my schedule) 16lbs of live sand and at least 10lbs of live rock (I'll be picking up another good size piece soon too) from my research it seems like my HOB is becoming "useless" persay.. I was looking up information about replacing the cartridges (aqueon hob) but apparently that could cycle my tank? Could I do away with all the excessivness? I just purchased a 250gph powerhead and depending on the movements, may pick up another power head. Should I just leave the hob empty in the corner flowing some more water but no cartridge? I know there's a couple opinions out there already, just trying to here an answer for my experience personally! I do have coral goals so this isn't a fowlr! If it matters I currently have a fluval 6.5w LED above the tank!

Reef2zach · Mar 6, 2017

Hob filters are more or less junk imo. If possible maybe research HOB overflows and see if you can fit a sump. Depending on what type of corals your trying to grow your going to want to run some gfo since sps can be so finicky with phosphate swings that are alot easier to have in small tanks

cloak · Mar 6, 2017

Like you mentioned above running the HOB filter without the media might be the best option. If anything the flow it provides is definitely a good thing. When you do your water changes though and really stir things up you could always put some filter floss in it to help polish the water for you. Once everything clears up go ahead and discard the media until the next time. Having the option of running chemical filters such as GAC or GFO is definitely a plus too. GL.

smh254 · Mar 6, 2017

Maybe swap out the HOB filter for HOB skimmer.

Decoda96 · Mar 6, 2017

Thanks guys!! i'm thinking im gonna try the powerheads and see how the water handles. the hobby has got me hooked. ill definetly keep ya'll posted!

Decoda96 · Mar 6, 2017

Reef2zach said:
Hob filters are more or less junk imo. If possible maybe research HOB overflows and see if you can fit a sump. Depending on what type of corals your trying to grow your going to want to run some gfo since sps can be so finicky with phosphate swings that are alot easier to have in small tanks

I was going to build a sump with my extra 10 gallon tank, but for the price is it really worth that over my weekly water changes?

Reef2zach · Mar 6, 2017

Decoda96 said:
I was going to build a sump with my extra 10 gallon tank, but for the price is it really worth that over my weekly water changes?

I like sumps for hiding all the extra stuff like (heaters, reactors, skimmers, etc). IMO a skimmer is a must.

Decoda96 · Mar 7, 2017

I'm so mixed!!! Is there any affordable skimmers for nanos? My plan is to buy a 55gal over the summer since I'm loving this little one, and keep my 10gal as my QT. If I were to buy a skimmer would that highly reduce the water change maintenance?

lion king · Mar 7, 2017

HOB filters are not junk, it's just how you utilize them and what you put in them. You can customize them with a media basket(I believe intank sells them), or customize your own. I run seachem matrix biomedia, chemipure or whatever other chemical media you choose, and a filter pad or even a poly filter. I've run them on sumpless systems with the proper amount of live rock and flow they can be just as efficient as any other filter choice. Depending on your bioload you can also add a hob protein skimmer. It is also important to understand the water flow inside the filter and make sure it's diverted and flows efficiently through all your media, this is really what makes the difference between good and junk.

saltyfilmfolks · Mar 7, 2017

If you hob is full of funk and detritus constantly leave it on. That's the stuff they most of us wait to rot and have bacteria break Down so it goes to the skimmer. A mechanical filter is actually very efficient on a small tank of done correctly.

Decoda96 · Mar 7, 2017

My filter cartridge is covered in browning muck.. if I were to take that out and only use it for adding copper, would I just add the cartridge for a night right after water changes? Sorry if that sounds dumb

saltyfilmfolks · Mar 7, 2017

Decoda96 said:
My filter cartridge is covered in browning muck..

yea get rid of that, Thats actually set up for fresh water.

Decoda96 said:
if I were to take that out and only use it for adding copper,

To make a QT, yes, but ceramic media would be easier and you can put them anywhere for in case of emergency. You have to take out the live rock and sand for copper.

Decoda96 said:
Sorry if that sounds dumb

Not at all.

For saltwater you really just need floss or a strainer(filter), in fresh water you add media to be colonized by bacteria as fresh does not have live rock to do it.(bio filter)
Carbon can be put anywhere.

simo · Mar 7, 2017

I just got a fluval c4 for ny 45 gallon. . And thats a good hob .

Decoda96 · Mar 7, 2017

Thanks for all the help guys! I'll be setting the tank up tonight with the powerhead and will be posting some exciting pics!

O'l Salty · Mar 8, 2017

Decoda96 said:
I'm so mixed!!! Is there any affordable skimmers for nanos? My plan is to buy a 55gal over the summer since I'm loving this little one, and keep my 10gal as my QT. If I were to buy a skimmer would that highly reduce the water change maintenance?

I'm using the Tunze 9001. Great little skimmer. I'd keep the HOB filter and use it for flow. If you need to run any media (carbon,gfo) you can put it in there. I put floss in mind when I'm doing a tank clean up and get all that crap out of the tank. I don't really know what a skimmer does but if you smell that cup one time you'll know you don't want that **** in your tank.

Andrewalex11 · Mar 8, 2017

Off of personal opinion and some research, you might not need to run a skimmer at all on a 10 gallon tank so long as you are keeping to a once a week water change ritual. As for a sump in my personal opinion go for it if you can, space is scarce in a nano tank why not try to maximize it if you can. And in regards to HOB filters, its all in how they are being utilized. Some modify aqua clears into HOB Refugiums, it's really how creative you can get. I don't think you'll need much more flow unless you want to pick up a weaker powerhead to place on the adjacent side or something. I ran 525 GPH in my 10 gallon and it was beyond overkill not one life form in the tank enjoyed it except maybe some GSP's now I've cut my flow in less than half and everything is great.

Keep it simple.

Vaughn17 · Mar 8, 2017

You don't need to run a skimmer on a 10 gallon tank. IMO, those who have not run HOB filters on reef tanks should not be saying that they don't work. I've run three small tanks (40, 38, and 20) for 4 years with no sumps, no skimmers, no crashes, just HOB Aqueon filters. Once corals start growing and a tank's bioload increases it is very easy to do. Of course, you shouldn't add many fish until coral starts growing.

Don't even need to do a lot of water changes. Besides, mechanical filtration, HOB's provide oxygen and flow. O2 is especially critical in a small tank. I've attached some 2016 photos of my 40 breeder

.

Mandrew · Mar 8, 2017

Vaughn17 said:
You don't need to run a skimmer on a 10 gallon tank. IMO, those who have not run HOB filters on reef tanks should not be saying that they don't work. I've run three small tanks (40, 38, and 20) for 4 years with no sumps, no skimmers, no crashes, just HOB Aqueon filters. Once corals start growing and a tank's bioload increases it is very easy to do. Of course, you shouldn't add many fish until coral starts growing.

Don't even need to do a lot of water changes. Besides, mechanical filtration, HOB's provide oxygen and flow. O2 is especially critical in a small tank. I've attached some 2016 photos of my 40 breeder

.

What did you use in your HOB filters then? I'm running two new small tanks with hob filters now so I'm curious.

Decoda96 · Mar 8, 2017

Andrewalex11 said:
Off of personal opinion and some research, you might not need to run a skimmer at all on a 10 gallon tank so long as you are keeping to a once a week water change ritual. As for a sump in my personal opinion go for it if you can, space is scarce in a nano tank why not try to maximize it if you can. And in regards to HOB filters, its all in how they are being utilized. Some modify aqua clears into HOB Refugiums, it's really how creative you can get. I don't think you'll need much more flow unless you want to pick up a weaker powerhead to place on the adjacent side or something. I ran 525 GPH in my 10 gallon and it was beyond overkill not one life form in the tank enjoyed it except maybe some GSP's now I've cut my flow in less than half and everything is great.

Keep it simple.

Nice to here from someone who had a 10!! So I just bought a 250gph powerhead to boost my tank up to 370 gph.. I'm hoping this to be a sweet spot!!