biofilters for my fish?

Question

whats the difference

Answer 1

Some added info for you. Filtration takes place in three ways, mechanical, chemical, and biological.

In mechanical filtration, particles are physically removed. This is what the floss or foam pad in your filter does - it acts as a sieve and traps debris.

Chemical filtration makes use of carbon, zeolite, or resins bound to pads to attract certain chemicals based on their charges. Metals, chlorine, phosphate, toxins, and medication can all be removed by them, but once the media has attracted all it can, it needs to be replaced. In some types, an element with a stronger charge can replace one with a weaker chare, releasing the one with the weaker charge back into the tank water. Depending on the media, these can also be used to remove odor and colors (dyes, tannins from driftwood) from the water. Another type of chemical filtration is the use of chemicals to make free-floating particles adhere to one another, so they can be removed more easily by your mechanical filter.

Bilogical filtration (a biofilter) makes use of bacteria to convert ammonia (a toxic product from the waste of the fish and decomposition of food or dead organisms) into nitrite (also toxic), then to nitrate (which is relatively nontoxic in moderate amounts). The bacteria will live on the filter media, plus any substrate in the tank. It will also colonize the biowheels of the filter that make use of these. Once the bacteria that are a part of the nitrogen cycle have been established, they're in your tank forever, or until you use an antibiotic medication or other chemical (including chlorine and chloramine) that will kill them. Another type of filter that has excellent biological filtration is an undergravel filter, but these tend to have a build-up that forms under them, requiring periodic removal for cleaning. If used with a powerhead with a reversivle flow (so the water goes down the tubes and up through the gravel, they're less prone to clogging and still provide good biological filtration.

You should have some degree of mechanical and biological filtration in your tank at all times, and chemical filtration as necessary.


ADDITION: If you're asking which type of biofilter is best, it's the one which will provide the greatest surface area for bacteria to colonize. Although the "biowheel" is the one most frequently mentioned, don't discount the area provided by filters (such as the AquaClear models) that use a large foam block.

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Answer 2

A regular filter needs to be replaced, usually once a month. A bio-filter should NEVER be replaced, or even cleaned. It holds on to the different bacteria and other natural chemicals that the water needs, so that when you replace the regular filter you are not totally destroying the eco-system in your tank.

Answer 3

diffrence in what