Bio Filtered Recirculating DWC

[senseless]

the carbon cant take anything out of the water. the carbon acts as a place for bennificial bacteria to colonize breakdown waste, ie fish poop, root pieces ect...

im high so bear with me, this is how a bio filter cleans your water.

fish poop, root pieces or any organic crap is all waste and all waste breaks down to AMMONIA, wich is harmfull to plants and fish and can be harmfull and kill in large amounts. after the AMMONIA decomposes some more it turnes into NITRITE, wich is harmfull to plants and fish and can kill i large amounts. after the NITRITE decomposes some more it turnes into NITRATES wich the best form of nitrogen for plants and easyest for them to absorb, but is still harmfull to fish and can kill them at high doses. but were not growing fish here are we!

if your still confused go to a aquarium website and look up the ammonia, nitrite, nitrate cycle and how biological filtration works.

 

[The Dopest]

i got the "bear with me im high" part(cause im high), are you sayin the carbon is beneficial in hydroponics? thanks for the post potna!

 

[Guest]

I get what he's saying...makes sense. However, most of that is probably getting picked up by the filter because carbon filters any organic material from water.

I was a level 2 regeneration technician for one of the worlds largest water filtration companies. They have bought out all of their competition, names like Stafford and Culligan.

Anyway...I regenerated the polymer resins that are used to make de-ionized water filtration systems. ALL of our water systems used a carbon filter to remove organic material from the water prior to it interacting with our resins because organics foul the resins which are desinged to remove things like calcium, magnesium, iron, silica, etc. through a chemical process where one type of resin produces a hydrogen molecule in exchange for ions in the water, and another exchanges a hydroxide molecule for ions in the water (impurities) and the resulting run off is Hydrogen + Hydroxide = pure H2O!!

Blah....so carbon picks up all organic material. That's it's job in water filtration. It will also pick up things like chlorine, but too much chlorine will destroy the carbon's ability to work also.

Water filtration is interesting stuff, but there are so many that understand more than I do. I just know how to build and service the systems top to bottom including regenerating the resins used in the process. I'm not one of the chemists that came up with the stuff.

 

[payn4school]

So definetly no carbon. Barley sounds good. What about something to help buffer PH, preferably down? Anything that will act as a good buffer? I looked at the buffers for fish and they are way too high. I gotta find something cause usin all this ph down just doesnt feel right.

Payn

 

[Jesusbuiltmygro]

bio filter

bio filter

Hey man, yea I've done this for my water rez on a soil grow. It was basically a very easy way to keep the water recycling and healthy. I would make guana tea by using foot panty hose that you get for free in the womans shoe section. Then put the guano tea bag right in the back of the filter.

I just took out the charcol filter and left in the bio filter. In mine they were two seperate filters.

I think the principle on a bio filter is just that it is a medium for beneficial bacteria to grow on. Hence why they say not to wash it, however if you tank gets bad enough you should because it builds up slime. Oh yea I use them in my fish tanks also.



I agree carbon is likely bad for the organics UNLESS you have a lot of decomposing organic material which needs to be removed. Of course after a few weeks the carbon will be overcome and become a medium for bacteria also. The bio filter part of these system is not made out of carbon at all.

You may simply have a filter that has both parts built together. I beleive the bio filter was little more than a plastic mesh screen thing. I'm not sure of the exact material, but it's very simple.

You wouldn't notice the carbon reducing nutrients because first off I doubt it filter out much nutrients and secondly it would just lower the PPM probably instead of creating a deficiency.

Beneficial bacteria simply happens in healthy water conditions. Technologies like bio filters or lava rocks are nothing more than a way to create more surface area for bacteria. Pumping oxygenated air through almost any medium will result in benecifical bacteria growth.

Just look at fish tanks as an example of this. Fish tank stones are not porous yet with good tank conditions you hardly even need water changes other than evaporation. My tank goes months without water change yet I don't have the tank lined with lavastones, just one tiny bio filter. I think the bacteria more or less clings to most everything in the tank although this is not popular opinion I think its common sense. I'd guess the smoother the surface the less the bacteria, but certianly smooth surfaces do not invalidate beneficial bacteria. It's just a simple mater of surface area for bacteria to live.

Porous materials like lava stone also can add an extra oxygenating feature.

 

[bartender187]

Read through this thread and still a bit confused. Not sure how this thing increases oxygen.. If it filters our pathogens, will it filter out beneficials?

 

[HinduKushed_423]

well bartender it will not filter out the beneficial bacteria , but rather provide a home for them, and the air come in from a few ways , a sponge filter would be a good one for single bucket dwc or even in recirc systems. as for how air gets into the water and to the bacteria ya got a sponge with hole in center then a lift tube that has a pat of it with a bunch of holes drilled around it of which tha part that is in the spunge has all the holes.

like this tutorials shows http://www.hagblomfoto.com/article_spongefilter.htm
this can also be done up the same way except ya use an air pump to create water flow like shown here
http://www.firsttankguide.net/sponge.php

 

[Sleestak420]

still confused about this

still confused about this

If my res is light proof, or using non organic nutes, is this still a feasable option for my setup?

still confused if this would work for my little bubbleponic system.

http://www.icmag.com/ic/showthread.php?t=69435

maybe this is the wrong type to use?
http://www.petsmart.com/product/index.jsp?productId=2753028

heard different arguements on the subject.
sorry about the novice questions.

 

[hardseed]

good roots

 

[buddinh00d]

is anyone using a canister filter? I've seen some with built in powerheads and was thinking of putting the can filter inline on the supply to the chiller issue is it looks like the tubing wont work well to fit on the 1/2" barbed connectors

 

[jtk707]

Sweet setup

 

[little-soldier]

It seems all the filters wallmart has for both models have carbon inside. So my guess is dont use the filter and obviously the carbon filter. But then again whats the point in having it.Oh! look at the beautiful waterfall lol

 

[cracker420]

does the filter remove the nutes?

 

[Jbarth]

Bump!

The Tetra Model "Whisper PF10" comes with the bio filter separate from the carbon filter. Would it be better to leave out the carbon filter and only use the bio filter to grow and house beneficial bacteria?

This would be for a RDWC system.

Thanks in advance

 

[supermanlives]

i used plastic bio balls once. it did the filtering and airation worked like a charm using teas and ej.

 

[one Q]

not sure if this has been said, but make sure you toss the Carbon from the cartridge itll do a number on your PPMs.

Now, if you filled that cartridge with some BIO pellets of some kind...

 

[Jbarth]

Im wondering if it would be better to just use a seperate 5 gallon bucket and use it alone to "brew" some of the good BB like making your own tea system and then after you get them built up and activated add a cup or two to the res system for the plants?

This would as opposed to using the bio filter actually in the res tank that feeds the plants containers?

Thank One Q...It has been mentioned in this thread but the jury is still out I think as some say it will not affect PPM and some say it will?

I was thinking to remove the charcoal from the little bagie filter anyhow so I could fill it with something else like you mentioned with the little balls

 

[Jbarth]

Could I empty out the carbon from the carbon filter and refill it with say powderd Pirahna and Tarantula and Great White and then let all that "brew" inside the well of the bio filter?

If so what dosage would I put in the little filter baggie and could one use Voodoo juice as well...maybe even some aquashoeld and have all that brew together?

 

[abitavenger]

those roots look gorgeous!

if I start up my hydro system again ill def be doing this

 

[one Q]

I wouldnt put nutes or additives in the biofilter. Bio pellets of some kind.