20 replies to this topic

[tywonreef]

hi, excellent bio media for malawi or tang. cichlids would include coral pieces (possibly the cheapest, massive bio area & has the benefits of acting as a ph buffer). alternatives would include Eheim ehfisubstrat pro (the best, but very expensive), seachem matrix or similar. The Coral, Eheim & matrix all offer a large enough pore structure to actually allow colonization by nitrifying bacteria, many medias offered actually have too fine a pore structure to allow this bacteria to impregnate, so only the external areas are used(this includes ceramic, but do not confuse this with the siporax bio noodles which is another quality option). Bio balls should not be used as a bio media in a submersed situation as there effectiveness is greately reduced, they are designed to allow a fine sheet of water to curve over all the round surfaces such as in a wet dry filter, this allows for a maximum amount of oxygen exchange & a massive amount of bacterial function, once submersed they become a peice of plastic with a lot of unused space between them. Bio balls will still work to a degree, but are better used as a coarse mechanical media.