# Does Bio Rio reduce canister flow rate?



## lanceduffy (Jul 15, 2010)

I have Bio Rio in my 2213 and have been wondering if it reduces flow rate over the eheim or other bio media. Of course I could answer this for myself but I am not going to destroy my biofilter to find out. Has anyone done any tests regarding the effects of ADA Bio Rio vs other bio media on canister filter flow rate?

As supplemental information, I run my 2213 with almost 4 liters of Bio Rio. I have removed the basket and added eheim lattices to the filter which lets me get more media in. In addition to the pump in the 2213 I run a Blueline HD 10 on the discharge side. I supply this and return it with lily pipes on my 20 gallon. The flow is nice and not as disruptive as you might think by just looking at the equipment specs. 

Regards.


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## JustLikeAPill (Oct 9, 2006)

For what it is worth, i use three liters in my 2236 and the flow (when reasonably clean) is almost the same as when empty according to the bucket test (timing how long i takes to fill a five gallon bucket. There is just a few seconds difference so it is practically none.

I dont let my canister go six months between cleanings though like some people do. All biomedia will reduce flow once it is clogged with muck.


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## lanceduffy (Jul 15, 2010)

thanks Pill! I do remember that this stuff is very light. Perhaps that helps it resist waerflow.


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## cino (May 1, 2011)

JustLikeAPill said:


> For what it is worth, i use three liters in my 2236 and the flow (when reasonably clean) is almost the same as when empty according to the bucket test (timing how long i takes to fill a five gallon bucket. There is just a few seconds difference so it is practically none.
> 
> I dont let my canister go six months between cleanings though like some people do. All biomedia will reduce flow once it is clogged with muck.


Hi Everyone:

To get the most out of our Eheims "I use what they rec., the Efhestrat Pro". I do find the regular Efhestrat inhibits flow as does the lava rock. On my regular Eheims I rinse the substrate out in used tank water about every four months at best, kind of just a quick 1-2 rinsing. On the wet/dries I maybe rinse the media maybe once yearly as they constantly flush themselves out by their wave action. I can not remember ever having a build-up of any kind in my filters. It all seems to disolve and my filter walls squeak if you rub your finger on them, NO SLIME what-so-ever. If I were to pull the media on any one of our filters it would look brand new. I also have a super sensative nose and I never get an odor from our Eheims either. I do not know what this media you are talking about is, guess I better go visit ADA's site , but I do like the round ball type medias best in terms of flow-through, surface area. I use the Eheim media in our Marineland C-Series canisters as well and they too perform flawlessly.

My other favorite filter media is just plain SPONGES. We have a pair of big Rena filters, probably my second "least favorite filter" (I am personally familiar with) Fluval/Hagen/Whisper but those Renas can move water provided you do not actually use regular filter media in them. I use them for "trapping" on occassion but not full time and NOT FOR BIOLOGICAL PURPOSES. Their square flimsy media baskets have sharp, deep corners allowing for dead spots so I would not recommend using regular filter media in them of any kind. Heck, I would not recommend them for biological filtration at all.

Fluval takes the cake in the totally impractical department however. They had some good things but they had to go and mess them up!

It is sad about Hagen as they use to make a nice standard use product line. I have three older Fluval 304s but since they redesigned their canisters and power filters, none of them are what they use to be. We had a pair of 205s and a 305. "HAD" is the operative word as they went back to the store to be resold real quick. The 304s are still around here however.

As far as filters and media goes, THERE IS NO SUCH THING AS TOO MUCH BIOLOGICAL FILTRATION PROVIDED IT COMES FROM "ONE SOURCE". Using 2 or more filters to perform biological function creates what Robert Fenner (Wet Web Media and author of the Conscientious Marine Aquarist among other books) calls a "biological bottleneck". I've seen this happen on a few occassions where the tank itself becomes a "biological battle ground" between the two or more competing filters resulting in sudden algal outbreaks via nitrate explosions off the charts. It is always best for anyone to buy the biggest biological filter possible. Beware of filters allowing for bypass such as both Fluvals (Hagen) and Renas (Aquarium Pharm.). Try to get the largest media basket type filters you can afford. While I do not like the Marineland intakes and outputs, they are hands-down my favorite budget bio-filter and I have had a lot of filters in my 40+ years in the hobby.

As far as medias go, plastic medias can not do what ceramic or sintered glass can do in terms of trapping and holding. It is unnatural and lets face it, plastic is plastic. You want as rough a texture as possible so the media can develop beneficial bacteria colonies. Flow-through translates into oxygen which feeds this bacteria so easy flow is essential, especially so when you are talking about enclosed filtration systems.

Good Luck


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