Why do I need to add bio balls to my filter?
What do bio balls do?
Bio balls provide a place for all the good nitrifying bacteria you need in your tank to live. The surface of each bio ball is designed to have as much surface area as possible so the bacteria have as much as possible to cling to. This is why they have grooves and spaces, as this allows more bacteria to cling to the ball, making these more effective compared to simple spheres.
They will also keep the PH balance at neutral for a long time and can absorb and dissolve poisonous ions. Overall a very efficient way of improving water quality!
How many Bio balls do I need for my tank?
The general rule of thumb for Bio balls is 10l of bio balls to 450l of water. However, this all depends on the size of your external filter canister or sump. If you are using a sump tank feel free to use as many as you like as these will not harm your tank as long as they are cared for correctly.
How do I use bio balls?
Bio balls are used to hold the beneficial bacteria from your tank and not for removing waste products from the system. We recommend that these are used after the water flows through filter foam as the foam will catch and remove any debris from the water meaning these will not get stuck in the groves of the Bio balls.
If these are placed before the foams in the system, or no foams are used, the debris that is caught in the bio balls will have a negative effect in your tank. This will cause the Nitrite level to rise which can cause your tank to crash and re-cycle.
How do I clean bio balls?
To clean your bio balls, you will need to rinse these in your fish tank water. This is to protect the beneficial bacteria that have built up on the surface of the ball. If these are washed in any other water the bacteria will be killed off and this will affect your tank when you replace these.
We would recommend that these are rinsed when a water change is performed on your fish tank so that any waste debris that is not caught by the layer of filter foam is removed from the bio balls.
When rinsing the bio balls, do not scrub. This will remove all the good bacteria that have built up on the balls when rinsing the water should begin to go cloudy. This will be the dirt coming away from the bio balls. We would advise repeating a couple of times to ensure the waste is fully removed but the beneficial bacterial is still in place.
If you’re looking to buy bio balls for your fish tank, then we suggest using All Pond Solutions Plastic Bio Balls.
