Category Archives: Saltwater Filters
The Difference Between Saltwater Filters And Freshwater Filters – Part 2
This article is a follow up from a previous post entitled “The Difference Between Saltwater Filters And Freshwater Filters – Part 1“.
In the last post we discussed why it is not right to use a freshwater filter for a salt water fish tank. In this post, we will be discussing the three main filtration systems used in saltwater filters, which are Protein Skimming, Live Rock and Live Sand. I will refrain from making a recommendation on saltwater filters but I will be presenting the pros and cons of each so that you will be able to make a personal decision on which to use in your salt water fish tank.
Saltwater Filters #1: Protein Skimmers
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Protein Skimming is the process of removing any organic waste from the aquarium water before it even has the time to be broken down into ammonia. They do not break down the waste into any other forms. The way these saltwater filters function is by having the waste bond to bubbles inside the skimmer column and this is then removed into the skimmer’s collection cup. This way of filtering a salt water fish tank has a huge advantage over all the other ways, which is there is no end product such as nitrate. Choosing the correct size protein skimmer for your salt water fish tank will prove very effective in removing any organic waste from the water, giving you the pleasure of a tank that has a very slow nitrate build up. The immediate removal of organic waste also stabilizes the alkalinity of the water, maintaining calcium levels and encourages the growth of coraline algae which are excellent in preventing the outbreak of hair algae and cynobacterias. Then there is also the benefit of not having to do too many water changes. Having a good protein skimmer in your salt water fish tank reduces the need to change aquarium water too much, saving you big bucks on your water bill, not to mention the back ache that follows a water change. But even though it is very slow, nitrate and ammonia will eventually build up and this is the job of Live Rock and Live Sand.
Saltwater Filters #2: Live Rock and Live Sand
Live Rock and Live Sand are natural biological saltwater filters. The way they function is by breaking down ammonia into nitrite, then nitrite into nitrate and finally nitrate into nitrogen gas. The major difference between conventional biological filters and these is the end product they produce. Biological filters produce nitrate which still needs to be removed from the water manually. Live Sand and Live Rock produce nitrogen gas which leaves the aquarium naturally and is harmless to the aquatic life you have. 
When using Live Sand, it is recommended that you have a deep sand bed in order to maximize on the filtration that it produces. I must say here that Live Sand and especially Live Rock can be costly but in a future post, I will share with you some ways of saving up by “creating” your own Live Rock. So in summary, in my opinion well functioning saltwater filters for a healthy salt water fish tank will consist of a correct sized Protein Skimmer, Live Rock and Live Sand on a sand bed that’s 4″ to 6″ deep.
Examples Of Saltwater Filters (Click for details)
I hope this article has been useful in helping you decide on how to properly set up saltwater filters.
The Difference Between Saltwater Filters And Freshwater Filters – Part 1
This saltwater filters article is a follow up from a previous post entitled “Change Aquarium Water The Right Way“.
One of the most common questions that most people have when first setting up a salt water fish tank is about saltwater filters. What type of saltwater filters do I need? Can I use my freshwater filter? What’s the difference between saltwater filters and freshwater filters?
Answering these questions is quite complex so we’ll be taking it slowly in this article.
What Do Saltwater Filters Do
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For a freshwater aquarium filter, what we try to achieve is purity of the water. That’s easy enough, all we want is to get rid of large debris, waste and some minor chemicals.
In saltwater filters, what we want to achieve is stability, where the environment that we have created in the fish tank is as stable as possible without the need of human interference. We do this by trying to maintain some conditions such as:
- Keeping the nitrate level as close to zero as possible.
- Stabilize the alkaline and calcium levels.
- Minimize the presence of phosphates in the fish tank.
- Ensure ammonia and nitrates do not accumulate.
All these conditions need to be accomplished, you can’t just do one and ignore the others.
Why Must We Use Saltwater Filters?
Freshwater filters generally provide three types of filtration: mechanical, biological and chemical.
Mechanical filtration is done by every freshwater fish tank filters. This is where large sediments and waste is trapped by fish tank filter media when water flows through them. These waste matter will then have to be manually removed from the fish tank by cleaning the fish tank filter media. As long as they are not cleaned, the waste is still interacting with the tank water and this interaction will cause the release of phosphates into the water. If you still insist on doing mechanical filtration, the fish tank filter media needs to be cleaned DAILY.
Biological filters generally break down ammonia into nitrite, which is further reduced into nitrate. The nitrate accumulates in the water and is removed or at least reduced when you change aquarium water. This will not work for a salt water fish tank because we have to bring the nitrate levels to near zero and not have them accumulate at all. Biological filters cause an increase of nitrates and lowers alkaline levels and is very impractical for a salt water fish tank.
Chemical filtration is achieved using activated carbons. These activated carbons perform three functions that are critical for your salt water fish tank. Firstly, they absorb organic acids which will reduce the waste to nitrate. Secondly, they tint the water a little which reduced light penetration, something critical if you are housing corals. Finally, removing the organic acids will stabilize the alkaline levels in the water.
So what do we have here? We’ve decided that mechanical and biological filtration are not ideal saltwater filters in a salt water fish tank. We’ve also seen that chemical filters are important, but chemical filtration alone will not get the job done. What we do use in saltwater filters is something not seen in their freshwater counterparts.
Saltwater Filters (Click for details)
In the next post soon, we will be looking into the concepts of Protein Skimming, Live Rock and Live Sand.
The article continues in The Difference Between Saltwater Filters And Freshwater Filters – Part 2
