DIY "Anoxic Filtration System" eliminates nitrates? Anyone tried this?

[Shaun's Discus]

Can I ask if there is any actual comparative data to this regard? Not that I disaggree, quite the opposite I keep doing big daily water changes to my growing discus. My plan is to keep trialling the cenobiotic baskets in the outdoor ponds for another year or so and if satisfactory apply it to the tank housing discus that by then should have attained most of their growth. Just there appears to be a fair bit of interest over here in Italy in the anoxic system and if it could be applied to discus still in the growth phase (as most folk over here purchase discus in the 2-3" bracket and are not keen on big daily water changes). Thanks

I'm not an expert on discus, only been keeping them for not even a year. The AFS wil not keep nitrates at zero over a weekly timeframe. I grew out my discus from about 1.5" in size. All of them except one is over 5 now. I attain the fast growth to the fact I was doing daily 50% plus w/cs for at least the first 6 months since I had them. The tank was almost always at zero No3. You can't achieve zero No3 with an AFS for the growout stage. These are my first hand experiences.

[sayid]

I thought to give an update on my AFS which has been running for 5 weeks and my nitrate is below 5 ppm , today i added a second sun sun filter helper to my system but this one has a plastic colander ( it is a plastic 2 liter container which i bought from k mart and i drilled lots of holes in it ) the reason behind the change from stainless steel to plastic was the POSSIBLE interference in migration of charged ammonia from outside towards the laterite in the middle of the basket .
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So now i have 2 canister filter with 2 sun sun helper for 500 l (125 g ) with 10 adult discus ,i will keep update as the AFS matures.

[Paul Sabucchi]

I'm not an expert on discus, only been keeping them for not even a year. The AFS wil not keep nitrates at zero over a weekly timeframe. I grew out my discus from about 1.5" in size. All of them except one is over 5 now. I attain the fast growth to the fact I was doing daily 50% plus w/cs for at least the first 6 months since I had them. The tank was almost always at zero No3. You can't achieve zero No3 with an AFS for the growout stage. These are my first hand experiences.

Thanks, and wishing you a Happy Easter, I am doing the same as you thinking that for a first time discus keeper BB and big daily wc keeps the variables to a minimum (as often stated on this forum) and at the same time evaluate the feasability of implementing it for the discus once grown. On the other hand the local forums over here tend to recomend tanks with fine sand, bogwood, some plants, peat in the filter, low pH and KH water with A LOT LESS water changes (like 30% once a week!). To be honest I am still waiting to see proof that this way young discus grow anywhere as well but it explains why folks over here are interested. Personally I think that untill the factors that limit discus growth are clearly identified it is best to stick to the tried and tested

[Shaun's Discus]

One thing is certain, the AFS keeps phosphates at zero and controls algae and slime. Keeping the tank clean is a much easier task with the AFS. Over a week No3 is between 5 to 10ppm, to me this is very acceptable. So far I have not let it go past a full 7 days without a w/c so I cannot say whether or not the AFS will keep the No3 buffering at that level if I let it go longer without w/c. At this current point I am not willing to test or push it further. The AFS also keeps water clarity prisitine. I used to use purigen, this is definately not required with the AFS.



Latest look at the tank.

[farebox]

Hey Shaun tank looking very nice. I'm doing about the same on my 125 gallon also, doing water every 5-6 days, mainly to siphon debris off the the bottom(bare bottom tank). Today did an NO3 test= looks like it's below 5.0 ppm, but not 0. So all is good running this AFS.

[marinum]

One thing is certain, the AFS keeps phosphates at zero and controls algae and slime. Keeping the tank clean is a much easier task with the AFS. Over a week No3 is between 5 to 10ppm, to me this is very acceptable. So far I have not let it go past a full 7 days without a w/c so I cannot say whether or not the AFS will keep the No3 buffering at that level if I let it go longer without w/c. At this current point I am not willing to test or push it further. The AFS also keeps water clarity prisitine. I used to use purigen, this is definately not required with the AFS.



Latest look at the tank.

Excellent with AFS the advantages are there, we can only continue to experiment saving life for our beloved discus

[Ditofa]

Hi guys can someone post a picture of catty litter they’re using

[farebox]

This is what I used: https://www.walmart.com/ip/Special-K...25-Lb/10293705
Also found some Laterite on Ebay: https://www.ebay.com/itm/Laterite-fo...53.m2749.l2648
Hope this will help you out.

[Ditofa]

Thanks I found that this kitty litter is mushy and dissolve

[Paul Sabucchi]

Try to find "sepiolite" based litter (just the name of a type of clay). On a different note although I have been using Biohome in (one of three trays of) one of my canister filters for about 4 years, I thought that it was a good quality biomedia but that it encouraged de-nitrifying bacteria was just wishful thinking by the seller (Pondguru), but maybe not!
https://youtu.be/eZM5Lu6p2k0

Ok it may not be experimented with laboratory standards, and in a sump rather than a canister. Nonetheless the guy is not sponsored by the manifacurer and is quite thorough.

[Luke in Phoenix]

Hi Luke just bought same clay litter strut washing it and it looks like mushy substance do you think it’s good

I've seen a couple of people say that it turns to mush while the majority of people say that it works great. Are you rinsing the cat litter some how to get rid of the super tiny and powdery particles?

If so, maybe people are just getting some bad batches of the stuff? You could try another store of the same litter to see if you just got a bad bag. It definitely worked for me and others though... Hope you find some good stuff!

[Luke in Phoenix]

I’m wondering how the BCB’s are working out for canister filters? Also saw Luke’s video on BCB and I’m wondering if you used that with an algae scrubber? I been reading these posts and I’m going to use on my 125 gal with sump, but I have an empty 75 gal that I’d like to do a planted tropical tank using this method. I read that the gases wouldn’t be able to dissipate in an anaerobic system like the canisters. Could anybody give an update on the canisters?

Hello, yes, I'm using it in conjunction with an algae scrubber. For the gases, seems like they would just be sucked out the outflow? I've never had a buildup of air pockets in any of my canisters. I'll post an update.

[Robaust]

"I've seen a couple of people say that it turns to mush while the majority of people say that it works great. Are you rinsing the cat litter some how to get rid of the super tiny and powdery particles?
If so, maybe people are just getting some bad batches of the stuff? You could try another store of the same litter to see if you just got a bad bag. It definitely worked for me and others though... Hope you find some good stuff!"

Hi, I was seeing issues with the same Kitty Litter here in Canada. Although it showed similar packaging to our guys in the US, it was much smaller in granule size and as soon as I applied water it dissolved in my hands. I found another brand at 'Canadian Tire' and despite having to sieve out for the larger granules I did manage to get enough of these to make a few baskets. Now the granule size is no-where near as big as what Sayid shows above but it is working.

[Robaust]

SAYID Wrote:

I thought to give an update on my AFS which has been running for 5 weeks and my nitrate is below 5 ppm ,

Hi Sayid, Could you please advise where did you obtain the small canisters from? I read somewhere these were small SunSun Cansiter add-ons although these cost over $100 and a canister filter with a pump costs less. I don't think I am looking at the same thing as you have.

Great looking tank and fish.

[Jack L]

mine has been running a little over two months now, so far haven't seen a drop in nitrates

special kitty from walmart was the litter i used, same as what novak recommeneded