Bio wheels? Are they any good at all? (pretty)

Hi all, im a little confused by these, are they actually of any real benefit
at all?

Ive seen some on ebay and they claim to remove nitrites and ammonia and can
help with oxygenation etc?

So, are they any good and does anyone know of any in the uk as all the ebay
ones seem to be US ones pretty much.
--
Donegal Paul - On the mend
Lambretta Li186 - crashed and bashed
Vespa T5 Millenium - intact
http://www.thepilgrimssc.co.uk
http://www.a4c.co.uk - What are YOU doing?

| Hi all, im a little confused by these, are they actually of any
real benefit
| at all?
|

They don't REMOVE ammonia and nitrites persay.
What they do is provide an excellent environment for the
bacterium that process the waste in your tank. The alternating
immersion\emmersion seems to be superior to media that is always
underwater.

They are pretty good when they work. You may have problems with thw wheel
getting stuck, or not turning if water flow decreases. I tried a few, one
worked well, 2 kept getting stuck.

Limnophile

| > They don't REMOVE ammonia and nitrites persay.
| > What they do is provide an excellent environment for the
| > bacterium that process the waste in your tank. The alternating
| > immersion\emmersion seems to be superior to media that is always
| > underwater.
| >
| >
| They are pretty good when they work. You may have problems with thw
wheel
| getting stuck, or not turning if water flow decreases. I tried a
few, one
| worked well, 2 kept getting stuck.
|

Correct. It is important to keep the axles and axle-ways clean and
free of debris. It is normal for an established bio-wheel to 'hitch'
or stop on occasion, but if it stops long enough for the pleated
fabric to start drying, you have a problem. I prefer the filters with
a spray bar that is directed at the wheel to keep it rolling. Even
with the wheel loaded up with 2 years worth of gorp and slime, as
long as I keep the axles clear, it never stops.

They are very beneficial. They do not remove the ammonia products
themselves, but rather they provide a place for bacteria to grow, and
the bacteria do the actual work. A bio-wheel is pretty much a powerful
wet/dry filter in a very small space.

I have bio-wheels on three of my four tanks, and they do a great job on
all of them. The only problem I ever had with one was when a snail
managed to climb into the biowheel chamber and jam the wheel. Aside
from that I've had no trouble with them at all.

--
Eric Schreiber
http://www.ericschreiber.com

You would have to buy a US one and then get a small step-down
converter to run on UK mains electric as the company that makes them
does not sell in the UK.

I am going to get a Penguin 170 Bio-Wheel, which will be in addition
to a Eheim external power filter I'm going to use on a 30g tank.

John

See:

http://www.marineland.com/products/mllabs.asp

Check out the scientific literature by the director of Marineland on that
site as well.

yup, that certainly is an unbiased ****ysis of biowheels ;op

--

Margolis
http://web.archive.org/web/20030215212142/http://www.agqx.org/faqs/AGQ2FAQ.htm
http://www.unrealtower.org/faq

Idiot. You do not get published in peer-reviewed journals with biased
articles. Idiot.

hmm, you must be right. Just because marineland developed, makes, sells and
profits from biowheels must mean that they are totally unbiased about them
;o(

--

Margolis
http://web.archive.org/web/20030215212142/http://www.agqx.org/faqs/AGQ2FAQ.htm
http://www.unrealtower.org/faq

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2 4th February 21:58 billy External User Posts: 1	Bio wheels? Are they any good at all? \| Hi all, im a little confused by these, are they actually of any real benefit \| at all? \| They don't REMOVE ammonia and nitrites persay. What they do is provide an excellent environment for the bacterium that process the waste in your tank. The alternating immersion\emmersion seems to be superior to media that is always underwater.

3 4th February 21:58 limnophile External User Posts: 1	Bio wheels? Are they any good at all? (pretty) They are pretty good when they work. You may have problems with thw wheel getting stuck, or not turning if water flow decreases. I tried a few, one worked well, 2 kept getting stuck. Limnophile

6 5th February 08:01 john External User Posts: 1	Bio wheels? Are they any good at all? (electric small) You would have to buy a US one and then get a small step-down converter to run on UK mains electric as the company that makes them does not sell in the UK. I am going to get a Penguin 170 Bio-Wheel, which will be in addition to a Eheim external power filter I'm going to use on a 30g tank. John

7 5th February 08:01 luminos External User Posts: 1	Bio wheels? Are they any good at all? See: http://www.marineland.com/products/mllabs.asp Check out the scientific literature by the director of Marineland on that site as well.

8 5th February 08:01 margolis External User Posts: 1	Bio wheels? Are they any good at all? yup, that certainly is an unbiased ****ysis of biowheels ;op -- Margolis http://web.archive.org/web/20030215212142/http://www.agqx.org/faqs/AGQ2FAQ.htm http://www.unrealtower.org/faq

9 5th February 08:01 luminos External User Posts: 1	Bio wheels? Are they any good at all? Idiot. You do not get published in peer-reviewed journals with biased articles. Idiot.

10 5th February 08:01 margolis External User Posts: 1	Bio wheels? Are they any good at all? hmm, you must be right. Just because marineland developed, makes, sells and profits from biowheels must mean that they are totally unbiased about them ;o( -- Margolis http://web.archive.org/web/20030215212142/http://www.agqx.org/faqs/AGQ2FAQ.htm http://www.unrealtower.org/faq