Difference?

Im just getting into the hobby and am starting a 35 G Hexagon tank. I was wondering whats the difference between regular filters and stuff like the protein skimmers and fluval canisters? Any suggestions to what i would need? Im just trying to keep my water clear. Thanks

 

welcome to the reef

 

What is Protein Skimming?
There are some impurities that accumulate in the water of your aquarium that will most likely not be fully removed via your mechanical and biological filtration. These impurities are called dissolved organic compounds (DOC's). For quite some time, commercial and industrial filtration systems have employed a process called foam fractioning to remove DOC's. A protein skimmer is essentially a foam fractioning system for your aquarium. It pulls out water, removes DOC's, and returns the clean water to the tank. If not removed from the water, the DOC's would result in a buildup of oils and phosphates from fats, and nitrates from proteins. Exactly how protein skimmers remove DOC's will be explained below.

How Does a Protein Skimmer Work?
Foam fractioning is a relatively simple process. If you agitate pure water by blowing bubbles into it, the bubbles at the surface burst quickly and no foam develops. However, if the water has fats and/or proteins dissolved in it, the bubbles will not burst as easily and a foam will form as you continue to inject air bubbles. If you've ever blown bubbles with a straw in a glass of milk, you've seen this in action. Milk is basically water with some fats, proteins and sugars dissolved in it. So when you blow bubbles in it, a foam forms. If you were to continually blow bubbles into the milk and scoop the foam off the top, you would eventually remove most of the DOC's (fats and proteins), as well as some of the water.
This is what a protein skimmer does. It creates bubbles in the water and as foam forms on top of the water, it falls into a collection container while the clean water (the stuff that wasn't part of the foam) is returned to your tank. There is a variety of mechanisms by which different protein skimmers accomplish this, but they all operate on this basic idea.

Do I Really Need a Protein Skimmer?
Although protein skimmers are pretty simple conceptually, they can get a bit pricey. When setting up a new aquarium, there are many different accessories that can be added and most people don't want to spend the money to get every possible add-on right off the bat. So, naturally, you want to know just how essential each accessory is.
Protein skimming is not absolutely essential, but it is close. You will be able to keep fish alive in your tank without it, but it certainly won't be an ideal environment. It's kind of like getting a hamster, but not cleaning its cage. It will live for a good while, but it will be constantly immersed in its own waste and that will gradually take its toll. If you can't afford one right away, consider waiting a little longer and saving up a little extra money to get yourself a protein skimmer. Once you have it running and you see the brown scum that it collects from your water, you'll understand why you needed it.

 

Types of Filtration
There are three basic types of filtration: mechanical, chemical and biological. Of the three, biological filtration is the only one that is unquestionably necessary. Many people rely primarily on protein skimming and biological filtration, and only use mechanical and chemical filtration on an as-needed basis to treat specific problems, stopping once the problem is under control.
Mechanical Filtration
Mechanical filtration is any process by which waste particles are physically removed from the water. This is typically done by running the water through some sort of filter pad, or a series of filter pads. As the water passes through, debris is trapped in the pads and stays there.
Biological Filtration
Biological filtration is the removal of ammonia and nitrites from the water via oxidizing bacteria. With live rock and/or a DSB, anaerobic bacteria can also consume the nitrates in your tank. (This is covered in more detail in the nitrogen cycle section.) In time, pretty much every surface in the aquarium will be covered in beneficial bacteria that assist in biological filtration.
The surfaces in the tank may not provide room for a large enough population of bacteria to eliminate all the ammonia that is produced by the inhabitants. In order to increase the capacity for biological filtration, some sort of porous media can be put into your external filtration system. Porous objects have extremely large surface areas, so a small amount of bio-media can greatly increase your system's ability to neutralize ammonia. If your aquarium has enough live rock, additional biological filtration may not be needed. (Live rock is quite porous and can therefore greatly increase your population of beneficial bacteria.)




Chemical Filtration
Chemical filtration is the use of some sort of chemical reaction to remove unwanted substances from the water. The most common chemical filtration agent used in aquaria is activated carbon (i.e. charcoal filters). Activated carbon removes things like chlorine (which should not be in your water in the first place) and DOC's. There are also chemical filtration media for the removal of phosphates, silicates and other substances. You must be careful when using chemical filtration because many kinds can cause new problems if not used properly. If you perform regular water changes with untainted water (i.e. RO water) and do not overfeed or overstock, there should generally not be a need for chemical filtration.

 

hello and welcome to 3reef

 

go luna go go ..

 

Welcome to reefkeeping!

 

You can read more at this web site. www.saltwater101.com Its great for newbies or to re-fresh your memory. Luna

 

Thanks alot.. that really helped.

 

No doubt....good job in keeping that in your back pocket Luna. K+. In a 35g, the only thing you need IMO is a good skimmer. I wouldn't bother with any type of HOB filtration, unless you want to run carbon, which is actually not a bad idea. But a skimmer would do you just fine. Look at the AquaC Remora as well as the Octopus BH-100F. You could get away with a needle wheel skimmer as well, but IMO, the previous two are superior. Rock on......and have fun. John.