# Hydroton as a filter media?



## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

never tried these in a filter. but they dont taste like coco puffs! they float though, at least some of them do. so it might be a problem. they also are very very very dusty, so they need to be thoroughly rinsed before use.


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## EntoCraig (Jun 7, 2010)

orchidman said:


> never tried these in a filter. but they dont taste like coco puffs! they float though, at least some of them do. so it might be a problem. they also are very very very dusty, so they need to be thoroughly rinsed before use.


Yeah I read that some of the media floats until water logged. I would be placing a fine sponge pad over them and pack them in tight to keep them in place inside an Ehiem 2217. Rinse before use is a must :icon_cool

I also have a Fluval 204 that has baskets with lids so that would laso keep them in place.


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## orchidman (Dec 15, 2010)

i filter sponge would work. i might try this in my 221 or 2215.... i have a 5 gallon bucket full of it!


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## bigboij (Jul 24, 2009)

wow you can get it as cheap as 50L for 20 bucks, may be worth replacing one of the trays of scrubbies in my sunsun


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## EntoCraig (Jun 7, 2010)

bigboij said:


> wow you can get it as cheap as 50L for 20 bucks, may be worth replacing one of the trays of scrubbies in my sunsun


Exactly it seems to be VERY similar to many available bio media, but cheaper, and multi use if you are growing potted plants emmersed. I'm betting ther might even be similar and cheaper versions of this product available on the market.


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## 150EH (Dec 6, 2004)

As long as they don't break down I don't see why not.


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## lipadj46 (Apr 6, 2011)

That stuff sounds very similar to seachem matrix.


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## mott (Nov 23, 2006)

My buddy uses this stuff in his 'ahem' garden!
I alwasys wondered how it would work as bio media.


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## [email protected] (May 22, 2019)

Is this thread still actual?
Is anyone using Hydroton as filter media?
Does anyone know how much surface area it has compared with other media like lava rock, ceramic rings etc. ?
Does anyone know if Hydroton supports anaerobic bacteria for denitrification?


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## Darkblade48 (Jan 4, 2008)

Wow, an 8 year thread revival!

I'm not sure about the surface area of this particular media, but regarding supporting anaerobic bacteria, it is highly unlikely, if not impossible.


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## mboley (Jan 26, 2018)

[email protected] said:


> Is this thread still actual?
> Is anyone using Hydroton as filter media?
> Does anyone know how much surface area it has compared with other media like lava rock, ceramic rings etc. ?
> Does anyone know if Hydroton supports anaerobic bacteria for denitrification?


I use Hydroton exclusively in both my 60 gallon tanks. One with an Oase 600 cannister packed with as much as I could get in there, which is alot. My other tank has a sump with the Hydroton in media bags.

Does it work? Yes, very well. Put it this way, in preparing my cannister filtered tank I seeded some new hydroton for a month in my sump.

I was able to cycle my new tank, with an Amazonia 2 plus Power Sand substrate completely down to zero amm and Nitrites in 2.5 weeks.

And yes, it's dirt cheap and available in any local Hydroponics store, which seem to be everywhere now with the growing popularity of indoor growing and legal weed.


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## mboley (Jan 26, 2018)

Darkblade48 said:


> Wow, an 8 year thread revival!
> 
> I'm not sure about the surface area of this particular media, but regarding supporting anaerobic bacteria, it is highly unlikely, if not impossible.


Make your case, why is it highly unlikely if not impossible. That's a bold statement.


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## DaveKS (Apr 2, 2019)

mboley said:


> Make your case, why is it highly unlikely if not impossible. That's a bold statement.


Yep, I would think with it’s tighter outer pore surface it would work great in high flow rate filters and still go anaerobic in center of balls. Where as other more porous media actually require you to put it in limited flow rate design to go anaerobic.


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## Darkblade48 (Jan 4, 2008)

mboley said:


> Make your case, why is it highly unlikely if not impossible. That's a bold statement.


 It would really depend on the internal porosity of the media, and whether there is sufficient lack of flow to prevent oxygenated water from reaching those parts to allow for anaerobic conditions.


Given these stringent requirements, it'd probably be difficult for anaerobic/denitrifying bacteria to take hold. 



If you have a setup with this media and can propose a reasonable experiment, I'm more than interested in slipping it into our next DNA sequencing run


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## mboley (Jan 26, 2018)

Darkblade48 said:


> mboley said:
> 
> 
> > If you have a setup with this media and can propose a reasonable experiment, I'm more than interested in slipping it into our next DNA sequencing run <a href="http://www.plantedtank.net/forums/images/smilie/icon_biggrin.gif" border="0" alt="" title="Very Happy" ></a>
> ...


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