Ziss bubble bio moving bed filter vs sponge filter

[bmiller]

Hello everyone! I have a 29 gallon tank that has some plants (new to tank) and 6 zebra danios. When I set the tank up, I used a HOB filter since that's what I was used to. I have some sponge filters on the way and had planned to change to the sponge filters.  I just saw the Ziss bubble bio moving bed filter and am wondering what the benefits of one over the other is? 

I plan on adding some Cory's, maybe a pleco. Still working on the rest of my "wish list" regarding fish! Any help would be appreciated! Thank you ☺️

[aquatoid]

Had to google the thing, basically it just adds more circulation and more surface area for the aerobic bacteria to grow on. 

https://www.aquariumcoop.com/products/ziss-bubble-bio-moving-bed-filter

Even there it says that in addition to the Ziss you would need mechanical filtration to remove the physical impurities from the water. More room for bacteria is nice, but it might be totally unnecessary. And that depends totally on the amount of bioload you plan to get in the tank, basically how much pooping is going on in there. 

The plants will help in keeping the water parameters better for longer, but in your setup the plants are pretty much the only thing trying to keep the eventual nitrates down. The aerobic bacteria growing everywhere is converting the more harmful nitrites to nitrates. Fish tolerate nitrates much better, but water changes will be needed if the concentration starts to get too high. 

[bmiller]

Thank you! I had read the description and missed the in addition part of it. 

[Randy]

2 hours ago, bmiller said:

Hello everyone! I have a 29 gallon tank that has some plants (new to tank) and 6 zebra danios. When I set the tank up, I used a HOB filter since that's what I was used to. I have some sponge filters on the way and had planned to change to the sponge filters.  I just saw the Ziss bubble bio moving bed filter and am wondering what the benefits of one over the other is? 

I plan on adding some Cory's, maybe a pleco. Still working on the rest of my "wish list" regarding fish! Any help would be appreciated! Thank you ☺️

Hi @bmiller, I absolutely love the Ziss Bubble Bed Bio Moving filter in my fish room.  My personal experience is that the ability to handle bio load in a tank is similar to that of a medium or large Aquarium Co-Op sponge filter.  Same # of angelfish fry growing out in same size tanks, on same size water change schedule is what I base this statement on.

For me, what I love the most is the limited to zero servicing I have to do.  Now, keep in mind this is for my fish room with tanks that don't need to be "display tank" clean.  Normally you would run a ziss filter with the intake sponge installed so that you get water polishing.  I remove this sponge to eliminate the only item that would require servicing.  From there the moving media is constantly tumbling and cleaning itself.

So the pro here is that I don't service this filters.  Between work, family, and other responsibilities, I look for every bit of time I can save in the fish room while still keeping a healthy and active fish.

The cons for this are 1) ziss is definitely move expensive than the Co-Op sponge filter, 2) you lose the water polishing you would get from a sponge filter or leaving the ziss intake sponge in place, and 3) the ziss is a bit louder to operate and does require more air to circulate the media.

Hope my experiences and uses with this filter helps!   

[bmiller]

Yes.. it helps a lot (I love the pros and cons)!  I really hate the HOB and wish I had found Cory's videos before purchasing one. I thought this time I'd ask for opinions from folks who have been using the different types of filters   instead of the internet. I'm pretty sure I will save up for one and add it to my next order. Thank you so much!!

[Paul]

@bmillerI run both a Ziss moving bed filter and a hob in a 40 breeder. The Ziss handles the bio filtration really well with minimal mechanical while the hob does both the mechanical and bio filtration.

[bmiller]

Thank you very much everyone!