Has anyone tried, or heard or using biomedical used in aquarium filters as a grow medium? There are tons of high tech media out there that have unreal surface area and O2 retention properties, but are designed to provide a structure for colonizing aerobic bacteria for biological water filtration. (Dirty water drains over bacteria, they eat wastes, is ammonia, nitrates)
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Biomedia, not biomedical
@Blountville
Like this?
…and it’s funny you bring it up as I just posted it.
Generally, Hydroponic growers strive for sterile conditions. Any Biofilter will hold bacterial matter indefinitely, with correct conditions. That goes for positive and negative bacterial matter. While positive bacterial matter is generally a good thing when negative bacterial matter is present, it not necessarily something you want to promote if not needed. You’re asking for problems, IMO.
In my case with Aquaponics, I want bacterial matter to grow, and that’s why I use a Moving Biofilter
I do use a Swirl and a Moving Biofilter, both DIY, but I believe @GreenMachine uses a Canister Reactor Filter of some sort, for his typical Hydroponic system.
No, I mean using the actual media, like ceramic rings, that are used in filter chambers, as a grow media in your baskets.
Ah, my bad.
Sure, depending on your garden, I don’t see why you couldn’t use anything for media, as long as it doesn’t change water conditions, or promotion root rot. I’ve use everything from glass beads to hydroton and rocks. Even though porous media may trap water and nutrients in systems like Ebb&Flow, in other systems like DWC or Aero, media does little more than hold the roots in place.
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