Submerged vs. Wet/Dry Bio Filter

[Djhgksga]

Which type of biofilter has better performance in the removal of ammonia from the water, a submerged biofilter or a Wet/Dry Trickle biofilter? I have a wet/dry trickle filter in my 125 Saltwater and was looking at building a new stand and putting a sump in my 70 Freshwater, solely for the purpose of increasing my volume to provide more breathing space for my fish and to get rid of in tank filters, heaters, thermometers, etc. that I don't want to look at anymore. I know that the submerged biofilter will give me a larger volume of water in my sump, but don't want to sacrifice quality of the filtration process by not having the biomedia exposed to the air. I've never had a sump on any of my freshwater tanks(nor a submerged biofilter) and thought that I would give it a try.

Also, in general, what would be the requirements for the surface area (sq. ft.) of bio material per gallon of water(what sq. ft would i need for 70gal FW)? Are the requirements different for the submerged and wet/dry types?

Thanks in advance

 

[KcMopar]

I always used the wet dry on my SW tanks. I used an Oceanic 150 trickle filter for years on a 40G SW which was way overkill. I do not use it anymore as I run only the Algae Turf Scrubbers on my SW tanks now so I may use it on my 125G or 150G FW. Once the SW or FW is established its not the ammonia that is hard to maintain its the nitrate. This is what I recommend for your SW tank. http://www.myfishtank.net/forum/sal...a-powerful-nitrate-phosphate-remover-diy.html . If going bio-media go with air exposure for sure.