To make your aquarium a better and cleaner place to live for your fishes and plants, it is very essential for you to use a filter media.
With many products available in the market it gets very difficult to choose and come to a conclusion.
The basic idea to solve that is to understand what do you need and why. If you are able to find an answer to that question you’ll be able to figure out which one to buy.
All that a Filter Media does is to clean and make the aquarium more hospitable for the species living there.
There are mainly three types of filter media depending on their filtration system.
- Mechanical Media – It involves the process of mechanically filtering out unwanted pieces of waste from the aquarium. It can be any netted objected trough which water generally passes and leaves behind the waste.
- Chemical Media – This is generally a chemical that is generally used to stabilize the chemicals that have been formed in the water. It usually makes salt with the chemicals that are present in the water and makes them settle at the bottom.
- Biological Media –This media is also used for the same purpose that the chemical media is used for, the basic difference lies in the technique used. In this technique, an organism is made to grow inside the aquarium which actually intakes the chemicals which are harmful to the aquarium. Generally, in most cases, it is the bacteria that intakes all the nitrate present in the water.
Top Aquarium Filter Media
MarineLand Ammonia Neutralizing Zeolite Blend Aquarium Carbon Media
This product uses both, the zeolite and carbon which help in the removal of ammonia and chloramines as well. This chemical media technique ensures that there is no impurity present in the water.
This is a promising product to be used as it doesn’t affect the fishes or the plants present but only helps purify the water.
You can use it and get sparkling clean water which is free of any impurities and helps maintain the environment of the aquarium in the end. It is an extensively used product and has good reviews throughout.
Marineland Black Diamond Media Premium Activated Carbon
This premium activated carbon has the ability to quickly filter out the impurities present in the water at a speed twice as quick as that of the other products.
This chemical media comes in the form of small pebbles and does the work effectively and efficiently.
If there is an issue while using mechanical media and fear of filtering it out, then it is advised to use it in the powdered form. It is equally as effective in its powdered form and removes the impurities that can’t be removed by mechanical media.
CNZ Aquarium Filter Media Kits
This is a kit that uses all the three kinds of techniques and provides you the purest of water in your aquarium.
It has activated carbon which helps with ammonia and other impurities and purifies the water. It also has bio balls that help in the growth of bacteria and helps in removing the nitrates.
It has got ceramic rings as well which help in mechanical filtration by trapping the impurities and also support the growth of bacteria in order to have more clean water. This kit is one of the best all in one kit that has been used as filter media in aquariums.
Koi Pond & Aquarium Filter Media
This product is very thick and has a two-layer filtration process which makes it very advanced among the products which use mechanical media technique.
The company that manufactures this product is one of the most trusted companies in this field and has completed over 3 decades in the market. The first layer is used to filter out the larger particles of waste and then everything has to go through the finer layer.
In the finer layer, nothing but water passes out and leaves behind all the waste outside. This product comes in a 6 feet roll sheet. It can be used for a very long duration of time and can be cut and customized as per use.
Fluval External Power Filter Pre-Filter Media
This media uses the biological media technique and also assists the use of mechanical media.
These are hexagon-ally shaped rings made of ceramics that actually catch any particle and helps the mechanical media not get clogged.
They also provide the right location and perfect environment for the development and growth of the bacteria that intake all the nitrates from the water. In the end, it serves you with sparkling clean and freshwater free of any impurities.
Aquarium Filter Pad – Premium True Dual Density Aquarium Filter Media Roll
It is a very thick filter pad that has two filters and makes the filtration process very efficient.
This is used to trap the larger waste particles at the first filter and then when the smaller ones pass through it they reach the second filter.
The second filter is very much finer and doesn’t allow anything except water to pass through it.
This way it achieves a fine and efficient filtration. This is one example that uses the mechanical media technique. This product comes in rolls and can be cut as per usage.
Hi, my name is Sean, and I’m the primary writer on the site. I’m blogging mostly about freshwater and saltwater aquariums, fish, invertebrates, and plants. I’m experienced in the fishkeeping hobby for many years. Over the years I have kept many tanks, and have recently begun getting more serious in wanting to become a professional aquarist. All my knowledge comes from experience and reading forums and a lot of informative sites. In pursuit of becoming a professional, I also want to inspire as many people as I can to pick up this hobby and keep the public interest growing.
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