Crushed Coral

[baker360360]

I don't want crushed coral in my tank as part/all substrate, but want some to help raise ph for cichlids, is it ok/possible to put about a dinner plate size Bastet about 4 1/2 inche thick into my external filter as I'm hoping it will

1) raise the ph
2) act as additional media


Will this work

 

[Meeresstille]

I've used crushed coral in my HOB filter. It helped me balance out my extremely low pH and I'm sure it also acts as media for the bacteria to settle! Not sure if it is as good as the ceramic media but in addition to it will be just fine!

 

[DrRob]

Should work, won't have a massive surface area, but will still be a biomedia of sorts. Just make sure that it can't compact down and restrict the flow.
 
The other option would be a reactor.

 

[TwoTankAmin]

Crushed coral works by dissolving over time and must be replenished when kept in a filter. This makes it a less than ideal bio-media.

 

[DrRob]

That's where a reactor would work well. Nice slow flow for good contact with the media and you can usually see into them.

 

[baker360360]

In this case keeping high ph is more important that acting as media, I have a lot of media already in the internal and external filters so acting as media was a secondary benefit, it's just proving difficult to get the right rocks to put in my take and wanted some alternatives for when I set up a cichlid tank.

Thanks guys