dude, you come across as a person that really wants to help the hobby. Thanks for all the info !

You make Good videos you don't need to apologize for anything. Thank you for making videos we can learn from.

I have to write to you Dr. Novac and Happy New Year. I admire and thank you for all that you do. I received my fishing line and cross stitch needles today and was able to finish my Eheim Canister 2215 Filter today. I had used zip ties for the main FRAME, but the fishing line to secure the 5 inch circles. I made my basket with the plastic canvas, Tractor Supply Safe T Sorb along with using the Flourish Red gravel. I did add a dose of Seachem Iron Supplement. I am very excited to tell you this. I took the finished basket outside and ran the water hose over it for um around 7 minutes. It also rained outside.... further rinsing the media while I was assembling the Eheim Filter and cutting the hoses etc. I did experience a mishap. Hooking up the Eheim hoses the Eheim Canister started filling up on it's own. Causing water all over my living room floor. Not sure why this happened. I had not plugged it in yet! Now I am fearing it will do it again and again when servicing. I guess now that I should have turned the shut off valves. Plugging the Eheim into the power, it growled and hissed but is now quiet as a mouse. It has been running for an hour with no cloudiness. Thank you Dr. Novak!

Love your videos because they give me ideas. I have been using Turface and dosing ferts using the EI method. Very good results with CO2 better results, with high light T5's better results. My first tank was a breeder 40 with a plenum and sump great results. BCB's actually keeping the nitrates zero in a overstocked tank with no flow now over it ? Picked up a bunch of Derlle heater cables and old time CO2 reactors and 3 cases of laterite from a old timer. I am in aquarium heaven right now.

I had discovered your channel, and your information through another KZfaq channel. I thought at first that the information you presented was just plain nonsense. However I have taken to an open mind. I have watched multiple video presentations on both Plenum set ups, BCB filtration and I LISTENED, I just didn't hear what you were saying but LISTENED. I then decided to follow the science. having taken several microbiology glasses, it was easier for me to follow along with your presentations and understanding of the material. I even went out into the world to research what you were speak of. My conclusion is you are 100% correct. And therefore I am rethinking all of the filtration systems that I am currently using. - Thank you so much presenting this, and the resistance that is displayed by other individuals on other platforms and saying how wrong you are just baffles me. I truly believe that being in the aquarium hobby takes some trial, errors, open and an open mind to adapt, and figure out what does work and what does not work. Having been in the PET industry from just a store clerk, to a manager, to an owner, the misconceptions and myths that were said 40 years ago, are still holding true to this day. And I will admit, that in the last few days I have had to let go of a LOT of those same myths myself. By myths I mean the standard answers that you hear. Funny Store: 3 years ago I went to a local big box store to pick up some White Cloud Minnows, T. albonubes, I wanted 15 of them for a breeding project. The store clerk catching the fish asked me how big my tank was, I said it was 150 gallons. Ok, let me get them for you, as she was netting them out, she said why do you want so many you should only have 3-4 , I was a bit puzzled by her question but responded, Oh well there going outside into a pond.... she looked at me in horror and asked if it was a heated pond, I said No its not....she then took the container of fish, poured them back into the display tank, and said I can't sell these to you. These fish need 75 degree water, filters and plants. I said are you sure about that. YES! I am QUITE sure of this, I said Okay, I walked out and never went back. What this tells me is that retailers train staff, hire inexperienced individuals, and teach them what the retailer and manufacturer wants the end consumer to know and not know. Your knowledge base, from my perspective has lifted years of lies and misinformation about the hobby. There is not enough thank you for what you are doing!

I really enjoy learning about what your teaching. I appreciate it, really, thank you- Ok so I had to relisten more than 6 times,, but it is great to learn about keeping my fish,

Hi Dr. Novak, I've watched all your videos and have many questions but this one is the most pressing if you don't mind. You say that this heterotrophic bacteria is in our mouths and also that it takes 4 to 6 weeks for it to take hold in an aquarium. Well, can't we just put some saliva in a new basket and bypass this wait time?

This is great information. I really appreciate this. Your videos remind me of working in the lab, in a good way.

Doc thank you for the free educational course , i’m not gonna lie the things you said rattle my brain , I had the same similar issue when I went to automotive college and trying to accept the knowledge. Then I started realizing the people who teach these courses know what they’re talking about , because they getting paid big bucks (money talks & bull s h I t walks) if the teacher says the sky is pink and you say it’s blue , I am wrong. So I just except it for what the teacher says it is , and now I’m making the big bucks

thanks for more data on the alternatives to cat litter and laterite.I have some tanks set upp with BCBs and one breedertank for ancistrus is doing great despite lot of pops that blackworms grow on and then fed to barbs.The other tanks doing fine to but above stands out so far.

Thanks for giving us info and the process

Absolutely fantastic information! Altho I have Bachelor degrees in environment science and also environmental side of energy engineering it would take forever to try and gather all this info together and even then it would not be sure I even could. Many thanks!

Keep up your good work. Don't bother those that like to put people down for the sake of it

"it was cheaper" thank you DR NOVAK!

Thanks for all of your information. We'd love to share our progress with you once we build our BCB's.

Thank you for your time and effort... I appreciate all the knowledge based on time and experience. I'm here to learn 👍🏼

This BCB/anoxic concept seems very rare! i have watched almost all your videos on youtube, and i plan on visiting your blog next. i had given up hope on my 75g, but i am thankful i discovered your videos. i have new hope and excitement! i'm absolutely going to try the plenum, and i am waiting on supplies to try a BCB basket in one of my canister filters i have not been using. i am anticipating redoing my 40g as well. it's a dirted tank and i can barely have it lit because of the algae growth galore. thanks again for sharing your knowledge. i'm looking forward to seeing how well these systems work for me, and i'll spread the word!

Good content! I am a layman and will have to replay this many times to even begin to understand it. I’m game👍 thanks Dr for your efforts.

Thank you very much for your time, efforts and shared knowledge Doctor. 😊👍And please don't listen stupid people who just want to hurt with their words. It's not worth it.

Dr Novak, happy to see you regularly posting updates, it has been really helpful to see alternatives to kitty litter. I wanted to check if Attapulgite clay granules can be used as an alternative.

You can’t argue with cold hard science. Good for you. Delete all the haters. If they really wanted to learn they would ask questions and disagree or not in a polite way. Good info presentation but I will have to listen to this several more times to absorb it all. Thanks for explaining all this. Happy New Year to you!

Thanks doc!!

You have provided wonderful abundant info on how to create the proper conditions to grow the correct bacterial types, however please touch on how to source these bacteria for initial introduction and inoculation. With all the bacteria genus you mention how do we know we are adding the proper one to these optimal environments?

We could get thru the material twice as fast if you spent less time focusing on negativity. Thanks for your efforts. They are much appreciated.

The man the Myth the LEGEND, Dr Novak!

Thanks for introducing me to anoxic denitrification. I am putting one together for my sump but have not been able to find any kitty litter. I can, however, find laterite easily so could I just use pure laterite instead?

wow, so much to digest and I do really need a vodka drink.lol. How much vodka can a 50 gal aquarium drink as a carbon source for the BCB? is that permitted?

Why don't we have a lift tube open and drawing water in at the far end from the proper lift tube? Water would then just pass under the baked clay for the most part. Ions would be drawn past the baked clay and the problem of too high or low of a flow rate to create an anoxic condition is solved for the under gravel filter. The additional flow rate would also filter more water.

Seriuos Question: what is the base material of the kittylitter used for BCB? In a video I heard zeolite; in the oil spill granulate i read (Palygorskite) attapulgite. Which one is recommended?

A great, informative video. Thank you. I want to give this a try, i got two questions though. 1 can i add it to an existing system with a sump. And 2 how big of a basket would i need for a 135g main tank, with about a 29g sump. Thank you again for the great information.

I like the way kitty litter looks btw ! Si

Don’t let them get you down. Life is too short, and there’s no time to waste on them.

I really like your videos. I'm trying to better understand this process. I've been watching father fish, the secret history living in your aquarium and others to better understand. I get the anoxic conditions are needed, I'm unsure about what I've heard about a carbon food source. And the plenum. From this video I'm thinking the carbon food source may be for other kinds of denitrifying bacteria, and the plenum just helps to move the water faster while keeping an anoxic zone? I'm not sure how/why it would move the water faster though unless you did the under gravel filter which I think you've said is only really needed if you use sand or a solid plate to form your plenum.

I have a 55 Gallon I set up with a slow-moving plenum. It is a 7'' deep substrate including a full bag of floor dry. Definitely overkill for the 60 or so neon, cardinal, black, green tetras. it's been set for just 3 days and the layer of mulch I believe is causing ammonia so I have been putting zeolite in my 2 Marineland 200 hang on back filters. I'm still having high ammonia. So being patent as the fish are happy and healthy.

Thank you so much for your knowledge. I love the science behind fish. Can you let me know about your profession? I am super curious

Thanks for posting. Would adding a carbon source like glutaralderhyde in small quantities affect the performance of the BCB?

Thanks for another interesting video. Another question on media: I read Seachem Flourite "is a specially fracted stable porous clay gravel" (quote from Seachem website). It is rather more expensive that the kittilitters and other baked clays you showed here but, would it work in a BCB on its own as it is a baked clay and a source of iron?

I believe in you enough to try this although I am still confused. The old school way is a fish killing machine if you get behind on water changes.

want to give a plenum another try but the past two times I’ve tried it with a UGF plate and no lift tubes I get green fuzz algae growing on top of the gravel. I don’t know why. This doesn’t happen in any other tanks. Do you have any idea what could be going on and of doing a slow moving one this time would make a difference?

Hi keven don't know about others but thank you so much for your videos as I sent you a comment in a prior video I am gathering materials for my 10 then 29 to make bcb baskets and you answered my question if I can use safe t absorb which I have. Your videos inspire and educate and gives the answers that we all need in this hobby and your right when you say it's all about keeping fish. Thanks again and I'll keep you posted on my adventures with the bcb baskets setting plenums.

Thank you for the video. It is very informative. Just to clarify, in order to mitigate the effects of dissimilatory denitrification, one should make sure that there is water movement on the substrate level? I heard you mention a German talk about this, do you have his name?

Hi Dr Novak, would you mind listing the alternatives to the traditional Walmart kitty litter? Trying to ensure I get the right BCB materials in my new pond, thanks.

Would a BCB basket in a canister (like what you showed earler) work without a plenum/under gravel filter?

I believe the denitrification that reef aquarists (some at least) understand is dissimilatory as you said. NO3 -- is the oxidizing agent. A food, which is the electron donor, is needed. So we often hear about the addition of a sugar or an alcohol into the reef tank. I am curious as to why a food as a hydrocarbon is not mentioned in anoxic filter. Is it because this class of bacteria can readily use a food source that is certain to exist?

OH MY GOD ..... doc you are so gr8 ... simply waoooo very very intutive and TONs of learning ... you actually made my day ... I always tried to guess wat was the background behind th BCB ... gr8 work doc gr8 GOD bless u with the best of the blessings ... keep such scholary feeds coming through ... love it......

The pictures of products from about the 26 minute mark: I live in South Africa, and these brands like Oil Dri are very expensive imports. What are key words I should look for on locally made products, please?

I cannot get the cat litter that dr kevin mentioned ( Malaysia).try to use zeolite to replace as advise by dr Kevin but maybe I got the wrong kinna zeolite turns out very cloudy.. for several months no matter how much water I change the water still cloudy.. I end up giving up building one..

I still don’t understand how a plenum without airlift tube works? Could you enlighten me in how the water will go under the gravel and come out, without air tube?

Interesting video as a microbiologist working in the aquatic industry, I often think people underestimate the importance of bacteria in the life support of their pond or tank. Any suggestions on bacterial products to kick start your filters?? Most products in the market probably don't contain the right bacteria. Have you ever looked at the bacteria growing in a mature filter in a cross section?? Thanks Steve

Wondering if a slow moving plenum using kit litter would work alone without a b c b basket thank you Si

Hello Dr. Novak, This seems like a silly question because it's so unscientific, but unfortunately I haven't gotten responses from other people I've asked. If I'm not mistaken you said you've used, Kitty Litter, Ez-sorb, and Oil-Dry and said they worked well, but as you've mentioned and as I've read elsewhere, sometimes certain batches of clay just aren't good for one reason or another. In particular I've heard anecdotes of some never getting clear after 6 months on forum, for example. So far I've rinsed my Ez-Sorb probably 30-50 times (putting it in a 5 gallon bucket, filling it most of the way, stirring it up until cloudy, and then trying my best to decant the cloudy water without losing much of the actual granules. However, it _still_ looks cloudy when I stir it up. Do you have any memory of how much rinsing you had to do prior to using it? Would it ever truly run clear, even with stirring it up? I'm going to try it out on a smaller tank as an experiment, but I just found myself unsure how to tell if I did perhaps get a bad bag and I wasn't sure if there were "tell-tale" signs you came across I may not just be privy too. Thanks in advance,

no wonder a cant get rid off algae on my plants , Thanks Dr Novak to break this down for me as i was a 10 years old child . there`s any book you recommend to beginners on this key subject that you just explained?

What are your thoughts on purple non-sulfur bacteria?

Thanks again for another video, i am learning a lot , should I look for bentonite clay in the compounds? Dont know if will get the right kitty litter here, neither the oil absorbant.

I'm excited about trying this on the next aquariums I set up. I would love to do fewer water changes. I appreciate the time and effort you've taken on your videos. Block the trolls and move on....:)

Can I put baked clay in my hang on the back or will it not work???

Hi just wanted to know if using 2.5 inches of red flourite plenum will achieve the same results as a bcb basket?

I'm from a small town, and I do not get the big words. What does this filter do? Do I harvest plants to get rid of waste? What happens to the ammonia/fish waste?

I am using an undergravel plate plenum hybrid kinda setup. With a lush planted setup. It works 👍. I have litter and bioball bags, seachem iron injected, with some aquasoil then more litter and a sand cap. I use lean ferts and grow rare plants without a problem

I took microbiology as an under grad and still can't figure out what bacteria culture works well with the bcb basket. Mostly because companies do not list what's in their mix.

Dr. Novak in my search for what to use. Today at walmart I got a 7lb $1.26 green and blue bag of Cat litter called Kitty Diggins its only ingredient is Fuller’s Earth and its made by Oil-Dri. It seems to be fairly hard.

Thanks. Now waiting for mine to recycle.

Hi Dr. Kevin, I set up a plenum yesterday using the special kitty litter (100% baked clay, no clumping, no additives) and fluorite red (which specifically states does not affect PH) and the PH in dropped significantly. My African Cichlids are very unwell right now. Have you heard of this happening? What can I do?

So ultimately the anoxic plenum produces what? If you have too much flow in your plenum it produces? I have black beard algae and lots of plant growth. To much light for sure. Water changes daily with very high nitrates.

Is it possible to use zeolite instead of kitty litter with laterite in my plenum setup?

I must admit I watched this video about 5 times before this post as I tried to wrap my head around and trying to understand what you were saying. After all in your past videos you spoke about how plants use ammonium and not nitrates, and that the plenum set up would help make ammonium available to plants while in the substrate. And after much flipping through my old text books and alot of google I think I found out what my confusion was. You use the term "dissimilatory denitrification" as nitrate to N2 with nitrite and nitric oxide and nitrous oxide as intermediates, which I only know it as denitrification. While you use "assimilatory denitrification" As nitrate to ammonia, but I know this as dissimlatory reduction of ammonium. At least, that's what I think that's where my confusion laid. Please correct me if I'm wrong. Do you know what are the genus names of the facultative anaerobic bacteria you keep mentioning?

Dr., laterite isn't available in my country. Is there a substitute? Also, do BCB's have a required minimum size to work properly? Thank you! Appreciate your work very much!

Will the bcb help with my black beard battle?

If you want to skip to the talk about Dissimilatory Denitrification and Assimilatory go to 21:30

So what do I test for so that I know I have it working correctly?

Do you ever use aquarium salt in any of your aquariums?

Have you seen Father Fish ?

Safe Absorbent seems like has silica: s3.amazonaws.com/tai-epminerals-blue-production/assets/documents/documents/233/original/US_GHS_-_Clay_SafeTSorb.pdf?1527688034 Not sure if it's harmful I would stick with kitty litter.

(24) Plant Substrate Change (Oil-Dri) - KZfaq

Could you show how to make a BCB for Fluval canister filters? Next time I break down my tank or start a new one I'm going to do the undergravel filter plenum.

Word

Sir, You Sound Angry and I get it, but I came to learn. Not hear a giant rant about silly people, yes i did say something about Safety. Glass cutting & grinding should have minimum Safety Glasses and Fine filter Masks . I hope you understand.

Thank you for your video professor. Im from south korea and keeping goldfish. At my country, most of kitty litter is made of bentonite and it was hard to find propper kitty litter. Now i prepared nature zeolite baked clay and laterite so am about to start making bcb box. Before start, i have two question. 1. I have facultative anaerobic bacteria product. Do u think iinjecting this kind of bacteria into the bcb will be helpful for fast working? 2. Nature or pure zeolite clay also good for bcb? Thank you sir.

"JOKE" Can I just dump my cats litter box in a 40 gal tank. Lots of ammonia!

I think a lot of what you describe isn't necessarily a problem with using plants as a filtration or as a means to move water through the substrate but rather a problem you are creating by assuming that most people are doing it incorrectly and wanting to stock an aquarium with loads of fish and a few plants, and I really don't see this as being the case. Its common knowledge in the hobby that if you are using plants as filtration that you have to balance the plant stocking with the fish stocking, meaning more plants and less fish. you say that you will run into problems but that is only because you are making the assumption that people want loads of fish and few plants. people have been using walstad style plant filters successfully for years, it works you just have to balance the stocking.

Woow woow 😍💋 💝💖❤️