Evolution Aqua K1 Micro Media 25ltr

The best bio-media filter media out there! More surface area per volume for beneficial bacteria to grow than any other bead out there!

• 950 m2 per m3 Protected Surface Area
• Used in Nexus and K1 MicroBead filters
• Creates an effective environment for the nitrification process to take place
• Increased protection for the bio-film
• Reduces back pressure on pumps
• Improved solids handling performance and flow rate
• Ideal for use in bead filters and conventional pond filters

K1 Micro is an even smaller version of standard K1, measuring approximately 6 x 6mm. The polyethylene media has a specific wheel-like shape, with a cross-shaped central portion.  By shrinking the size of the media, Evolution Aqua has managed to up the surface area per unit volume, allowing for more space for bacterial colonisation. However, surface area isn’t everything — it’s what you do with it that counts — and K1 Micro has a neat feature that allows more than just bacteria to colonise it.

K1 Micro is white in colour which allows for visual monitoring of the biofilm’s condition. If it’s nicely mature, the medium should take on a light brown colouration. A tip from Evolution Aqua is to avoid using more K1 Micro than necessary, to allow sufficient biofilm to develop on each piece for the required microbial and microfaunal communities to develop. Go overboard on the quantity and it will still perform nitrification, but it won’t reach its full potential.

As a static media, K1 Micro does work biologically, but its primary use in this respect is to trap solids. The media’s structure collects suspended particles, and it can then be backwashed (most effectively with air) to clean this away. This is the basis of the Nexus Koi filter’s mechanical filtration, and with a little ingenuity, this could certainly be applied to an aquarium filter.

As a moving bed biofilm reactor (MBBR), the medium’s inner surface is where the magic happens. A biofilm builds up (and bear in mind this can take some time), but it’s constantly agitated courtesy of aeration, pumped flow or even just through sitting passively in a turbulent region of a sump or filter chamber. This sloughs off excessive biofilm, making the media effectively self-cleaning if utilised in this way. Nevertheless, the protected inner sites resist sloughing to a sufficient extent to allow various communities to survive unharmed. It’s a simple yet elegant idea.

TIP Being buoyant and small, this medium gets everywhere if given the chance. If using it in a sump, some form of mesh or screening is essential to keep it where it’s needed. For some applications, this won’t be a problem — it can be placed in a bead filter for pond use, for example, where it will be contained.