Bio Chem Stars Vs. Ceramic Rings

[Aiglos]

Situation:

I have a stocked 130G tank (12" Oscar, 13" Arowana, 12" Pleco, 6" sun Catfish) with 2 Rena Xp3 filters running on it, As of recently I cannot get my ammonia to 0 as it is always hovering slightly above, even with 30% water changes 2x Weekly and feedings 2x a week if the fish are lucky.  I have a very shallow gravel bed which I gravel vac atleast 1x a week and there is no uneaten food or decaying fish in the tank. 

Options:

in descending order of preference

1. Remove mech media and fill with more bio media vice mech filtration (see below) 
2. Add more Filtration  ( I thought the 2 canisters would be more then enough )
3. More water changes ( I already do a ton and declorinater costs $ )
4. Cut down on fish load.  (Not interested in moving any of the fish.. )
5. Cut down feeding ( i feed soo minimal... I cant see cutting down feeding)


In keeping with my #1 Option I went back to Big als website to order more media and remembered a question I had when I first bought my Xp3s. 

What is the difference between bio chem stars and ceramic rings ? 
Which should I buy ?   

They both appear to do the exact same thing.... hopefully somone can help me out here.

Aquarium Pharmaceuticals RENA Filstar Bio Chem Stars
http://www.bigalsonline.ca/catalog/product.xml?product_id=24337;category_id=2563;pcid1=1965;pcid2=

Aquarium Pharmaceuticals RENA Filstar Ceramic Rings 1 Liter
http://www.bigalsonline.ca/catalog/product.xml?product_id=24341;category_id=2563;pcid1=1965;pcid2=

[babblefish1960]

I do not have on hand actual figures, but the media you speak of are both designed to provide maximum surface area for the growth of beneficial bacteria.

One issue with both of these designs is the fact that they compact and block some surfaces by contact amongst each other. In this case, the stars would ultimately have less surface area with which to work.

In my industrial experience with massive chemical generators, the shape they used for the same sort of reason, was a crescent shape somewhat like a bent taco shell to avoid packing against each other. It was the most efficient way to create the largest surface area possible for the volume they were working in.

I cannot recall where to get these from, but a search in commercial sites may prove useful.

Having said that, the ceramic rings, being porous are a better bet in my mind than the stars.

But an even cheaper way to produce the same effect would have to be the nylon kitchen scrubbies for scouring. They have a huge surface area, and are roughly five for one or two dollars. Someone brought this up a few months ago, and I have found since that they work fine, particularly as they allow free water flow.

Perhaps whomever's thread that was could jump in here with the source information on surface area etc..

[tuvok]

I have used nylon pot scrubbers in my XP2 with good results. These things are cheap and likely provide a great deal of surface area for bacteria colonization. For someon else's take on biological media selection check out this link:

http://www.wernersponds.com/biofiltermedia.htm