Carbon Question

Using a phosban reactor seems to work for a lot of us. I also put rust(phosban) in it to for pphosphate removal. They are about $35 or so and need a small pump. I change the carbon/phosban about every 2-3 weeks in my system.
 
@wpspfan wrote:
What is a simple way to use carbon in a refugium? What is the best carbon said:
There are two methods, passive and active. Passive is in the form of carbon in a bag. Active is the use of a reactor or filter device that pushes water through the carbon. The active is much more effective, but passive is also used on a regular basis with effect. It depends on what your purpose for using it is. If you are looking to offset chemicals etc, active is your choice. This holds true for coral chem warfare and other such uses. Passive is good if all you are looking at doing is keeping your water clearer.

As far as the best carbon... any high quality low PO4 porous carbon will work, but here are a few of the ones I recommend, along with the links for the active devices.

Best Carbon

http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/Bulk-Carbon/c6/p349/1.25-Pounds-Premium-ROX-0.8-Carbon/product_info.html

Good quality Carbon

http://www.bulkreefsupply.com/Bulk-Carbon/c6/p427/1.25Pounds-Activated-Lignite-Carbon/product_info.html

In expensive and effective reactor, I have two of these one for carbon and the other for GFO. Just buy a small 200 or 250 gph pump to feed these.

http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_ViewItem~SearchStr~~action~view~idProduct~TL4311~idCategory~FIFRISPR~category~Two_Little_Fishies_Phosban_Reactor_150_Saltwater_Aquarium_Supplies_Filters_Inline__Specialty_Phosphate_Reactors~vendor~.html

http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_AquariumPage~PageAlias~filters_kent_marine_phos_reactor.html

http://www.marinedepot.com/ps_searchItem.aspx?IdCategory=FIFR&vendorname=Precision_Marine&vendorcode=PM&searchlogtext=reverse_flow&SearchText=reverse%20flow&parsed=1
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Hi -

Is it accepted practice to run carbon or phosban all the time?
Or is that an occasional thing (I only run for a day or so every other week).

Thanks...
 
@Ziggy_Zeigler wrote:
Hi - Is it accepted practice to run carbon or phosban all the time? Or is that an occasional thing (I only run for a day or so every other week). Thanks... said:
There are some on both sides of that fence.. my own belief is that Carbon is okay to run 24/7 provided your corals have acclimated to the brighter light that comes from using it due to the clearer water. Other than that, there are no established side effects of 24/7 carbon use. Quick aside here.. there are some who believe that it may contribute to pinched mantle disease in clams and HLLE in tangs. While some people do think there is a link, there is no evidence that is the case, only speculation.

GFO however is even more contentious. There are many many SPS keepers who run it 24/7 without problems. Others who use it sparingly as needed. GFO can suck PO4 out of the system too fast if used in the wrong quantity, it can also deplete it completely which is not good either considering corals need SOME PO4 to survive. The trick is to keep the free PO4 at zero, but still have enough going through the system that can be used by coral. I use GFO 2 days a week personally. GFO overuse, or PO4 elimination has been linked to STN from the base on SPS.

The rule of thumb on GFO is to use half (or less) than the manufactures recommended amount for your tank size. Start real small and work up until you test 0 or a few ppm of PO4 in your water. When first starting it, run it every other day for a few hours to reduce the stress.
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Whatever fits the reactor. Odds are any grain size would fit. Here's some good reading on carbon:
http://www.pets-warehouse.com/carbon.htm
 
@wpspfan wrote:
Thanks for the help everyone. What brand and size pump do you all use with your reactor? said:
I use a mini-jet... 605 I believe.. its adjustable flow so you can use it for either GFO or Carbon.
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off topic but why do dave j replys go wwwwaaaaaaayyyy off the screen
i am having to scroll over to the right to read his responses
is it a setting on my side?
 
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