Activated carbon question
- Thread starter Jedidad
- Start date
I run it 24/7 changed 1x per month and have for a number of years. It removes some organics(hydrophobic and some amphipathic types) which accumulate in a reef aquarium and are not necessarily otherwise consumed by anything in a useful way, imo. There is no way to measure exhaustion precisely of which I am aware. Yellowing water is an indicator that it is no longer working. Changes in ORP might give you a cryptic clue but not necessarily as increased NO3 would raise it and organics would drop it.
It does remove orgaincs which contirbute to NO3 and PO4 but that's not a direct adsorbtion.
It does remove orgaincs which contirbute to NO3 and PO4 but that's not a direct adsorbtion.
But listen to Whitby - bc I never had a totm
LOL...
Actually TMZ has the answer right there.
It does nothing for niotrates nor phosphates, it only removes organics and aside from measuring dissolved organic carbon, there really is no measure of what is good and what is bad.
The only real use of GAC in a filter is to remove organics which can not be removed by biologicval filtration. Ozone does the same thing- but a great deal more efficiently.
By suggesting you use it intermittently, you will save money in the long run.
Now- if you dose amino acids, selcon, or tother trace element/vitamin solutions and you run carbon- it is likely that the carbon will remove them before they can be of any benefit. So in that scenario- running carbon 24/7 defeats the purpose. This is why they tell you to stop carbon with some medications.
Paul.
chaderic26
New member
I dont think you were. It was a good post.
Chad
Chad
I also run carbon 24/7. I run 1/4 cup per 25g and change it out every 2 weeks. It's not needed but can help. I do wonder if running it every now and then as apposed to 24/7 would be better. If you have a LPS/Softie reef, I would not run carbon at all. Play around with it yourself and see what fits your reef. Oh, if you feed alot I would run carbon. Better safe than sorry.
If you don't want to run carbon you could run polly filters, also great for pulling out junk and metals. They will cost more to run though. They are good to have one on hand incase something happens to the tank and you need to get something in there to help out. For example, if your glass heater breaks, pop in a polly filter and it will more than likely save the day. They also turn colors to let you know what they are pulling out.
HTH
Jason
If you don't want to run carbon you could run polly filters, also great for pulling out junk and metals. They will cost more to run though. They are good to have one on hand incase something happens to the tank and you need to get something in there to help out. For example, if your glass heater breaks, pop in a polly filter and it will more than likely save the day. They also turn colors to let you know what they are pulling out.
HTH
Jason
Forgiven1973
Member
i bought my tank just over a year ago established with mostly softies. i have a few LPS and SPS currently along with the softies. would you recommend not running any carbon? ive slowly upgraded equipment since purchasing but still have a Emperor 400 hangon filter. it has a chamber for adding activated carbon. would it hurt to use that and add it?
thanks for any help for a newbie still learning the hobby.
chaderic26
New member
Be careful adding carbon if you've never used it. It can make the water clear to the point the extra light stresses coral if you add too much.
