Activated carbon question

[tonym10]

There are so many threads out there on carbon but I cannot narrow my search to what I am looking to find out.
My tank is 156g with a 60g sump. the flow through the sump is about 900gph.
I want to run activated carbon to keep the water polished. What Is the best way to run the carbon and how much carbon?
Does it need to be run in a reactor for this or can I put it in a media filter bag and just let it hang in the sump? If it can just be placed in the sump should it be spread out between the baffles so water is forced to go through it or just hanging it any where in the sump will work?
Thanks

 

[pcofdareef]

The best way IMO is to run a little fishes phosban reactor with the activated carbon in it as a media. This way you are actively filtering the water. If you fill media bags with carbon you are only passively filtering the water and it is less effective. More can be read about this on Melev's webpage:

http://melevsreef.com/2009/01/running-carbon-how-i-change-it-out.html

 

[tonym10]

thanks for the link

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I run carbon in a cannister filter. Hanging it in the sump is not going to allow water to get inside the bag very readily, but if water is forced through it, that can be fine.

 

[gaetanocallista]

I think that activated carbon in a reactor is too agressive. Better is to use in a a media filter bag in the sump. If you want more results put the bag near a pump flow.
In Europe 100 liters = 50 ml of activated carbon/30 days

 

[tonym10]

Thanks everyone
I ordered 2 of Bulk Reef Supplys reactors , 1 for carbon one for gfo.

 

[iamwrasseman]

you are doing the right thing . remember a little carbon goes a long way .

 

[Titus07]

suppose you run carbon and clear up your water, would that allow more watts of light to hit the bottom of the tank? Or is this gain insignificant?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

That depends on how yellow the water is to begin with, but it can be significant, and when you first use it, start slowly for that reason.

 

[redfishsc]

Titus, I have heard anecdotal reports of corals bleaching after using carbon (under MH lights) because it can work so well.


I personally put carbon up in the top 5 most useful products for a reef tank

 

[Titus07]

where do you rank a UV steralizer?

 

[therealfatman]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14588650#post14588650 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Titus07
suppose you run carbon and clear up your water, would that allow more watts of light to hit the bottom of the tank? Or is this gain insignificant?

Anything that can lower turbidity and color can greatly effect light penetration. Carbon will lower both turbidity and color.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

As a needed tool? I don't use them.

 

[tonym10]

Here is what I did

 

[therealfatman]

Most filter cartridge housing have the water enter near the outter shell of the canister and exit through a hole in the center of the housings diameter. If you use a tube running from top to bottom of the housing that has slots or holes cut in the bottom of its length anf flow the water into the housing through that tube and out through the other hole you can tun your cartridge housing into a fluidized filter. Meaning it will be a larger more heavily constructed filter akin to a fluidized filter as is normally used for GFO etc.. Some filter sponge or like product (poly filter material) will keep fine carbon particles from exiting the filter.

 

[Mike O'Brien]

That has a cartride inside for the flow to move upward.

 

[tonym10]

Mike is correct it has a cartridge inside , the water enters at the bottom and flows up fluidizing the gfo. On my carbon filter i pushed the filter material up to press the carbon to the top of the container to keep it from being fluidized.

 

[mc-cro]

I have a home made set up with a speciman container like what is used to hang on the side of tanks at fish stores when they catch the fish and then pour it the bag. I have large holes drilled in the bottom, and I hang that on my overflow. then I put a the carbon in a bag and put it in the specimen container and water travels thru it and out the bottom of container. works great, no maintenance, and it is active becuase most of the water has to travel thru the bag of carbon and not just around it. when the bag starts getting clogged, the excess water just flows over the container but most of it still runs thru the bag.

my only concern is how fast the water is traveling past the carbon. I guess I am probably running a couple hundred gallons
of water thru it every hour. is that too fast?

 

[therealfatman]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=14604751#post14604751 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by Mike O'Brien
That has a cartride inside for the flow to move upward.

Then it is like a refillable DI resin cartridge? Does it readily allow enough velocity to keep the carbon fluidized (floating)? It would be most effecive if the carbon is fli uidized but still very effective without fluidization in comparison to a bag used just for passive carbon adsorption.

 

[Justdrew]

There is plenty of flow through a BRS reactor to fluidize carbon. However, you do not want the carbon to tumble. The fines from carbon can be detrimental to fish, ie. lateral line problems.

Later
Drew