carbon bag in sump?

[CAROLGYRL]

my lfs showed me that I should once a month put about 1 1/2 cup of carbon in a bag and throw it in my sump. 225 gallon tank.That the way they mantained it before I took it over. There is no pressure from the water, so it does the slow thing. That is what I have been doing for a long time now, I just read that after awhile,the carbon will release all of the impurities back into the tank. Now, I am a little confused. I know that if I put the carbon in a high flow area that I should only have it for a few days of so, then take out. What is the deal? I'm still learning.

 

[lockekeyy]

throwing it into the sump is a more passive way of filtration... and it depends on the carbon you use as well. Some products claim that once saturated, it will not release back into the tank. I would go with that... I would also place the carbon bag in direct flow of the water draining from the display tank.

 

[CAROLGYRL]

thanks,

 

[cloak]

You don't need carbon to run a tank. All in all.

I wonder if the "lazy factor" comes into play...

 

[crvz]

I'd recommend spending the money on a small reactor, like a phosban or similar, to run the carbon. i use it sparingly when reasons call for it.