Carbon - YES OR NO?

[integlikewhoa]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6610596#post6610596 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by finneganswake
Most people agree that it is better in a reef aquarium to use it passively in a sump. Carbon will take out a very small amount of trace elements if used in a sump; in a canister filter, the high waterflow will cause the carbon to strip the trace elements out at a much higher rate.

Thanks for your input. I have seen you say this in a few posts now but your the only one I see say that. That's why I asked that question. Why not use less in a canister then? Sounds like it is much more efficient. Maybe half in a canister is equilvent to double just sitting in your sump? Maybe in a canister you can use it weeks then take it out 2 weeks and so on?

 

[cato]

Yes to carbon. Has more pros than cons IMO.

 

[finneganswake]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6610757#post6610757 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by integlikewhoa
Thanks for your input. I have seen you say this in a few posts now but your the only one I see say that. That's why I asked that question. Why not use less in a canister then? Sounds like it is much more efficient. Maybe half in a canister is equilvent to double just sitting in your sump? Maybe in a canister you can use it weeks then take it out 2 weeks and so on?

You're absolutely right... unfortunately, it works too efficiently. I've read this is many books--Julian Sprung comes to mind.

 

[integlikewhoa]

So would running less in the reactor work fine?

 

[finneganswake]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=6611100#post6611100 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by integlikewhoa
So would running less in the reactor work fine?

I think the issue is the amount of waterflow passing through the carbon. When you run it passively in the sump, only a certain amount of water goes to it during any given hour, so it's a bit more gentle. A canister filter has a (comparitively) large amount of water being forced through the carbon, so you get more trace elements sucked out. IMO, less carbon in a canister filter would just lead to you having to replace the carbon more frequently with the same amount of trace elements being sucked out. With my first reef, I used carbon non-passively, and couldn't figure out why my iodine levels were always undetectable, even with supplementation. When I switched to passive, they were back where they should be in no time.

 

[corals b 4 bills]

Carbon is part of my maintainance program. Also a must for emergencys.

 

[Sindjin]

Welcome to the institution.

 

[Ironman]

I remember reading a post by Randy saying that carbon filtration makes little impact on removing trace elements. The biweekly water changes will replenish whatever has been used up.

Here's a post from Randy about Iodine.

Iodine

I do not presently dose iodine to my aquarium, and do not recommend that others necessarily do so either. Iodine dosing is much more complicated than dosing other ions due to its substantial number of different naturally existing forms, the number of different forms that aquarists actually dose, the fact that all of these forms can interconvert in reef aquaria, and the fact that the available test kits detect only a subset of the total forms present. This complexity, coupled with the fact that no commonly kept reef aquarium species are known to require significant iodine, suggests that dosing is unnecessary and problematic.

For these reasons, I advise aquarists to NOT try to maintain a specific iodine concentration using supplementation and test kits.

For the full version
www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-05/rhf/index.php

 

[moumda]

Use carbon 24/7 in sump. Change it every 2 weeks.

 

[johnfluevogs]

OK...So i think that I will begin useing carbon.

Now the questions is, what kind? I wanted to buy it in a larger quantity and bag it and put it in my sump.

Any suggestions?

 

[E-A-G-L-E-S]

no one said the ywere dosing it, one guy said he heard carbon pulled whatever amount is in salt out of water.

 

[johnfluevogs]

Anyone have a suggestion as to what kind of carbon to use??

 

[Anemonebuff]

I use Chemipure or BioChemZorb. It uses carbon and cation/anion resins and is already in a bag.

 

[DrBDC]

I use black diamond in a phosban reactor changed about every 2 weeks.

 

[j0tca]

I use about 4 cups of black diamond in a bag in my sump that I change about every month. I have to admit that I do this out of habit more than anything else. I have not noticed any difference using it or not using it. I have seen many spectacular systems that do not use any carbon, but like with anything else in this hobby, to each is own.

 

[Saltywater]

I use carbon 24/7 and I change it out once a month.