Dual chamber reactors

[tcorriveau]

At what point should I begin using a dual media reactor? I have seen several individual posts stating that if your tank is less than a year old you shouldn't use one and then there are others that state to use it as soon as you can get one. So, what do you all recommend for this?

 

[thegrun]

Tell us a little more about your tank please. Are you keeping just fish or corals also? If you plan on corals what types? I personally think it is a good idea to run carbon even in a fish only tank, but certainly if you are keeping different types of coral as the carbon can help absorb the positions some corals release to fight off other corals from invading their space. Running GFO or phosphate removing resins is only necessary if you have elevated phosphates which is a common problem. You are better off with two separate reactors if you have space for them since carbon and GFO work best at different flow rates.

 

[tcorriveau]

I currently have two duncan corals, mushrooms, and a green hammer coral with live rock and several fish, crabs, and snails.