Phosban Reactor Good/Bad/UGLY?

[kyle1284]

I am thinking about purchasing a 2 little fishies phosban reactor for my 50 gallon tank with nothing but cheato grape capulera(sp) in the 20 long sump, and LR in the display ... i am planning on keeping 5-7 small fish in the tank with a SPS dominating 80 percent of the tank, some lords, micros, zoos and a couple clams...the Phos are off the charts and im going to be doing a 30 gallon WC tonight to see if that knocks it down some... my questions are:

what is the maint. like on the reactor?

do sps thrive in a absolute 0 phos environment?

what kind of corals can not live in 0 phos waters?

what are the pros/cons in your opinion about a phosban reactor?

what information based on your experience with a phosban reactor do you feel compelled to give me?

 

[E.intheC]

If I .. eh hehm.. had a job.. (lol) I'd be buying one. I have heard the 2 little fishies phosphate reactors aren't the best quality, but aren't terrible either.

Check out the bulkreefsupply website. they have a dual carbon and phosphate reactor that looks sweet.

IMO, I'd be buying a good skimmer before a reactor though.

 

[ELLAS]

depending on what phosphate media ur using, is when ur gonna have to change it. Some are intended for quick use ie, they will release phosphate back into the water when its exausted.. Or you buy the good stuff and its good for 3 or so months. Clean out the pads in the reactor atleast once a month, knead the phosphate bag gently under water to clean it up a little.

Seawater has traces of phosphate and yes its good to have a little in ur tank. 0-0.03 are good. Most test kits aren't that great unless u have a Hanna meter. But if ur getting readings of 0.03 ur ok.

You need to control phosphate in ur reef tank, the best way I prefer would be a reactor. Dont push too much water through it, 90 gallons an hour is good. Too much and u can blow out the reactor or turbulant water can cause the media to grind itself away and that will end up in ur water, no good....

dont forget carbon either.....running both will keep ur tank clean and ur livestock happy,,, happy reefing

 

[ELLAS]

oh DUDE,,,, ur not running a skimmer yet......LOL,,,, get a good skimmer first...

 

[kyle1284]

ha no no no i have a huge skimmer on this tank (compaired to the tank size) i have a ASM G-1x

 

[Rick55555]

I think running GFO can be a helpful tool in reducing phosphate, but I recommend you first address the underlying nutrient issue.

You mention that your phosphate is high, but don't mention what your water change schedule looks like. How regularly are you changing the tank water? What's your source water? Hopefully you're using RO/DI (with 0 TDS).

I'm of the opinion that you're better off reducing your phosphate in the "traditional" way by way of water changes, appropriate feeding and skimming before investing in a reactor. In so doing you won't have to buy as much GFO media and won't need to replace the GFO as often.

As for my thoughts on the two little fishies reactor, I think there are better designs out there. I own one and I don't like the arrangement/placement of the input and output nozzles. However, it does do the job and is definitely affordable. My dissatisfaction with the design isn't enough to motivate me into replacing it.

I hope this helps

Rick

 

[LockeOak]

I use a TLF phosban reactor, as far as the design goes it's more than good enough for the job and the build quality is pretty solid.

The most important rules for GFO that I've had to learn the hard way are: 1) rinse the GFO before use, 2) start off with a low dose, otherwise you can really bleach your corals when a large fraction of their symbiotic algae die due sudden lack of nutrients.