Carbon Users-Please Reply

up north hermit

up north hermit

Member
I want to use a little carbon every now and then. Maybe for 48-72 hours every three weeks or so.
What kind of carbon is best for a reef? No leaching, etc.
Tell me what YOU use.
TIA
Hermit
 
fender

fender

Active Member
I have read that granualted carbon is the best. When my water gets to looking a little yellow, or after I do water changes I (once or twice a month) I drop a bag of granulated carbon in my CPR bak pak's return side (no bio bale and I have to weigh it down with a rock so it doesn't clog the outlet tube - big mess long story - another great use for LR :D )
Any way I buy the bags meant for use in an Aquaclear 300. Fits perfect in the CPR. Already in a bag. I keep it in for a day or two then take it out for next use. Been using the same bag for 3 months and seems to still be working fine. Clears the water fairly quickly.
HTH
 
fender

fender

Active Member
BTW I use it after water changes cuz I use tap water..........
Yeah I know its bad but algae is not out of hand, every one seems happy and an RO unit is on the list after I get another 50lbs LR and the MHs and the refugium and....
Isn't this fun!!! If I ever won the lottery I would still have more to buy and not enough money to spend..... I 3000 gallon tank would sure be nice tho......
:D :D :D :D :D
 
indy1

indy1

Member
Is there anything wrong with leaving carbon in for a couple of weeks or so at a time? I use Kent reef carbon.
 
fender

fender

Active Member
The carbon tends to remove alot of stuff that is beneficial to a reef environment.
It is recommended in almost every resource I have checked to use carbon as little as possible and some books say not to use it at all. As I stated above I use it only after water changes because I use tap and when I notice yellowing of the water. The trace elements that are used for coral growth and other inverts is pulled from the water as well as the bad stuff.
I have read that the carbon pretty much is used up in a week or two anyway. Use it when you need it but I don't recommend for continued usage.
 
playtime

playtime

Member
uh oh!!! I use a carbon filter in my empiror 280, am I not supposed to. Well, if I am not, I am lucky because I use it in both tanks and so far so good.
playtime :rolleyes:
 
fender

fender

Active Member
Didn't mean that it would hurt anything, just that you may not be getting best bang for the buck using carbon all the time. Most salt mixes have a slightly higher trace element concentration anyway so what you remove may not be such a big deal. If however you don't do regular water changes and don't dose, carbon may remove some of the chems like iodine, stontium,calcium etc. that are needed for crabs, shrimp and corals to flourish. If you do dose, how much stays in the tank and how much fills your carbon?
Here's a suggestion:
Try not using the carbon and see what happens, compare the pros and cons and make your own decision based on what you find to be the best for your tank.
:D
 
ironreef

ironreef

Member
in a well feed system you can use carbon 24-7 no prob. carbon is good for only a few days to a week then its saturated.= you must replace or try rinsing to add life. black diamond is a good carbon. test your carbonfor po4. some leech alot some very little to no leeching
 
adrian

adrian

Active Member
Been using chemi pure 24/7 for years with no problem. Not sure if its better or worse than other brands, I just like it becouse it already comes in a bag :) Just rinse and toss it in. I change it about every 2 months.
 
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