S
shouse
Guest
hear hear. waiting for mine as well. still considering what pump to use since i have to buy one. ANy suggestions?
Just opended my new PhosBan Reactor 150!
- Thread starter benj2112
- Start date
g13
Member
Hey benj2112, thanks for answering my question. I called that place with the monthly special and they said next week he'll be rec 100 units and should be able to fill his backorders and then some. What media do you recommend me getting the rowaphos or the phosban (phosban is 9.99 that's the cheapest I've ever seen it)?:thinking:
benj2112
Member
Well, one night of running and the thing didn't flood my tank with Rowaphos.
Pumps for item: instructions say you can use a Maxijet 500. I use a mag drive 1.5 as I already had it and it wasn't being used (and it ended up being about perfect considering it had to push water up about 2' or so).
Rowophos is a lot more expensive then phosban I think, but it is suppose to be better. Here is a quote I found from some searches and research about Rowaphos (as it was made by Germany to remove phosphate from their water systems).
"Other medias tested reached only 30% to 40% of it ’s removal capacity by weight. Additionally ROWAphos was found to continue to remove phosphates at lower concentrations and had a higher maximum holding capacity."
I went with Rowaphos myself as it is "lab grade" media. But, you might just go with the phosban and see what your results are.
Pumps for item: instructions say you can use a Maxijet 500. I use a mag drive 1.5 as I already had it and it wasn't being used (and it ended up being about perfect considering it had to push water up about 2' or so).
Rowophos is a lot more expensive then phosban I think, but it is suppose to be better. Here is a quote I found from some searches and research about Rowaphos (as it was made by Germany to remove phosphate from their water systems).
"Other medias tested reached only 30% to 40% of it ’s removal capacity by weight. Additionally ROWAphos was found to continue to remove phosphates at lower concentrations and had a higher maximum holding capacity."
I went with Rowaphos myself as it is "lab grade" media. But, you might just go with the phosban and see what your results are.
attml
Active Member
Mike Paletta recently spoke at one of our aquarium club meetings and highly endorsed the fluidized phosphate style reactors. Here is a picture of his tank below. I believe he was using the same brand of fluidized bed filter as SteveWeast (Deltec). He said he had run both the RowaPhos and Phosban and they both worked but that the Rowaphos eliminated all of his hair algae while the Phosban only seemed to remove a lot of it. The big benifit of this this type of media is that once it is worn out it doesn't leach the phosphate back into the water. At the first sign of unwanted algae you know it is exhausted and you replace it. I recently ordered the Phosban Reactor as well and am waiting on back order, but can't wait to set it up.
Mark
Mark
benj2112
Member
Man, I screwed up last night!!
Well, my fuge lights came on and just about an hour ago I noticed I had a nice dusting of Rowaphos on the rocks and sand. I guess when I was trying to get the thing set with the right amount of water flow I had it on too high part of the times and a fine dusting of it covered was escaping and I wasn't really noticing it (I guess always error on the side of low flow BEN! You should of known that anyway).
The stuff isn't suppose to hurt anything but I siphoned what I could anyway. I seem to be good at making little (and thank goodness) minor suprises for myself.
Well, my fuge lights came on and just about an hour ago I noticed I had a nice dusting of Rowaphos on the rocks and sand. I guess when I was trying to get the thing set with the right amount of water flow I had it on too high part of the times and a fine dusting of it covered was escaping and I wasn't really noticing it (I guess always error on the side of low flow BEN! You should of known that anyway).
The stuff isn't suppose to hurt anything but I siphoned what I could anyway. I seem to be good at making little (and thank goodness) minor suprises for myself.
benj2112
Member
"I guess when I was trying to get the thing set with the right amount of water flow I had it on too high part of the times and a fine dusting of it covered was escaping and I wasn't really noticing it"
With that statement from my last post...I guess I should read what I type before I post it and not look like such an idiot. I have no idea how I came up with that last statement.
With that statement from my last post...I guess I should read what I type before I post it and not look like such an idiot. I have no idea how I came up with that last statement.
lutz493
Member
Fair warning.
I purchased a Reactor last week and ran Phosban in it.
I was using a Lifegard unit - I had it set and it was working fine for a little over 24 hours, then when I went to sleep last Friday night, the Phosban leaked into my system.
I woke-up to a completely Brown tank, fish bleeding from gills (From iron poisoning), all my piping, pumps stained brown.
I spent a good 3 days cleaning up the mess and ended up replacing a few parts.
I lost 2 cleaners and a coral. Fish are back to normal, but it was a huge mess. So make sure you have that thing set correctly cause it can get out of hand very quickly.
I purchased a Reactor last week and ran Phosban in it.
I was using a Lifegard unit - I had it set and it was working fine for a little over 24 hours, then when I went to sleep last Friday night, the Phosban leaked into my system.
I woke-up to a completely Brown tank, fish bleeding from gills (From iron poisoning), all my piping, pumps stained brown.
I spent a good 3 days cleaning up the mess and ended up replacing a few parts.
I lost 2 cleaners and a coral. Fish are back to normal, but it was a huge mess. So make sure you have that thing set correctly cause it can get out of hand very quickly.
elpezgrande
Member
Ben, so you think too much flow was the problem? The Phosban Reactor does have "sponges" at the top and bottom to help keep the media inside the reactor. Do you think something like rinsing the media off first would have helped get rid of some of the fine dust that ended up in the tank, or did you do that and still had the problem?
benj2112
Member
Wow!! Sorry to hear about that. That makes my little mishap seem like nothing. I agree with that warning, though.
Don't get too much water flowing through these things!!! Steveweast said it best when he said (and I am just going by memory here as I am in a hurry), "you just need enough flow to keep the media fluidized."
Don't over do it, or over a night it will dust ( or like Lutz...more than dust!!) you tank with the stuff.
Don't get too much water flowing through these things!!! Steveweast said it best when he said (and I am just going by memory here as I am in a hurry), "you just need enough flow to keep the media fluidized."
Don't over do it, or over a night it will dust ( or like Lutz...more than dust!!) you tank with the stuff.
benj2112
Member
I did kind of rinse the media. I let about 2 gallons flow into a bucket first. That was some DIRTY water (probably like what lutz had in his whole tank). This was recommended in the directions. I can't see rinsing it in a seperate container working well, either.
Now, there might of still been some more and I should have let it run what looked like "clean" water for another gallon, but I also was having trouble tinkering with the VERY sensitive ball valve. I turned it just a hint to much and the stuff was at the very top against the sponge filter.
Now, there might of still been some more and I should have let it run what looked like "clean" water for another gallon, but I also was having trouble tinkering with the VERY sensitive ball valve. I turned it just a hint to much and the stuff was at the very top against the sponge filter.
zanemoseley
Active Member
how do you know exactily how much ROWA is 250ml? I guess I can just try to get half of the 1/2 liter tub. So do you have any more tips besides running 2-3 gal of water thru it, also can I just run RO water thru it? The ROWA is just suppose to lightly tumble right.
benj2112
Member
I just estimated when I added about 333ml to mine (1/3 of my 1 liter canister).
I believe you can run RO water through it if you want. It is good for both fresh water and saltwater systems. When you put the pump in your tank or sump you just have to remember that you are adding what the canister can hold in freshwater at the begining, which will have an effect on your salinity (maybe very tiny depending on your tank size).
Yeah, the Rowaphos is just suppose to lightly tumble..if you have to much water flow the stuff with get to high and the stuff at the top of the fluidized media is fine enough to go THROUGH the filter. I am thinking I might try and better filter pad the next time I load the thing up (which might be months from now).
I believe you can run RO water through it if you want. It is good for both fresh water and saltwater systems. When you put the pump in your tank or sump you just have to remember that you are adding what the canister can hold in freshwater at the begining, which will have an effect on your salinity (maybe very tiny depending on your tank size).
Yeah, the Rowaphos is just suppose to lightly tumble..if you have to much water flow the stuff with get to high and the stuff at the top of the fluidized media is fine enough to go THROUGH the filter. I am thinking I might try and better filter pad the next time I load the thing up (which might be months from now).