My pellets are in my ZeoRx, but I have them in a carbon bag, they don't tumble. But when I mix my reactor twice daily, I am quite vigorous... Seeing some good mulm come out. I am having a slight, and I say slight algae bloom yesterday, but today it has decipated. Same with diatoms on sand, but again today it is looking good again. Something is happening!

Overall, water looks nice, it was clean before, but seeing even more sparkle/scrispness. This is a good sign of things happening.

Edit:
I have also now turned off my UV, I was running this opposite cycles with my Reactor, on a 3 hour on/off cycle. UV was independantly added (not on return), keeping the pump going and cylcing some water in the return area back through refuge and skimmers. This to put some mulm through the refuge/skimmer cycle so I don't get too much and to run some cleaned water through twice. Also have my Reactor on 24/7 now to see what happens.

I am interested in running these in a TLF reactor. Do the foam rings pose any problem or does the reactor have to be modified due to the mulm.

cheers
Ray

The pellets reduce in size over time so if there are no foam rings these small pellets will be spat out out of the recator.

The foam will get plugged up with mulm eventually and will have to be cleaned.

hmmm sound like a lot extra maintnence... maybe ill wait a littl bit and buy a reactor

Supposedly it can take 8 months to a year for the pellets to fully dissolve, new pellets can be added continuously to maintain the volume.

Sweet! Order placed!:mrgreen:

SPS PE is VERY noticeable,even though sps in my tank had a very good PE ( i thought ) now its even better.

I noticed the same thing, sponges a getting plugged up slightly. I know for sure i Did clean them up before placing pellets on Dec 30/2009, and i am only a day 10 with pellets.

Was reading on RC that many don't use the sponges in the TLF reactor's I was thinkning not using the sponges too.

Very interesting info. My nitrates are a bit high (around 20) I tried vodka dosing I got to dosing 8.7ml on day 68. But after 68 days and not seeing any change in my nitrate levels I slowly stopped vodka dosing.

Since I stopped vodka dosing my nitrates have remained at the same level. The only difference I noticed from vodka dosing was my zoos started to shrivel up and die :sad: Since I stopped vodka dosing my zoos are slowly making a come back and are looking better. I would like to try these N/P pellets but I wonder if after a few months of use if it too would have a negative affect on my zoos like the vodka dosing did.

I would think that taking out the sponges would be fine, I personally would add a piece of Enkamat pre cut to fit in place of the sponges top and bottom. The Enkamat would work perfectly to stop the pellets from flowing out with the flow but at the same time not plugging up!

http://www.oceaniccorals.com/store/i...ds/enkamat.jpg

:peace:

I doubt the pellets would have any negative effect on the Zoas whatsoever, the beautiful part of the pellets is that they produce the Mulm which feeds the whole tank including Zoas. Dosing Vodka alone does not produce any such bacterial Mulm byproduct.

Hope that helps.

Yes it does Thanks :biggrin:

Do you stock Enkmat? I've been meaning to try find some for Skimmer Pump mods

I do have some left, enough for one skimmer mod. I have more on order too.

Ian

Well, I think I'm gona be buying a Bubble Magnus anyways. The DIY skimmer is just to much of a time consumer/headache. I need to get my tank params under controll here, and finish off the projects, not tinker with equipment LOL

Good call!:lol:

I put them in a normal carbon bag, all seems ok. FYI

Week 4 start
 

Day 21, start of week 4. Something a bit surprising and unexpected today.

Today's nitrate reading is 20.

I recalibrated my meter 4 times and got the same result. Still in disbelief I tested nitrate with my Elos nitrate test kit and unfortunately the only thing I got out of it was why I hate colour comparison based test kits because depending on how close I was standing to my tank, you would think 2.5, 5, or 10ppm nitrate ... so I'm not sure what to think of that .. chuck it out maybe? I'm not sure.

Surprising because I even did a 20% water change yesterday.

So, there might be a couple reasons that contributed to this unexpected jump:

1) There was a bit of a tank upset on Sunday where I found the trigger in the overflow. Removing him from the overflow was a several hour exercise in where the sump had to be shut off, as I had to remove plumbing and the skimmer and the hood just so I could stand close enough to the overflow to maneuver a net inside the overflow.

2) Tonight I found that my skimmer air intake was blocked by lint. Was a little surprised because I shoot water in it once per week to clean it out, but when I blew into it, the restriction was obvious. I had to use a nail to scrape out the little John Guest valve to get the lint/dust out that had solidified in there.

3) It could just be it's a signal to replace the zeolites. I'm also using half the recommended dosage for both the zeolites and pellets, so perhaps this is the signal that it's time to start ramping up the volumes up to the recommended levels.

4) Been having a little trouble dialing in the autodosing of Alk and Ca lately. It was stable for several months but lately I've been having to increase the flowrates and it's been a little bit tricky, one week the Alk will jump too high, the next it will drift down.

Other than the electronic reading of the number, there is no visual cue that there's anything to worry about at this point. The water remains clear, the sand remains clean, the fish seem to be fine. So, hopefully just a little bump and things will reset in the next few days.

Hope it's nothing Tony. 5 days till I can start MY pellet's :D I can't wait!

Is he/she ok Tony?

Seems to be OK now. A few scrapes and scratches though, but looks mostly healed up now. I tried to upload a second video last night using a more-better camera but the upload failed and then my laptop died. So tonight's project is to see if I can resurrect it enough to try uploading to youtube a second time.

I've covered the overflows now but truth be told I don't know if that's better. I could just see a fish jumping and then getting stuck enough in the eggcrate that they just die instead of flop back into the tank. :neutral:

Well, weirdness abounds. Looks like yesterday's readings are suspect after all.

I tried testing again today and got 13ppm. I tested my other tank and it was the same as it's ever been at 5ppm.

So, just for giggles, I tested the water in the reactor with the pellets, and noticed something odd. If I tested by putting water into the sample vial, I would get readings anywhere from 13 to 19 (did 4 tests in a row all with different numbers). If I tested by putting the probe into the reactor itself, I got steady readings of 7 again and again. So I thought (not initially putting two and two together), oh, ok, something in the tank is spiking the nitrate, but at least the reactor is doing its thing and reducing the nitrate.

But then I tested my sump without the sample vial, and got 7. So I tested the main tank and again got 7. Back into the vial, I got 13, 14 and other numbers.

Soooo .. I guess my testing is being thrown off by interference. I don't know if it's the syringe I'm using to collect 5ml of tank water, or the probe's sample jar itself that's causing the interference. It bears mention that I rinse the probe and the vial itself with tap water after every use before I put it away, so I don't think it's any residual left on the probe itself. Also weird that the 40g tank has steady readings of 5. Just for giggles I should see what reading I get if I just stick the probe in the tank water in that tank (I didn't think to try that tonight..)

What kind of meter you using Tony? That amount of testing would have used a whole Salfert kit LOL. I HATE using the kit's :( I love my PH meter, but my PH barely moves, so I don't need it really HAHAHA

I use a Pinpoint nitrate monitor. Yeah I hate colour comparison based test kits because I don't know if I'm looking at them in the right light or whatever. Titration ones (ie., where you drip something and count the drops or measure the volume dispensed until you see a colour change are a little better, because apparently I'm not colourblind enough that I can't tell the difference between red and blue, but apparently I am colourblind enough to not see the difference between one pink and another pink).

Just an update from me.

Wow!!!! I can say the mulm is ridiculous, much more than just running zeolites. I am with Tony and running about half of the recommended of both Pellets and Zeolites.

When I pump the reactor it is like I dosed Coral Snow, lots of mulm and cloudy for a bit.

My wife stated last night, "your tank is becoming more colorful". I didn't ask her about it, she just commented. So I will give Kudos to the NP Bio Pellets.

And it has only been a couple weeks, I can't wait to see what happens in the future.

Excellent results. Our newest order arrived today so they will be shipping out to everyone Monday. Those with back orders will also be looked after.

Ian

is anyone testing phosphates as well? afterall this product claims to reduce both and i am very interested in using this soon if the results prove fruitful.

Week 5 start
 

Unfortunately I decided not to bother with phosphate testing. I always get a zero phosphate reading when I do a test, but I do get non-zero nitrate readings, so I chose to focus on what I can actually track. I don't know why it is that I always test out at zero for phosphate. I feed fairly heavy so you'd think there would be some, but I've used all different kinds of test kits and even a meter and the results are always the same. It could be the ball of chaeto I grow in the sump does a better job of sucking up PO4 than it does NO3.. that's the only theory I have on that.

For what it's worth it is on the eve of day 28 here, so I might as well post the NO3 numbers I got this morning. The tank seems to have clamped itself at 10 in the last week. I got a few readings of 7 on the weekend but they were sporadic readings, ever since then I can't get a reading of sub-10.

So I think what's happened is the pellets and tank have hit upon the equilibirium point seeing as it hasn't really dropped below 10 in any significant sense in the last two weeks. In other words, the amount they are able to reduce are matched with the amount the tank can produce. I had been using half the recommended dosage for starters for both pellets and zeolites, just to ease the tank into things ...I think it's time that I up the amounts to the recommended dosages and see how it continues on from there. So that will be this week's project.

I never bother testing for phosphates. I've always got a "0" reading on both Salifert & Elos kits. I know there are phosphates in the system bound up in the rock, algae, etc. I find you need a top grade tester to measure phosphates.

Oh FWIW, another observation. Some of my fish seem to enjoy eating the mulm. So it's not just coral food, it's fish food too. :lol:

The mulm production is INSANE. I hope it's doing good for inhabitants because there is a lot of it and it does increase your skimmer output. So the downside is more work, the filter socks need cleaning twice as often and the skimmer needs cleaning more often as well. Wish I had a wetneck skimmer. :lol:

We have just received another order of Pellets, they are ready to ship!

I will test PO4 as well. I am leaving for home today, will test and start my own thread for ease and less clutter. I am sure I have some PO4 reading. It was .03 in Dec

As read on Reef Builders.

http://reefbuilders.com/files/2010/0...arbon-dosi.jpg

Biopellet reactor in the works by Aquarium Specialty and NextReef


Hot on the heels of the announcement of Fauna Marin Zeo-Matic 2 Reactor we come to learn that Aquarium Specialty is working with NextReef to develop of fluidized Biopellet Reactor. It only makes sense that the North American distributor of the Dutch Biopellets would team up with the media reactor specialists over at NextReef to take the initiative in developing a product that would optimize the performance of the solid-carbon-dosing Biopellets. At the outset the Biopellet Reactor will only be available in bundles of two sizes: the smaller bioreactor with the half liter of biopellets and a larger version that will come with the full liter of the biopolymer pearls. No word on whether the media reactor will include integrated or external flow adjustment or a water pump but it better include the former, preferably in a well designed integrated form like a wedge pipe or a dial (we’re looking at you Scott!). Word is that NextReef should be receiving their Biopellets very soon to test out on the prototype reactors. Keep it locked to Reef Builders for forthcoming pics and/or vids of the new biopellet reactor in action.

Anyone know if any place in calgary is selling this yet?

I have two orders going to Calgary if you would like to hop on board.

Cheers!

Ian

Week 6 update
 

Week 6 update.

So, sometimes you learn things by trial and error. My last week's efforts to double up the media in the reactor have had a paradoxical effect. I doubled up both the zeolites and the N/P pellets and the resulting mix is noticeably restrictive on the velocity of water running through the reactor. In turn, the bacterial mulm released upon agitation is on epic levels, far more than the tank inhabitants consume - and this in turn is contributing to a build up of nitrate back in the tank.

Meanwhile, those who are running the pellets in reactors on their own report continued reductions.

So, I will be separating the two media types into different reactors. I have a spare phosban reactor I can use for starters and will see where things go after that. I will elect to sustain or suspend zeovit independently of this. I suspect at this point that the mulm from the pellets have coated the zeolites rendering them ineffective.

"In conclusion": although I think I don't have enough datapoints to make a solid recommendation on whether it's worthwhile or not to run pellets AND zeovit together; versus just one or the other... however I do think there is a definite trend here that we can make a recommendation against running both types homogenously in the same reactor vessel.

No one yet, been asking, no store is interested at this time.

Personally I am still running 1L of Zeolites and 500ml of BioPellets in the same Reactor. I am seeing good results.

Tony thanks for your test results, maybe running more of both is not worthwhile, but at this point the amount and combination I have seems fine.

they say with zeo less is more usually had a bad algae outbreak from dosing recommend levels or at least on bottle dropped back and things turning around