Orange, sulpher smelling effluent
 

Hi there, I have a canreef Ca reactor which has been working fine. My bubble count is about 8/min, and my drip rate is about 25 min. The PH is of the effluent is 6.8. Like most people, I collect the effluent in a cup which overflows into the sump.

A few weeks ago, the effluent cup became all orange, and the effluent started to smell like sulpher. Nothing seems terribly wrong, but I am now getting a thin orange ppt "film" on the top of the effluent in the cup, and the smell is getting a bit stronger.

Any ideas?

Thanks
Jason

What type of media are you running?

Moved to the Reef Forum

I am running ARM aragonite reactor media, and it has been in there for about 7 months now. the level of the media is down about 3" from original height.

Jason

You are running the flow rate so slow that your reactor is in effect becoming an anerobic zone. Which is breaking down ammonia etc. Same thing that happens in a DSB.

What size tank do you have? 25 drips per min is not a lot when you look at the volume of a tank.

I am running a 33 gallon tank and have an effluent rate of 75 milliliters per minute.

I highly doubt that with those rates you are getting much if any use out of your reactor. It is becoming a denitirifcation device. or partially so. Not a Ca reactor.

Darren, I like your theory, although I would expect the pH to be lower in that case. Thoughts?

Four bubbles of CO2 a min isn't a heck of a lot.

I can see that on it's own the pH should drop tho if it is anerobic. How low does an anerobic zone go I wonder? maybe it has stabilized itself and 6.8 is the pH of a denitrificator.

I imagine that if it's anaerobic, HSO4 is being produced and that would drop the pH below 6.8, IMO.
I think just to be safe though, the efluent rate can be increased. Also, how is the pH being measured? I've developed a distrust of pH measurements without verification. :razz:

I was thinking that now myself. But how else to explain the sulfur smell?

So short of knowing that the pH is in fact 6.8 using a reliable mearuement device we can assume that it is in fact less than that.

my bet is closer to 6. or less. Only way you are going to be breaking the organics down to get that smell is anerobic. I think at least.

What are you using to measure the pH Jason?

Thanks guys....

wow, I am no chemist, so you are losing me a bit. I am measuring the PH with a PH monitor attached to my Neptune Aqua contorller II. I have calibrated the PH monitor with solution, and have also tested the PH with a test kit and the results are confirmed.

The Tank PH is 8.13. Now it's beena while since I actually confirmed the PH monitor readings, but for right now, let's assume they are correct.

Darren, i think you might be onto something, for altough my corals are doing fine, they are not growing, and I am not getting any corraline (sp?) growing in the tank. I have a 92 gallon tank.

So here is a question. Assuming my system is anerobic, what settings do you suggest I try?

Thanks again
Jason