carbon? who runs it - Page 2

EmilyB · #11 03-04-2005, 06:03 AM

Yes, I see green macro in your tank Sam, interesting.

Samw · #12 03-04-2005, 06:06 AM

But I think the coloring was coming from excessive fish waste.

EmilyB · #13 03-04-2005, 06:08 AM

Interesting, but wouldn't you think I would get green with my hoard ?

Richer · #14 03-04-2005, 06:09 AM

I've only run carbon on my tank for the last month and a bit, I personally haven't seen any difference in my tank, but since I have the stuff laying around, I figure I might as well use it.

BTW, my tank has been running a fuge packed with chaeto since day one. Fish load is somewhat on the lighter side though (2 false perculas and a lawnmower blenny in a 33gallon with 15gallon sump).

-Rich

Samw · #15 03-04-2005, 06:22 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by EmilyB

Interesting, but wouldn't you think I would get green with my hoard ?

Well, its more yellow/brown than green. But you should take a top-down pic and then run a large bag of carbon through a hang on filter and take another pic in 10 days and see if there's a difference.

Canadian Man · #16 03-04-2005, 06:26 AM

I notice the same thing in my tanks as Sam's.

SO

I run carbon all the time

EmilyB · #17 03-04-2005, 08:37 AM

For esthetic reasons then would you say, or something other benefits as well ?

Samw · #18 03-04-2005, 09:29 AM

Activated carbon absorbs dissolved organics so it helps when you have a high bioload.

High amount of organics can produce ammonia/nitrite/nitrate. High organics could result in less oxygen in your water (This can be one of the reasons why my night time oxygen and ph levels are so low). High organics absorbs light which which is not good if you have photosynthetic animals. Some dissolved organics can also be toxic. Dissolved organics also smell bad (I put carbon in my skimmer collection cup and it works well to get rid of odour coming from it).

So if a tank has high bioload, these are some of the reasons to use carbon. Basically, if you already have a crystal clear tank and don't have any chemical warefare, you probably don't need to use it. For my tank, its a must.

http://www.reefkeeping.com/issues/2004-10/rhf/

Beverly · #19 03-04-2005, 01:30 PM

Never run carbon unless I'm having a specific problem in a particular tank. If I ever did switch to using carbon all the time, which isn't very likely, I would change it weekly.

sumpfinfishe · #20 03-04-2005, 02:16 PM

I have been running Chemi-Pure for years, I wouldn't run a system without it