Phosban Reactor Stupidity

[rkelman]

What's not better about it? lol. I feel your pain. They are a real hassle. I think they are better than passive but I'm not sure they are worth it some days.

[banditpowdercoat]

Ya It's a pain for sure..... I don't run GFO now who, 1 reactor Biopellets, 1 reactor Carbon. MUCH easier

[lastlight]

One day I'll splurge and get the BRS dual reactor. That the ticket I'm thinking.

[Doug]

Originally Posted by lastlight

One day I'll splurge and get the BRS dual reactor. That the ticket I'm thinking.

Agreed. I actually had it on my order, then changed it for the single phosban reactor. Those media inserts look easily changed. Mind you I thought the same about his one.

I still like my AquaClear media bags the best and just hang them in the sump.

Or even better, run sumpless and use my AC 110 power filter.

[Myka]

I don't find them a pain in the butt at all. I have one for carbon and one for GFO because I only run the carbon one for 24 hours once per week.

If something is a pain in the butt I tend not to do it often enough, so I make sure I have things set up so that it is easy (like water changes!). I have a little cap that I put on the stand pipe when I fill it. The cap is from a wine set that you pump the air out of the wine bottle, so the cap is hollow. It fits perfect! I also pre-rinse GFO with RO/DI using a fine mesh sieve, and carbon is always rinsed with the sieve, then boiled, then soaked for 24 hours before using. This way when I hook them back up I only have to catch half a kool-aid jug of dirty water before letting them flow back into my sump.

FYI Doug, the carbon should be on the bottom with the GFO on the top. That way the GFO holds the carbon down so it doesn't tumble, and cleans the water before the more expensive GFO gets to it. Oh, and I have noticed a big difference using a reactor compared to passive.

[lastlight]

What's your reason for boiling the carbon? And do you boil it in ro/di?

Currently I only have the TLF reactor for bio pellets but undecided if I'll stick with those.

My carbon ran passively on the Solana and will on the big tank for now. I plan to sit the bag in my baffles so water has to pass through them. Of course I won't make the bag the full width of the baffles just in case.

[Myka]

Ya, I boil in RO/DI. Being the coal leftover from burning organics, most carbons will release some phosphates, although not a significant amount. Soaking will leach the phosphate, but boiling releases it quicker. I have been able to confirm this using a Merck test kit. When you boil it, depending on brand, there is often a kind of greasy film that goes on the pot at the water surface...not sure what that is, but I'm glad it doesn't make it to my tank!

Some people think boiling used carbon will clean it so you can use it again, but that is not the case.

[Lance]

I run the BRS dual reactor and find it superior to the TLF reactors. It doesn't clog up as quickly. I change the media once a month and I can never go a whole month with the TLF before it clogs. The BRS does it easily.