O.C.'s Pellet questions and answers!

[Bblinks]

Brad is absolutely right. it is imperative that the outlet from the pellet reactor is pointed at the skimmer intake where the excess bacteria can be taken out of the system. It is like harvesting chaeto from your fuge every month, if you don't harvest the chaeto, it will simply release the absorbed n and p back into the water column as it dies off.

Originally Posted by abcha0s

Simply put - it won't work. Period. Don't try it.

Here's why. The whole point of carbon dosing is to export nutrients from your system. The bateria consume the N&P and are then exported from your system through skimming. If you don't skim them out, the bacteria will eventually die in your system and release the Carbon/N&P back into your water colomn. This creates a really bad bacteria cycle and can potentially lead to a tank crash.

There is no magic to the use of biopellets. The N&P will stay in your system until you remove it. If you don't skim it out, you are just adding carbon to the system and removing nothing.

To answer a question posted earlier - you really need to direct the effluent from the biopellet reactor directly into your skimmer. Ideally it would be a direct link between the two systems. If you simply direct the effluent in the general direction of the skimmer intake, the system will be less efficient and you will have more bacteria in your water colomn. This bacteria will die leaving the carbon in the water colomn (where it was previously only in the reactor) and the whole system will not be as efficient. Even with a good skimmer some bacteria will end up in the water colomn (which may be a good thing) but you really want to minimize this.

- Brad

[Gooly001]

Just to move this discussion further along, exhibit A by the most excellent Gary White:

http://zeovit.com/forums/showthread.php?t=5770

In particular, this post:

http://zeovit.com/forums/showpost.ph...1&postcount=11

and...

http://zeovit.com/forums/showpost.ph...3&postcount=12

and onwards...

Skimmer or nothing my friends, but for more reasons than the obvious

[GMGQ]

Thanks for the input guys. In light of this information, I've now chosen a different direction to go with for my tank.

Thanks!