Idea for increasing Marinepure blocks nitrate removal.

[thejuggernaut]

I have been looking at the MarinePure blocks and because they are so porous, they are great at removing Ammonia and Nitrite. But because they are so porous only the largest one will create an anoxic layer to remove nitrates.

My idea is to create an acrylic box where I can stack two 8x8x4 blocks in. The only place where water could enter and exit would be on the ends, so it would be able to create a much large anoxic layer. I know it would be about $120 for two block, plus whatever it would cost for me to make the box. So what do people who use the blocks think. Do they work as claimed. Do the larger blocks actually aid in Nitrate removal, and do you think adding more thickness would increase nitrate removal. I figure putting them in the box would probably reduce ammonia and nitrite removal, but I'm OK with that, because those have never been a problem for me.

 

[Reefing Madness]

Will never stack up to the same size sump with Macro Algae in it.

 

[thejuggernaut]

I tend to agree. I was thinking more of in conjunction with. With running less and less live rock, I was thinking it may be a good idea to add more surface area. Plus it's practically maintenance free, and if raised off the bottom a little, it wouldn't collect detritus. Just an idea.

 

[Reefing Madness]

Ah, yes, if your running less LR in the DT, then by all means. But if your even just running 1lb per gallon, you'd only need a good skimmer and just Macro, but, its gotta be a good size fuge, most don't understand this. If you have a 125g DT, a 20g sump isn't going to do anything but hide equipment.

 

[thejuggernaut]

Yea, I'm all for the high flow, high powered fuge light with a rolling ball of cheato in as big a sump as you can fit under your stand. The rock work I'm using in this tank I'm building now will probably be about .25-.40 lbs per gallon. I doubt I will have more than 40-50 lbs in my 120. Here is half of the rock I'm going to be using on the left half of the tank. For reference, that is a 12X12 tile.

 

[reefwiser]

The marine pure block and balls are great home for bacteria. The balls have a very porous design that does denitrate the water.Most Live rock sold today is not as porous as the wild live rock I used back in the late 80's and early 90's . That rock would soak up the water into the it and do a great job. Most rock sold today is not as pourous as the old wild caught rock.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

If you have tried them and actually find them inadequate for nitrate removal, adding a little organic carbon will help. Otherwise, they need to rely on naturally present organics to enter the pores and be broken down. People forget the need for organics to enter these media or they won't work, and adding a little ethanol or acetic acid will greatly facilitate the process.