Is now the right time to run GFO/Carbon?

[johnbr]

So,

I've just finished re-organizing everything. I spoke with 3-4 BRS Customer Representatives about moving my skimmer where my refugium was to make more space and they said there's nothing wrong with it. Reason is to let my chaeto get more nutrients before them get stripped away by the skimmer. Also there was to only space that I had to put my BRS Reactors.

Here's a few pictures:






PS. I'm gonna spend tomorrow just to do cable management.

 

[infinite0180]

The way I see it

Running half dose of carbon...
Carbon will remove things from water. Some of those things good, some bad. Will also help make water clearer. Will do little for nitrate and running half dose will slow the removal process.

Gfo will only remove phosphate.
Running half dose will not slow the removal process, only quicken the time the media needs to be replenished. If you want to remove the most phosphate in the fastest way, put small amounts and change often. Put more than needed and you won’t have to change as often, but gfo media can /will get stuck together and become a big block, making it hard to remove, especially if you don’t make it tumble.

Also a good idea to put a valve on reactor if running gfo, because you will likely need to adjust to keep the flow at a good rate to have media lightly tumbling

Ime two lil fishes reactors are not good for gfo, because the media will leak out into water and since iron based will find its way onto pump magnets and cause problems

When it comes to carbon it’s a good idea to step it up to full amount so you don’t shock your corals with more light because the water will/should get clearer, and you also don’t want to shock your bio load, particularly the ammonia part of your nitrogen cycle

When it comes to gfo you should run full amount if you are outside of the given parameters of .05 max phosphates for a happy reef tank that we go by these days. Because gfo is not magic and it will take time for it to go down. It goes up and down much more and faster just from the tank lights going on and off

Could you help me out and elaborate some more on what you meant by carbon shocking your bio load? Thanks!

 

[theMeat]

Could you help me out and elaborate some more on what you meant by carbon shocking your bio load? Thanks!

Carbon is going to take ammonia out of your nitrogen cycle

 

[theMeat]

So,

I've just finished re-organizing everything. I spoke with 3-4 BRS Customer Representatives about moving my skimmer where my refugium was to make more space and they said there's nothing wrong with it. Reason is to let my chaeto get more nutrients before them get stripped away by the skimmer. Also there was to only space that I had to put my BRS Reactors.

You could do it either way, but imo and ime skimmer , then fuge is a more efficient way to go. The skimmer takes proteins right out of the equation, before they breakdown and enter the cycle, then the fuge gets what’s the skimmer doesn’t. Especially nitrates and phosphates, the end game of the nitrogen cycle, and what forces most to do water changes.
Methods, like triton, depend on big fuge, and fertilizers, that want fuge first then skimmer, because their system is designed around macro as the main source of nutrient removal. but rely in part on, and recommend a full fuge for another source of trace elements, and/or how their trace elements interact with it.

 

[Jet915]

When started my tank, I checked my phosphate and it was 0.31. I started a dual rector with 1.5 cups carbon and 1 cup of GFO mixed and my phosphate has gone down between 0 and 0.1. I bought an extra cartridge so its easier to swap out and changed it once so far (when the phosphate hit 0.1). It lasted about 2 months.

 

[infinite0180]

Carbon is going to take ammonia out of your nitrogen cycle

So are you saying its better to allow your BB to handle the ammonia rather than carbon removing some? I guess im just a little confused. I have a new tank that cycled about 5 weeks. I added fish and a bag of carbon earlier this week. I was planning on switching from a bag of carbon to a reactor. Should i hold off on the reactor for awhile and let the BB continue to adjust for awhile?

 

[theMeat]

So are you saying its better to allow your BB to handle the ammonia rather than carbon removing some? I guess im just a little confused. I have a new tank that cycled about 5 weeks. I added fish and a bag of carbon earlier this week. I was planning on switching from a bag of carbon to a reactor. Should i hold off on the reactor for awhile and let the BB continue to adjust for awhile?

What i’m Saying is that carbon causes swings.
New carbon absorbes a lot. As it gets used up it slows. Until it gets completely used up. Then you change and the process repeats. Carbon is also porous, so it grows bacteria, then gets thrown out.
Not saying carbon is bad. Many ppl use it with great results. I haven’t used it in years. Over the last few years have been designing low to no maintenance tanks. Been three years without s water change on my fully stocked, heavily fed 220. Have a 150 going on a year, and a 200 going on 2.
Would rather run a uv slightly undersized for water clarity. Where the bulb only needs to be changed every 10 months or so, and rely on rocks and fuge for bio load