Rinsing Activated carbon with RODI

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

I always rinse with RO because I don’t want my new carbon sucking up chlorine, chloramines and other contaminants from my tap water.

just to be clear, carbon does not accumulate chlorine or chloramine. It breaks them down into ions that it does not bind, such as chloride and ammonia.

edit: I see some already explained this

 

[Dan_P]

I always rinse with RO because I don’t want my new carbon sucking up chlorine, chloramines and other contaminants from my tap water.

GAC decomposes chlorine and chloramines, so can skip the RO rinse.

 

[Scrubber_steve]

Of course everyones tap water is different but mine is particularly nasty with a typical TDS over 350, It will literally burn your eyes, leaves brown residue on everything and stinks if left standing a few days

Crickey, I hope you don't drink this stuff!
I wouldn't use it to wash the dog.

 

[Quietman]

Crickey, I hope you don't drink this stuff!
I wouldn't use it to wash the dog.

Oh bottle as natural springs nutrient water and sell it for $5 a bottle.

 

[Rich Klein]

Yes it is standard practice to remove dust/fines but I remember reading a long time ago in a book that rinsing/soaking carbon in RO/DI not only removes dust and possible PO4 but also helps open up the pores and essentially increases its performance VS not rinsing/soaking at all or rinsing/soaking with freshly made salt water.


Sound feasible? or hogwash? and why?

I install the new cartridge and then run the output tube into a white bucket for a few seconds, flushing it with tank water until it runs clear. I of course turn off my ATO until I top-off with new mixed saltwater.

 

[Quietman]

Oh bottle as natural springs nutrient water and sell it for $5 a bottle.

Why pay for laser peel facials when you can wash daily with our bottled water?

 

[Scrubber_steve]

Why pay for laser peel facials when you can wash daily with our bottled water?

Paint stripper

 

[X-37B]

I use BRS ROX 0.8 and just put it in a nylon sack and then my sump. It is not dusty like other carbon that you have to rinse several times to get clean. I guess you get what you pay for. Been doing it this way for 3 years with no issues.

 

[Triggreef]

I must be the odd ball on the forum. I rinse my carbon at the sink with tap water. Seems to work fine.

Maybe for you, but I assure you if you rinsed it in my tap water, you'd give up on reefing fairly quick... lol

 

[LegendaryCG]

Actually Red Sea mentions soaking carbon in RO for 24 hours to eliminate trapped air.. but I just rinse it for 2 minutes in a tap water lol.

 

[Graffiti Spot]

Carbon removes organics /metals via adsorption, but these elements in town water supplies are negligible, so that's not a consideration when rinsing.

Carbon acts differently for chlorine, it does not adsorb it like metals or organics, rather it converts its form as it passes through - electron exchange, and carbons ability to do this is infinite.
Even when it has been depleted of its adsorption capacity, activated carbon still functions as an electron exchange medium for chlorine, meaning it will convert chlorine to chlorides. The exceptions being when there is channelling or total blinding of the carbon where direct contact with the carbon and chlorine is prevented.
So tap water is fine for rinsing.

So really if we are worried about chloramines then we should be putting a carbon granule filled cartridge before any other filters and not even worry about changing it ever? Just rinse and reuse? I see all these people using expensive chloramine filters and changing them often which is a ton of money!

 

[Scrubber_steve]

So really if we are worried about chloramines then we should be putting a carbon granule filled cartridge before any other filters and not even worry about changing it ever? Just rinse and reuse? I see all these people using expensive chloramine filters and changing them often which is a ton of money!

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

So really if we are worried about chloramines then we should be putting a carbon granule filled cartridge before any other filters and not even worry about changing it ever? Just rinse and reuse? I see all these people using expensive chloramine filters and changing them often which is a ton of money!

carbon blocks get degraded by getting clogged with particulates, organics and certain types of chemical degradation. But not at all by binding and getting full of chloramine, chlorine, or ammonia.

Rinsing isn’t much help.

 

[Graffiti Spot]

That’s why I said to use a cartridge filled with granules carbon and not a micron block. Because you could rinse the carbon off in the cartridge and just add it back and get the same effectiveness against chloramines right?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

That’s why I said to use a cartridge filled with granules carbon and not a micron block. Because you could rinse the carbon off in the cartridge and just add it back and get the same effectiveness against chloramines right?

Are you asking about ro/di? If so, I worry about full contact with the GAC in simple granules. RO/DI is a single pass application that is far more demanding than a reef water application.

 

[lavoisier]

carbon blocks get degraded by getting clogged with particulates, organics and certain types of chemical degradation. But not at all by binding and getting full of chloramine, chlorine, or ammonia.

Rinsing isn’t much help.

Randy, I recently watched a video that suggested that a more expensive (2x) 1 micron carbon block filter for RO/DI lasted 50x longer than the cheaper 5 micron carbon block for removing chloramine. If I am understanding you (always problematic that I am ;Bookworm ) the video is not understanding how a carbon block functions. Wouldn't the 1 micron clog more quickly?

 

[Graffiti Spot]

Are you asking about ro/di? If so, I worry about full contact with the GAC in simple granules. RO/DI is a single pass application that is far more demanding than a reef water application.

Yes I am talking about removing chloramine in a rodi filter system. A whole canister full of only carbon, you would worry about contact time or ability? I would think with the small amount of water supplying most filters, the carbon would have enough contact time. The big blue chloramine filters used for commercial use is just carbon granules in a canister and they are supplied with a 1” connection, if that filter works then I would think an extra canister on our filters would be fine being supplied with a 1/4” line. Unless I am completely confused with what we are talking about.

 

[theMeat]

Rinse carbon in cool water to keep the dust from clogging up the membrane

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley Verified Community Expert]

Yes I am talking about removing chloramine in a rodi filter system. A whole canister full of only carbon, you would worry about contact time or ability? I would think with the small amount of water supplying most filters, the carbon would have enough contact time. The big blue chloramine filters used for commercial use is just carbon granules in a canister and they are supplied with a 1” connection, if that filter works then I would think an extra canister on our filters would be fine being supplied with a 1/4” line. Unless I am completely confused with what we are talking about.

I don’t really know, but I expect there’s a reason these are sold as blocks and not granules in a canister.