What Sorcery Is This? (Sera Siporax)

[H]-[H]

Since I got my new tank 2 weeks ago, I added a pack of sera siporax in the side filter..
Prior to that, I changed water and added blue salt bought from the LFS..
After few hours all the sera siporax turned blue and I assumed that's normal considering they are porous and absorb better..
Two days ago, I went and bought another two packs of sera siporax, put them in the side filter, changed water and added blue salt but they didn't turn blue.. Not even a slight change in color..
This really baffles me and hope that somebody can enlighten me on this matter..


P.S: The siporax that I bought 2 weeks ago had been sitting on the shelf for a very long time and the box even has some mold on it(see pic) while the other two packs are new..

 

[H]-[H]

Is there such thing as an expiration date for bio rings that haven't been in contact with water?

 

[rodger]

I don't know about the color change but I don't see how something inert could expire. That would be like a rock being too old.

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[Empyreal]

It is possible that when you first added the siporax there wasn't much bacteria colonal growth on the siporax since the tank was new. This allowed the blue color to adhere to the siporax where the bacteria would normally have been. When you added it the second time there would be plenty of bacteria to live on the siporax by then, allowing no room for the blue material to adhere. Just a thought

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[H]-[H]

It is possible that when you first added the siporax there wasn't much bacteria colonal growth on the siporax since the tank was new. This allowed the blue color to adhere to the siporax where the bacteria would normally have been. When you added it the second time there would be plenty of bacteria to live on the siporax by then, allowing no room for the blue material to adhere. Just a thought

If I'm not mistaken, it takes time for bacteria to colonize the rings, a few days at least?
So by right the new rings should show the same absorption as the original rings that I put in two weeks ago..

 

[petspoiler]

I would guess that traces of the "blue salt" was absorbed into the first rings, and were diminished enough to not effect the second batch of rings. but I've never seen the blue salt which you mentioned..

 

[H]-[H]

I would guess that traces of the "blue salt" was absorbed into the first rings, and were diminished enough to not effect the second batch of rings. but I've never seen the blue salt which you mentioned..

The blue salt is sold locally here.. it's labelled as conditioning salt..
If what you mentioned is true, then the rings are really good absorbers.. to the point where there's no leftovers lol

I'm tempted to add the salt solution straight into the compartment where I put the second batch of rings to test it out but unsure if it's a wise move..

 

[blindkiller85]

Can always buy more siporax. Chances are though if you are continually adding it, eventually it would turn blue if the siporax is indeed absorbing it. Or could be that it was old as you said before, and there was mold that was growing on the old siporax. Maybe the bag was not sealed due to age (expansion and contraction with heat and cold) or just a puncture and the mold absorbed the "blue" and not the media. Makes far more sense than anything else, it's not like the water was saturated with blue salt and passed solely through the siporax, because that's the only way I see them turning blue is through saturated water.

 

[H]-[H]

At the time when I bought the first batch, the box wasn't sealed but the rings seemed normal just like the second batch..
I tried adding the salt directly into the second batch of rings and for a while I could see some blue dots on a few rings but after that they turned back white..
Perhaps the salt wasn't enough.. I'll try repeating the same thing with bigger water changes in a few days, that way I can add more salt and see the result..

Btw, the siporax is expensive and I don't plan to buy anymore at the moment.. Perhaps in the future if needed but I doubt it..

 

[H]-[H]

I would guess that traces of the "blue salt" was absorbed into the first rings, and were diminished enough to not effect the second batch of rings.

Oh well, curiosity got the best of me and I took the trouble to rearrange all the media.. Needless to say, I need to change water again and add salt to test..
I was disappointed to see the result.. The second batch remains white as snow, not even a dot of blue on any of them..
Perhaps I need to put them below the original batch but my gut feeling is telling me that I'll get the same result.. It's like I moved the media for nothing.....