Activated Carbon

[rickyricardo]

Has anybody tried and or found an alternative source for the activated carbon we use for our filters? I mean is it the same stuff you can buy in bulk for say something like water purifyers? The cost of this stuff is ridiculous. I'm sure the price is jacked up just because they know its needed for the application we use it for. What do you think?

 

[Nic]

you can use the same stuff i have a friend that does.... some carbons are a little better but he changes his every week anyway....

 

[dmopar74]

just dont use carbon. its not necessary.

 

[Pufferpunk]

just dont use carbon. its not necessary.

I totally agree, for FW tanks. I do use Purigen in my Marine tanks, which is rechargable.

 

[Fish Eat Fish]

I dont use carbon either on any of my FW tanks. Ive even heard it can hurt your fish. Ive heard that it can cause hole in the head for oscars

Marine is a bit of a different story though

 

[Ransom]

i find carbon can be really annoying to deal with all those tiny pieces next time i use it im going to put it in some tights or something thats got really small holes

otherwise i do like the effects it does make my tank much more clearer

 

[>:(]

I only use carbon on tanks that are new and cycling. Once they're well established I pull carbon from my filters and replace it with biomedia. I never noticed any difference after removing it. I used to always use it, once upon a time.

 

[brianp]

I'm reluctant to belabor this, because I haven't used carbon for several years but "technically" there are probably some differences between the "aquarium grade" and the other activated carbons. However, from a practical perspective, I would guess that other than having to replace the lower grade carbon more frequently, you will probably never see a difference. I agree with those who advocate abandoning the use of activated carbon.