we all know that carbon isnt neccessary, and the manufacturers of it suggest replacing it every 3-4 weeks but how long does it really last? ive heard only a few days to a week. anybody have a true answer?
the truth about carbon?
- Thread starter dmopar74
- Start date
Carbon is necessary unless you have an inexhaustable supply of perfect water to change your tanks with.
Rule of thumb in planning your carbon changes: carbon will absorb half of all the matrial it is capable of in the first week, Half of the remaining capacity in the following week, and so on.
In most cases with reasonable bioload, a good carbon will be reduced to 12% of available filtering capacity after a three week period.
Rule of thumb in planning your carbon changes: carbon will absorb half of all the matrial it is capable of in the first week, Half of the remaining capacity in the following week, and so on.
In most cases with reasonable bioload, a good carbon will be reduced to 12% of available filtering capacity after a three week period.
ive heard that purigen is excellent. does it do the same thing as carbon and will it polish my water? i have always had somewhat cloudy water nomatter what i do.
i was schooled at a lfs that i worked at in my teens that carbon is everything and can fix any problem well we know thats not true but since i have learned that the bio filtration is more important thanks to MFK my tanks are running clean and clear for months now and iam not worried about changing carbon all the time made my tank mantanice easyer so far the only need for carbon that i see is medication or foreign pollutent removul.
well i didnt mean to imply that changing carbon regulary is the only thing required in tank maintenance certainly god biofiltration is a prequisiste to any setup what im sayin is that it will remove impurities such as chlorine and chloramines wiythout the addition of extra chemicals and as bigtrainpointedoutitsverygoodatremovingmedicationsandotherforeignpolutantsthanksbigtrain!
By the way I'm being ignorant to make a point about taking the time to at least make an effort to punctuate and capatalize when typing. Its make your posts so much easier to read. Thanks and no hard feelings.
By the way I'm being ignorant to make a point about taking the time to at least make an effort to punctuate and capatalize when typing. Its make your posts so much easier to read. Thanks and no hard feelings.
I've also been on a carbon strike for around 6 months, and my fish are fine. In my planted thank the plants are doing a hell of alot better. I've had no problems with odors or cloudyness since I stopped using it (unless I neglected a water change.) Although I have had more tannin staining, but there are better products available if someone wants those removed.
I do keep a big package of it for medication removal, it does have its uses IMO.
I do keep a big package of it for medication removal, it does have its uses IMO.
I use carbon on a few a small tanks IE 2-10 gallons but only bio and mechanical filtration on everything else i own