Activated carbon

[vines]

Seems to be widely debated topic, curious as to the club’s opinion on using it. Do you use it or not and why, if you do how frequently and how much?


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[SynDen]

I have always used carbon in every tank I have ever done, both freshwater and salt. As long as you rinse it well and don't get the dust in the water column, there really is no downside to using it.
I mainly use it just to help maintain water clarity, its also absorbs some heavy metals if you happen to get some in the water, and also potential toxins that some corals may give off such as leathers.

 

[vines]

So what do you think about correlations with HLLE, is that just people not sufficiently rinsing to remove fines?


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[SynDen]

I have never had an issue with HLLE in my tanks that had carbon, so in my experience peoples correlation with it causing that is way over blown. I have one tang that developed a bit of it in QT but I don't run carbon in there at all, so no idea what caused it, but he the only fish I have ever had that got it. As long as you rinse it until it runs clear, you are fine imo

 

[Angelo]

I don't use carbon unless an ICP recommends it. I dose Microbacter7 weekly for water clarity and phosphate removal. I've never left carbon in longer than 2 weeks either. I side with caution on the HLLE potential. I've never had it so I go with this regiment.

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[jda123]

The HLLE study used A. Bahanius which are not really all that suited for aquarium use are notoriously skittish and difficult to acclimate. I also have never had HLLE issues when I used carbon, and ironically, I had an A. Bahanius that got some HLLE in a introduction/isolation tank that never had carbon on it. Back before good pellets and mysis added fatty acids and some vitamins and fish got HLLE all of the time, I could nurse fish with bad cases of HLLE back to as good of health as possible while using GAC. I respect Jay Hemdal and what he does, but that study was flawed, IMO.

Rinse it. Don't let it tumble and break down. This is pretty much GAC 101 even without any HLLE concerns.

 

[jda123]

I also just remembered that all of the HLLE studies used lignite carbon and did not appear to have the same issues with bituminous or ROX. Even then, we all seemed to use lignite back in the day, when it was all that was available, and I still had no HLLE issues.