Can I start/stop GFO without changing media?

[Formulator]

Title is pretty self explanatory, but I’m wondering if I can turn my GFO reactor back on after being off for a week or so. The media wasn’t exhausted. I just stopped it because my PO4 reached my target. It has creeped back up and I want to turn it back on for a couple days. Then continue to use intermittently this way.

My only concern is decaying matter in the stagnant reactor spiking my nitrates. I know it smells horrid when I change the media after letting it sit for any period of time.

 

[gbroadbridge]

Gentle bump.

 

[Sdbuehler1]

Are you running it for 24 hours a day when it is on? When I first change out my media it seems so potent that I only need to run it about 2 hours a day. I slowly ramp up the hours when I see the PO4 climbing. Once I get to running it about 12 hours a day and the PO4 is still climbing I figure it is time to change the media. I would think that you could just redirect the output hose to a bucket and drain a gallon or so to clear out the stagnant water / particles if it has sat for a week.

 

[DanyL]

It also depends on the media.

Large sized granules - decaying matter is a concern only if left alone for more than a week or so, a quick 5-10 minutes run will clear that up.

Small, sand like granules (like ROWA) - this media also clumps if left without flow for long, I’ve never measured how many days but I had this happen to me once. I usually run mine 24/7, but for the rare occasions that I do need to slow down the reduction rate I would either lower the flow, or limit the use for only a few hours per day. If you do want to stop it for longer I would run it once a day for 5-10 minutes just move the media and clear any decaying matter.

 

[Formulator]

Thanks all. I didn’t think to run it once a day for a few hours. That’s a great idea and I should be able to program it into my apex to automate!

 

[ReefED!]

Your concern is valid

This isn't some new system with pristine water. It has stuff in it and stuff is going to grow in that media - all kinds of bacterial film.

In fact I did something very similar and left a reactor in for over a month and I basically had to replace the sponges because there's just too much gunk in them.