GAC question, what brand of GAC is most effective? Adsorption capacity

[Malcontent]

Mark Levinson reposted a guy's research comparing different brands of GAC

Carbon In The Reef Tank - Part 1 (Repost) | Melev's Reef

www.melevsreef.com

If the goal is tannin removal I wonder how well specialized tannin removal ion exchange resins (typically used for removing color from well water) would work.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I'm just saying Blue has both carbon and a resin that removes phosphates.

I do not agree with that.

Chemipure elite has GFO, but the resin in chemipure blue will not bind phosphate from seawater. No polymer material can.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

If the goal is tannin removal I wonder how well specialized tannin removal ion exchange resins (typically used for removing color from well water) would work.

I think that's a reasonable surrogate for what we want GAC to do in a reef tank.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I have trouble in choosing GAC, I don't know which brand GAC is better

Red Sea​

HydroCarbon2​

Seachem​

ROWA

I don't know the comparative capacities of those. I used ROX 0.8.

 

[xxxenmsy]

I don't know the comparative capacities of those. I used ROX 0.8.

THX ! Randy~

 

[blaxsun]

I do not agree with that.

Chemipure elite has GFO, but the resin in chemipure blue will not bind phosphate from seawater. No polymer material can.

I could be remembering it wrong - I'm just going off what their rep said on a video at the recent Reefapalooza. He indicated that Elite had GFO but Blue used a different method of removing phosphates.

I've used both Elite and Blue and they both worked to keep phosphates in-check on a pair of smaller tanks that I ran them on.

Since upgrading I've switched over to Nyos Phosi-Ex and my phosphates have never gone above 0.5 (they typically range between 0.025-0.15).

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I could be remembering it wrong - I'm just going off what their rep said on a video at the recent Reefapalooza. He indicated that Elite had GFO but Blue used a different method of removing phosphates.

I've used both Elite and Blue and they both worked to keep phosphates in-check on a pair of smaller tanks that I ran them on.

Since upgrading I've switched over to Nyos Phosi-Ex and my phosphates have never gone above 0.5 (they typically range between 0.025-0.15).

I would not be surprise if a Boyd rep said that, and maybe even believed it. It isn't true in seawater. It might be true in fresh water if the ionic strength was low enough (i.e., with few other negatively charged ions to compete for any positively charged binding sites that may be present).

.

 

[blaxsun]

I would not be surprise if a Boyd rep said that, and maybe even believed it. It isn't true in seawater. It might be true in fresh water if the ionic strength was low enough (i.e., with few other negatively charged ions to compete for any positively charged binding sites that may be present).

"Contains two high-grade hybrid ion exchange resins to produce a synergistic formula for the health and well-being of your aquarium inhabitants."

"Chemi-pure Blue uses the finest laboratory grade resin technology to RAPIDLY remove organics and phosphates from your aquarium water while raising redox and helping stabilize pH."

Since it's for both freshwater and saltwater, maybe the phosphate removal component is freshwater-only?

 

[Spare time]

This is a nice read

Carbon In The Reef Tank - Part 1 (Repost) | Melev's Reef

melevsreef.com

I use red sea carbon because it has the lowest dust and is the most durable out of any I have used. However, it may not be the most effective carbon as coconut shell carbon might not be the best. I actually tried to reach out to red sea to answer my questions about the pore sizes of their carbon in angstroms but they did not know. I asked that after reading this https://www.drtimsaquatics.com/aquarium-hobby/general-articles/activated-carbon/

For reference, I can remember having used (in various tanks): API carbon, seachem matrix carbon, chemipure (all of them but green), brs bituminous, brs rox 0.8, pelletized carbon (I can't remember the brand), and red sea carbon.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

"Contains two high-grade hybrid ion exchange resins to produce a synergistic formula for the health and well-being of your aquarium inhabitants."

"Chemi-pure Blue uses the finest laboratory grade resin technology to RAPIDLY remove organics and phosphates from your aquarium water while raising redox and helping stabilize pH."

Since it's for both freshwater and saltwater, maybe the phosphate removal component is freshwater-only?

If anywhere, it is freshwater only. Any positively charge resin will bind phosphate (negatively charged) from adequately low ionic strength seawater, and none, IMO, can bind phosphate at the range we are interested in (say, 0.03 to 0.5 ppm), against the massive competition of sulfate and chloride in seawater.

I actually tried the very best known phosphate binding polymer resin (at least without containing metals in them) and it did not work (as I expected). I tried bulk sevelamer, a phosphate binding polymer I co-invented to treat hyperphosphatemia in people. Over many years we showed it is near the very top in phosphate binding compared to of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of other polymer we made specifically to bind phosphate.

 

[Spare time]

"Contains two high-grade hybrid ion exchange resins to produce a synergistic formula for the health and well-being of your aquarium inhabitants."

"Chemi-pure Blue uses the finest laboratory grade resin technology to RAPIDLY remove organics and phosphates from your aquarium water while raising redox and helping stabilize pH."

Since it's for both freshwater and saltwater, maybe the phosphate removal component is freshwater-only?

Funny enough Randy recently corrected me on chemi pure blue and phosphate removal recently

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

This is a nice read

Carbon In The Reef Tank - Part 1 (Repost) | Melev's Reef

melevsreef.com

I use red sea carbon because it has the lowest dust and is the most durable out of any I have used. However, it may not be the most effective carbon as coconut shell carbon might not be the best. I actually tried to reach out to red sea to answer my questions about the pore sizes of their carbon in angstroms but they did not know. I asked that after reading this https://www.drtimsaquatics.com/aquarium-hobby/general-articles/activated-carbon/

I agree with him. GAC designed to bind gaseous organics from the air usually have quite small pore sizes, too small to be optimal for our use.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Funny enough Randy recently corrected me on chemi pure blue and phosphate removal recently

It's a hot button issue for me. lol

 

[blaxsun]

I use red sea carbon because it has the lowest dust and is the most durable out of any I have used. However, it may not be the most effective carbon as coconut shell carbon might not be the best.

You may want to give Nyos Active Carbon a try some time. Even less dust than Red Sea (which I used to use). Their Phosi-Ex (GFO) is also much better, with larger pellets and less red dust (way superior to RowaPhos).

 

[Spare time]

It's a hot button issue for me. lol

I swear you need to do a Comedy Central roast special of reefing companies

 

[Dan_P]

I have trouble in choosing GAC, I don't know which brand GAC is better

Red Sea​

HydroCarbon2​

Seachem​

ROWA

May not matter if you follow manufacturer’s suggestion to change change it often. Buy the cheapest one.

 

[xxxenmsy]

This is a nice read

Carbon In The Reef Tank - Part 1 (Repost) | Melev's Reef

melevsreef.com

I use red sea carbon because it has the lowest dust and is the most durable out of any I have used. However, it may not be the most effective carbon as coconut shell carbon might not be the best. I actually tried to reach out to red sea to answer my questions about the pore sizes of their carbon in angstroms but they did not know. I asked that after reading this https://www.drtimsaquatics.com/aquarium-hobby/general-articles/activated-carbon/

For reference, I can remember having used (in various tanks): API carbon, seachem matrix carbon, chemipure (all of them but green), brs bituminous, brs rox 0.8, pelletized carbon (I can't remember the brand), and red sea carbon.

Thank you for your answer

 

[EricR]

If anywhere, it is freshwater only. Any positively charge resin will bind phosphate (negatively charged) from adequately low ionic strength seawater, and none, IMO, can bind phosphate at the range we are interested in (say, 0.03 to 0.5 ppm), against the massive competition of sulfate and chloride in seawater.

I actually tried the very best known phosphate binding polymer resin (at least without containing metals in them) and it did not work (as I expected). I tried bulk sevelamer, a phosphate binding polymer I co-invented to treat hyperphosphatemia in people. Over many years we showed it is near the very top in phosphate binding compared to of hundreds, perhaps thousands, of other polymer we made specifically to bind phosphate.

Interesting as the couple of times I ran Chemi-Pure Blue and was paying attention to Phosphates (Hanna ULR), I observed that my phosphate level did go down, fairly substantially.

I assumed it had something to do with the "other stuff" in chemi-pure blue (beyond GAC) since the marketing material suggested that it somehow lowered phosphates.

*I trust your word over Boyd marketing but just figured I'd mention my observations.

Could've been a side effect of the organics removed, in general, not getting a chance to break down into nutrients.
Could've been something else I was doing differently, maintenance-wise. (Wasn't doing anything specific to actively bring down phosphates).
Could've been pure coincidence, I guess, both times.