New sulfur denitrator working great!

[ReeferBud]

No, that was definitely bacteria growth. I had to just clean my reactor and start over myself.

how often have you had to clean it in the past? It seems to be every 6 months for me and the whole cleaning is about a 1.5 hr maintenance job.

is it normal? Maybe it is and it’s just a con of running a SD but I seem to have read that people run theirs for years without any issue. Low maintenance was one of the reasons I went with a SD vs keeping a refugium or carbon dosing, which I regarded as more work.

 

[2Wheelsonly]

I’m worried about the start over part myself, it took over 8 months for my reactor to kick in and start working.

 

[mtfish]

I think the difference is that we cannot find the larger sized sulfur and are using the prills. One thing I did find is that I did not need as much media because of the greater surface area. I am also using a tom's aqualifter as a pump. Perhaps if I used a stronger pump it could keep it from clogging so fast. I am relatively new to this myself so learning as I go.

As far as cleaning, I just run well water (tap) and cleaned up in just a few minutes. On my system, I have enough bacteria still on the sulfur that restarting only takes about a week. It is not like using brand new prills with no bacteria present.

 

[ReeferBud]

I usually takes me 3-4 weeks.

start slow in the drip rate. I also believe there needs to be nitrate in the system for the bacteria to start to colonize the reactor. Not sure if you’re at zero and prolonging the process.

 

[ReeferBud]

I am also using a tom's aqualifter as a pump. Perhaps if I used a stronger pump it could keep it from clogging so fast. I am relatively new to this myself so learning as I go.

the reactor recirculating pump should be delivering the required flow in the reactor to keep it in equilibrium and prevent dead zones.

As long as the aqua lifter can feed the throughput you need, it should be ok.

I monitor ORP on my reactor so i can tell as soon as the throughput flow or the recirculating flow decreases. It’s super sensitive.

 

[2Wheelsonly]

Best thing I ever did with mine was feed with a quiet one pump and then pull with a kamoer peristaltic pump. Never clogs and remains perfectly stable with the effluent drip rate. It makes stepping up over time perfect as I never have to worry about clogs slowing it down.

 

[mikevas78]

I was reading an article on this and a chemist says we can smell the result way before it becomes toxic to the reef tank, very good article

What article did you read on this?

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

What article did you read on this?

Might be referring to my article, since I address that issue:

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-12/rhf/index.php

The Odor of Hydrogen Sulfide

---

Hydrogen sulfide has a strong "rotten egg" smell. The odor of H2S can be detected in the air by humans at levels as low as 0.5 to 300 ppb. The large variation in range indicates that some individuals are very much more sensitive to it than others. Interestingly, humans may become insensitive to the odor at concentrations above 100,000 ppb. For this reason, individuals working with the gas need to be aware that they may no longer smell hydrogen sulfide when it is present at life threatening concentrations. When I have used hydrogen sulfide in the laboratory, I have worn sensor badges that indicate exposure to concentrations that may be too high to smell, warning that action needs to be taken immediately (fortunately, I was very careful to work in a chemical fume hood and never smelled, nor was I exposed to any hydrogen sulfide).

When dissolved in water, the smell depends strongly on pH (which determines how much is in the volatile, hence "smellable," H2S form). Humans often can just detect hydrogen sulfide odors when the concentration is above about 0.029 ppb in freshwater. In seawater at pH 8.2, where only 6% of the sulfide present is in H2S, this odor threshold is likely higher, perhaps on the order of 20-fold higher (0.6 ppb). Fortunately, that threshold is below the lethal limit of many aquatic organisms (usually above 5 ppb; sometimes as high as 50,000 ppb), so odor often can be detected by humans before hydrogen sulfide rises to acute, lethal concentrations in reef aquaria.

 

[nldemo]

Hello!

I installed my TS-3 back in October 2020, and it worked miracles on my extremely high levels of nitrate. Before, it was unmeasurable .. now it is steady < 5ppm.

However, the unit has filled with an off white hairy slime algae or something. Maybe from bacteria die off from all the sulfur that no longer has nitrate for dinner? I'm not really sure, but I need to clean it out. Not sure on the best method for that as some of the channels are pretty unreachable. I've purchased new media and reached out to Aquamaxx.

Wondering if anyone has had any similar experiences or other thoughts on what I may have run into.

@Randy Holmes-Farley Can you recommend any sulfur test kits for the marine aquarium?

 

[nldemo]

I honestly think because the reef stuff that was seeded with bacteria is hard to find many of us are using those prills from Amazon. I honestly think it just takes them forever to seed with bacteria; I didn't notice anything in mine for 6 months and after around 8 my denitrator kicked in full gear. I went from 40 no3 in my 350G to dosing just to keep it at 1-2. They all work, just can take way more time than others.

Just let it cook. You're using bioballs vs sulfur so I assume it's going to be a very long process.

I used the same amazon prills and it only took two weeks for me. However, I had extremely high nitrates to start, so that could have had something to do with it. I keep my effluent at max output, my main issue is simply keeping alk up so I dose daily for that.

 

[nldemo]

other than this issue, I really like the sulfur denitrator and it’s great at keeping my nitrates in check. It definitely works! But this is a major inconvenience and would love to be able to solve it.

ideas welcome!

I'm having the same exact issue as you. Not sure if it is mulm or something else, my theory was due to bacteria die off. In my case, my nitrates were probably 800+ and now down to <5 with the nitrator after only about a month of operation. I think all that bacteria is starving and dying within the reactor, which in turn releases that sulfur odor as well (i have effluent set to max). I'm not sure if washing the same media and putting it back in is the best choice, and I already bought fresh media but I'm willing to try this and see how it works. I plan to change the ratio in my reactor though, maybe 1/3rd sulfur to 2/3rd calcium - since my nitrates are much lower now I don't think I'll need nearly as much media going forward in order to maintain. I can always add more in later if nitrates rise again.

 

[ReeferBud]

I'm having the same exact issue as you. Not sure if it is mulm or something else, my theory was due to bacteria die off. In my case, my nitrates were probably 800+ and now down to <5 with the nitrator after only about a month of operation. I think all that bacteria is starving and dying within the reactor, which in turn releases that sulfur odor as well (i have effluent set to max). I'm not sure if washing the same media and putting it back in is the best choice, and I already bought fresh media but I'm willing to try this and see how it works. I plan to change the ratio in my reactor though, maybe 1/3rd sulfur to 2/3rd calcium - since my nitrates are much lower now I don't think I'll need nearly as much media going forward in order to maintain. I can always add more in later if nitrates rise again.

that’s my hypothesis too, that it’s bacteria die off.

also like your idea of changing the ratio and decreasing the amount of sulfur in the reactor.

how are you feeding it?

my old masterflex just broke, so I’m feeding off a manifold but the pinch valve to restrict the flow is very difficult to control and keep a steady flow.

 

[nldemo]

that’s my hypothesis too, that it’s bacteria die off.

also like your idea of changing the ratio and decreasing the amount of sulfur in the reactor.

how are you feeding it?

my old masterflex just broke, so I’m feeding off a manifold but the pinch valve to restrict the flow is very difficult to control and keep a steady flow.

I kept it simple and went with the Tom's Feed pump as recommended by Aquamaxx.

 

[nldemo]

Might be referring to my article, since I address that issue:

http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2005-12/rhf/index.php

The Odor of Hydrogen Sulfide

After re-reading your article some 10 years later, I guess I don't need to test for sulfur at all. Just manage my pH and maybe test for hydrogen sulfide if I can smell the odor? Or not even bother testing for H2S?

 

[ReeferBud]

I kept it simple and went with the Tom's Feed pump as recommended by Aquamaxx.

that’s wise! I’m not very good at keeping things simple

 

[Jon_W79]

Hello!

I installed my TS-3 back in October 2020, and it worked miracles on my extremely high levels of nitrate. Before, it was unmeasurable .. now it is steady < 5ppm.

However, the unit has filled with an off white hairy slime algae or something. Maybe from bacteria die off from all the sulfur that no longer has nitrate for dinner? I'm not really sure, but I need to clean it out. Not sure on the best method for that as some of the channels are pretty unreachable. I've purchased new media and reached out to Aquamaxx.

Wondering if anyone has had any similar experiences or other thoughts on what I may have run into.

@Randy Holmes-Farley Can you recommend any sulfur test kits for the marine aquarium?

I think that the white slime could be heterotrophic denitrifying bacteria. I have read that they can coexist with the sulfur oxidizing bacteria if they have an organic carbon source(I think I have some at the very top of my reactor). I think that if you have a lot of algae growth that might could add a significant amount of organic carbon. If you are dosing anything that could add a significant amount of organic carbon, I think it might be a good idea to stop dosing it if you are.

 

[2Wheelsonly]

Does anyone else have the issue of mushy sulphur clogging up the lines? I was looking at my tubing and it was filled with mushed up sulphur...light yellow in color; at first I thought my tubing was full of sand? It's not enough to get in the way of flow but I did notice there was quite a bit.

 

[ReeferBud]

I have not had this problem.

is your sulfur compacted in the reactor chamber and not tumbling, which could cause it to break apart?

what kind of sulfur are you using?

 

[2Wheelsonly]

I don’t see any visual tumbling, I also don’t see the sludge in the prills (using Amazon prills). I’m guessing it’s a collection of fines that build up over time where the flow is the strongest at the base... I’m more concerned of the sulphur residue in the reactor.

 

[ReeferBud]

Why are you more concerned about the sulfur residue inside the reactor, assuming it’s not making it’s way into the tank?