Still showing signs of copper in converted qt??? Help please!!!

[geckoejon]

Hello,

I have a nuvo 30 that I used for treating qt’ing fish. The fish are out, and I wanted to use the tank to qt coral & nems BUT I can’t get rid of the copper!

I did a full water change, and ran cuprisorb for a couple days. Hanna checker showed 0.06 ppm. I emptied the tank completely, wiped tank / equipment with white vinegar, added fresh saltwater, let circulate overnight, and still showing 0.06 ppm???

i checked my reef tank, and it reads 0 ppm. I use same salt and Ro.

I have a skimmer, heater, bare bottom, return pump, and hob filter with cuprisorb.

How do I get the copper out? What am I missing?

 

[Sharkbait19]

Were rocks and sand used in the qt and now the converted tank?

 

[geckoejon]

Were rocks and sand used in the qt and now the converted tank?

No & no. Bare bottom…

I had bio balls for fish qt, but removed them.

 

[ZombieEngineer]

Cuprisorb takes a while to get everything. Expect this to take like a week or more.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Hanna checker is also not suitable for determining clearance completion.

It seems to give false high readings even in normal tanks with no copper by ICP.

Hanna only claims +/- 0.05 ppm for the HI702, and that's assuming everything is working perfectly.

 

[geckoejon]

Now, I’m even more confused…

picked up some polyfill & had it running for a couple hours. Tested the tank again and read 0.14 Ppm? Went up from 0.06 two days in a row (and this morning) to 0.14 with polyfill running for a couple hours? tested twice & same readings…

tested my running reef tank for a standard & it tested 0 again.

@Randy Holmes-Farley i agree that Hanna’s may not be entirely accurate, but mine seems to be working somewhat accurately by the results.

I suppose I can….

1) let the polyfill / curpisorb run & see

2) empty tank again, clean thoroughly, fill fresh, let polyfill run and see

3) scrap tank and buy new

I’m worried about putting in coral / inverts in and having having disaster…

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Polyfill or a polyfilter (which is a specific chemical different than filter floss?

 

[threebuoys]

What filter media did you have in the HOB while in QT and I assume you swapped it out with the polyfilter? Some say that the silicone glue/sealant absorbs copper then leaches it back after a water change, but I don't know if this is true or not.

 

[geckoejon]

@Randy Holmes-Farley poly filter... my mistake in referpence.

@threebuoys none. Had bioballs, & they are discarded. i have heard that also, but I was reading through the “removing copper” post in fish treatment post a few minutes ago. Humblefish wrote that was not true? Stated that a good wiping with a vinegar soaked cloth should remove copper residue.… so…

I emptied the tank again, dumped in 3g of white vinegar, wiped thoroughly, filled the rest with Ro, and let circulate… i‘ll empty & fill fresh tomorrow.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

I don’t believe silicone soaks in any copper, but it binds well to both organic detritus and calcium carbonate surfaces.

 

[geckoejon]

I don’t believe silicone soaks in any copper, but it binds well to both organic detritus and calcium carbonate surfaces.

That’s what has me perplexed… something is still leaching copper.

i emptied again, added 3 gallons of white vinegar, cleaned thoroughly, filled the rest of the way with Ro, & let circulate for 12 hours with equipment running. Emptied, cleaned, and filled with fresh saltwater… tested 12 hrs later and 0.14 ppm!!!

readings with Hanna copper tester in nuvo 30… approximately…

5-20 = 0.06 ppm
water Change & cuprisorb running

5-22 = 0.06 ppm
emptied, clean everything w/ vinegar, fresh saltwater

5-23 = 0.14 ppm
empty, clean w/ vinegar, use 1:10 vinegar : ro to circulate for 12 hrs… cuprisor & polyfill

5-24 = 0.14 ppm
empty, fresh saltwater for 12 hrs

5-25 = 0.08 ppm


*** bought a new tank & equipment for qt’ing coral / nems ***

what the heck?!?!

Something is leaching & I can’t find it! i Give up….

 

[LeftyReefer]

I'm guessing it was testing error, or rather just the accuracy of the hanna checker.
the hanna copper checker has a accuracy of +/- 0.05 ppm.

When you were testing 0.06 you were probably at 0. or close to it.

have you tried checking some freshly made saltwater and see what result you get?

 

[geckoejon]

I'm guessing it was testing error, or rather just the accuracy of the hanna checker.
the hanna copper checker has a accuracy of +/- 0.05 ppm.

When you were testing 0.06 you were probably at 0. or close to it.

have you tried checking some freshly made saltwater and see what result you get

I wish, but doesn’t look like it.

I tested my reef tank several different times or comparison & it always tested 0

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Something is leaching & I can’t find it! i Give up….

Or the checker is giving false readings.

Have you tried it on new salt water?

i have no confidence in the low end of this device.

If it's real, add and keep using and changing a metal binder (metasorb, cuprisorb, polyfilter) until it no longer seems an issue. It is not easy to remove copper from an aquarium that may have organic or calcium carbonate deposits.

 

[threebuoys]

As LeftyReefer suggested, unless you've already done it, try testing your fresh seawater before you add it to either the QT or DT to see if copper is detected.

On 5/23, was the polyfill you used new and not what you had used earlier?

Have you tried removing the cuprisorb from the filtation? Perhaps it is leaching a trace back into the QT. What color is the used cuprisorb? It will turn a black/dark blue color when it becomes saturated and can no longer absorb more copper.


Is there any chance the testing equipment, any containers or pipettes or cuvettes contaminated with residual evaporated water?


The problem is perplexing for sure, but if you intend to continue to use the tank for QT, I don't believe the .06 ppm residual from copper power or copper safe will be an issue.

 

[geckoejon]

Thanks everyone for the advice! Got it!

It was the barrel that I was mixing with, which was different from the barrel that I use to mix for me reef tank… Tested new water & had 0.05 ppm

tested my existing reef tank / Waterbox & again tested 0 ppm, for the 3rd time…

I just bought another qt system, until I get the copper flushed out of the first… I used a new barrel to mix, and used marine pure balls from reef tank to get it going…

 

[SteveMM62Reef]

The Magnetic Impeller, and the opening it inserts in can Copper Plate. Running the Pump in a solution of Citric Acid should take care of this. Magnets, Copper and Electricity creates some weird anomalies. Search “Copper and Magnets,” on YouTube.

 

[GARRIGA]

Triton Detox claims to remove all copper. I've considered this in case something breaks and metal is exposed. Haven't used it but perhaps worth the research and perhaps Randy has some input.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

Thanks everyone for the advice! Got it!

It was the barrel that I was mixing with, which was different from the barrel that I use to mix for me reef tank… Tested new water & had 0.05 ppm

tested my existing reef tank / Waterbox & again tested 0 ppm, for the 3rd time…

I just bought another qt system, until I get the copper flushed out of the first… I used a new barrel to mix, and used marine pure balls from reef tank to get it going…

OK, sounds good.

happy reefing.

 

[Randy Holmes-Farley]

The Magnetic Impeller, and the opening it inserts in can Copper Plate. Running the Pump in a solution of Citric Acid should take care of this. Magnets, Copper and Electricity creates some weird anomalies. Search “Copper and Magnets,” on YouTube.

You are suggesting that dissolved copper from solution plates out as copper metal on impeller surfaces from seawater? I do not think that is likely at all.

There's a lot of misinformation on the internet, but if you have a specific link that you think supports this claim, I'm happy to look it over.