Activated carbon...yes or no?

[Rob1eddy]

What is the thought on daily use of activated carbon usage. The Marineland web site says it should be used all the time except when medicating. I have read others who say to use it only when removing medications from your tank. My thinking is with good water changing there is no real need to filter with charcoal.

Rob

 

[Spykce]

I asked what the point of it was the other day. After having it explained to me I decided it was pointless. I do a 20% water change twice a week in my 46. Sunday and Wednesday. I just set up the goldfish but I'll probably do the same.

 

[liv2padl]

i don't use it in any of my tanks ... this is from an article in TFH: there are many types of carbon sold for aquarium use but VERY FEW of these are actually capable of adsorption in water. only HIGH QUALITY ACTIVATED GRANULAR carbon which has been degassed in an oxygen oven at temperatures close to 2,000 degrees Fahrenheit is functional --- anything else is worthless. i can recommend Marineland activated granular carbon in this regard though there may be others. degassing enlarges the apparent surface area of each carbon granule, thus greatly increasing the adsorptive capacity.

look for activated carbon which is phosphate free. a great many carbon grades are washed with phosphoric acid in an effort to support the adsorption sites since this is cheaper than degassing. this phosphate will leach into your aquarium water and can reult in a major algae problem.

deep beds of Granular Activated Carbon (GAC) are always more effective than shallow ones of equal area. also, for a given amount of GAC the smaller the granules, the greater the adsorptive capacity. generally, there needs to be 4 to 10 grams of GAC for every gallon of water depending on stocking density. such carbon beds typically last only a month at best and more typically 2-3 weeks since most hobbyists tanks are overstocked.

if your filter uses prepackaged cartridges containing carbon, realize that these cartridges typically contain poor quality carbon and if quality carbon is used, only 20 percent or less of the recommended amounts of GAC is present. you can slit open the cartridge and fill them with more GAC but many pad filter types simply will not hold that much. thus, the carbon in the vast majority of filter pads on the market simply are not functioning. therefor why pay for it.

in a filter, the GAC should always be placed after the mechanical filtering medium otherwise, the particulates in the water will quickly coat the surfaces of the GAC, rendering it useless.

so what's the bottom line? if you're going to use activated carbon, you've got to use QUALITY material, you've got use ENOUGH of it to work and you've got to CHANGE IT often enough to keep it functional. a weekly water change schedule taylored to your bioload will work equally well however and is certainly less expensive.

 

[Bosemani Fan]

There is no real use to use Carbon on a regulaer Basis, It is basically useless, with the exception of removing Medications from the water. Also, it will only Last about 2 weeks and then need to be replaced!

 

[tricksterpup]

IMPO I use Carbon all the time and still do weekly water changes. There is nothing wrong with over filtration of your tank and in the long run its better for your fish, IMO.
But I would like to see someone like RTR chime in on this. I believe he had posted something on this awhile back.

 

[Doitsu]

over filtration and using carbon are two different things, of the 3 tanks i have set up every one is well well over filtered yet none have carbon on them anymore.

 

[phanmc]

Carbon has its uses. It can remove medication as well as tannin if you're using driftwood. Its also an limited chemical filtrator, limited in that it's only effective for a short period of time. The reason why alot of people don't use it on a daily basis is because it shouldn't be needed on a daily basis.

A properly maintained tank can have crystal clear water without the use of carbons, you can't say the same thing about mechanical filtration like a sponge or filter floss. Carbon does remove harmful waste from the water, but the cost of continued use will build up fast considering you have to change it anywhere between 2-4 weeks depending on your fishload. If you have to rely on carbon to keep your tank water clean, then something is out of whack.

 

[Holly9937]

I always thought it had to be used and was very scared when I removed it from my filters. However, many months later, all is well and I'm saving lots of money on those stupid cartridges (although, if you bought bulk carbon it would be pretty cheap to use that way)

 

[RTR]

I do not use carbon routinely myself (too many tanks, too much cost for the return), but only for specific, targeted reasons, such as tannin removal, possible toxin removal (I add massive amounts of GAC immediately before we have a party including folks I do no know well - cheap insurance). I will admit that even with my massive over-filtration, my tanks could be clearer - there were folks here no so long ago who equalled me in filtration practices and surpassed me by running HOT Magnums with the micron filters in 24/7. Their tanks were clearer than my tanks. I can approach that clarity with carbon, but not equal it. But I am also a large-scale water changer, which many folks are not.

It all boils down to pure personal choice - when you need it, it does the job. If you have too many tanks and are not so compulsive that your tanks must always be camera-ready, then targeted use is quite enough for me. BTW, pre-party I have been known to hook up the big Diatom, with some added carbon, and achieve that totally invisible water effect. I do not do this before fish or plant folks come over - they realize exactly what I have done... no gain there, no points at all.

 

[tomdkat]

Great thread!

I was going to ask a question about rinsing carbon packets before use but now I think I'll skip using it altogether!

Peace...