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All and not just vitamins, there are some algae's that you don't want. I have trouble remembering what I had for breakfast. I'll try and find some of my books that I have with that research and post that info. Not sure I will have to look it up, but you must remember that all living things use many different minerals vitamins and chemicals to aid in their survival, it's a fact of life. I ran a test tank without a skimmer and I found that the only issues that arose were the lack of degassing that occurred with the water coming from the tank and the low o2 saturation when returned. But both of these can be sorted in other ways. On my main system which is only half running at the moment (that’s another story) I use a skimmer with ozone. On the top of my tank is an Algae Turf Scrubber, which is groomed once a week Before the skimmer I have a large refugium with two inches of base, which has a slow, flow. After the skimmer is the mud filter which gets a haircut once a week. I don't groom the scrubber and mud filter on the same day. Then I have the o2 reactor, baffles and finally the calcium reactor. Sandbeds and macroalgae are by no means a complete filtration method. Along time ago I would have agreed but many people including myself have proven them to work and be beneficial to the inhabitants over long periods of time. However I will most likely stay with my main system mentioned above. When my wife’s health improves I'll get the system running properly again. I had to leave my job to look after our kid so between taking my wife to hospital all the time and looking after the kids I don't get allot of time to myself. Aaron

I always use carbon but only a very small amount. I use ozone, always have and I always will. I filter the ozone out of the water from the skimmer over a large tray with a thin layer of carbon, about 500ml that is changed every week. Most of the ozone is dispersed because the layer of water is so thin. In my test tanks I added live carbon as a filter medium after six months and found that the flesh of the corals reduced in size and didn't look as full in their shape. Back to what they looked like was when I bought them within a couple of days. The main reason I use Ozone is to help maintain a high o2 level in the tanks as it is in a reef, I also use an o2 reactor to help with this Tomorrow I'll try to find those pictures; they’re on a CD somewhere Aaron

In most countries that is not the case and they say if you must use carbon to only use it for a short period of time. Yes and I'm sure alot of other companies do to. I prefer to listen to the scientist, not the people making the money. Aaron

The most publicized people that I know of, and there are many would be Dr Walter H. Adey and Karen Loveland. Their research was based on creating living echo systems small and big. The biggest one that I know of that they did was the Great Barrier Reef Aquarium in Townville Australia. I think it was about 650,000 gallons and the primary filtration was a huge algae turf scrubber on the roof of the complex. I set up two tanks to research algae scrubbers and mud filters myself and after three years came to the conclusion that they made a big difference to the health of the corals. I did take some digital pictures, I'll try to find them I will be trying a Mangrove Mud filter next on one of my experimental tanks when I replace the front glass, which is cracked. If this was even close to true then you have just killed off half of the inhabitants of the reefs from starvation, I have seen large areas of upper reef covered in thin layers of basic algae and stripped clean in a few minutes by large schools of blue tangs. Most of the nutrients that feed the reefs come from the top levels where the algae's thrive and the currents and UV are strongest. Sixteen Years using many different methods. For ten of them I ran experimental tanks as well as my main tank. All Corals release toxins in the battle for space and they have been releasing toxins on each other for millions of years 24/7. If you place your corals close together they will produce more toxins. What makes you think that you have this problem in your tank? Do more water changes Carbon takes out the good and the bad, removing toxins with one hand and then taking important nutrients with the other, this is not a good solution to the problem. Possible cause of your bleaching problem. Corals and Anemones create protective mucus when they need to which protects them from UV and sudden changes in light The best example of this would be the Anemones that live on the top of reefs and in rock pools in our own country, when they are left high and dry they curl into a dome and slime themselves to block the UV which will burn them well before they would ever dry out while waiting for the water to returns. They also use it to control the light I think it my be possible that your corals were burnt because they were suddenly starved of a nutrient that they use in there diet to help their defence system which made them unable to protect themselves against your lights. Just out of curiosity how much life has developed in the mud of your filter. They are an amazing eco system. Aaron

Reef I read in one of your post that you started an algae filter, if so why are you using carbon with an algae filter. Using carbon completely controdicts the purpose of all forms of algae filters. When the algae grows it releases vitamins etc into the tant that are very important to corals. This is one of the main reasons why you should not use carbon in reef tanks. Skimmer's don't remove alot of these.

That is a fantastic find. Aaron.

This is a forum with a search facility. The date is not an issue. All questions should be answered for the benifit of everyone who uses this forum, if not then why keep them and provide a search for them. Aaron

How old is the buffer solution, most brands have a short shelf life before they become unstable. It was probably expired well before it left the shop.

Try Hydroponic suppliers in your area. Aaron.

Don't use a spray bar. If you want to increase gas to bring up the o2 in the tank,you need to make an o2 reactor. They are very simple to build. If you can't find plans on the net I can draw some up for you. Aaron.