Smax Posted January 17, 2008 Report Share Posted January 17, 2008 hi everyone. is it essential to have carbon in one of the trays of my fluval? i read that it takes away the nutrients essential for plant growth. what i was thinking was replacing the carbon with peat or would that be a silly idea? any thoughts? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
ryanjury Posted January 17, 2008 Report Share Posted January 17, 2008 I don't use it in any of my tanks.. I have it in case I need it to remove med's or if I have a really stinky tank but haven't had to use it in years. I have heard all sorts of things about how it can cause more harm than good and IMO its not needed in a healthy tank. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkLB Posted January 17, 2008 Report Share Posted January 17, 2008 I'm of the same opinion as Ryan. The first thing I do to a new filter is remove the carbon. Replacing it with peat is fine. As you are probably aware peat is often used to lower pH. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smax Posted January 17, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 17, 2008 would the guppys and platys handle the lower ph ok? everything else is suited to a lower ph. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Caryl Posted January 17, 2008 Report Share Posted January 17, 2008 I too remove carbon and replace with other media. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Cricketman Posted January 18, 2008 Report Share Posted January 18, 2008 well im going to be the oddball and say that i love carbon, it clears the water really well, maybe it my imagination, but never heard anything before but praise for activated carbon.. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
nemines Posted January 18, 2008 Report Share Posted January 18, 2008 the majority of carbon available has been washed in phosphoric acid to activate it, so therefore it may even raise your phospates..... :roll: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Naz_Nomad Posted January 18, 2008 Report Share Posted January 18, 2008 Personally I say get rid of it, though as always opinion here is split, it always will be in any open discussion forum. In my experience and from anecdotal evidence only, carbon can cause more problems than it solves if left in a filter over a long period. Its only real use is when your are medicating a tank, then it works as a good scrubber to remove the left over medications. Not entirely useless, but not as useful as those that manufacture and sell it would like you to believe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Smax Posted January 21, 2008 Author Report Share Posted January 21, 2008 if i took out the carbon and added the peat into the filter would it change the water condition too quickly and affect the fish? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkLB Posted January 21, 2008 Report Share Posted January 21, 2008 I think it would change it pretty slowly so the fish shouldn't be affected. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smidey Posted January 21, 2008 Report Share Posted January 21, 2008 well im going to be the oddball and say that i love carbon, it clears the water really well, maybe it my imagination, but never heard anything before but praise for activated carbon.. it is good for absorbing things from the water, meds etc that you want to remove. however, eventually it "gets full" & releases most of whatever it has absorbed over a long period of time quickly which could cause a swing in water parameters. like anything, it has its uses Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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