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View Full Version : Just added a BRS GRO and Carbon Reactor and now my lps isn't looking good.


C_THRU_U
02/19/2010, 08:19 PM
Can adding GFO or Carbon cause problems with my corals? I added the new Reactor with half GFO and half Carbon and now my LPS look to be dieing. I have some SPS as well as softies and they all seem to be doing fine. :reading:


I do notice that some of my other corals seem to be acting as if in light shock. My bulbs are about a year old so there shouldn't be a problem there
?? Any input?

luther1200
02/19/2010, 08:27 PM
You might have added to much GFO. If the PO4 is stripped to fast it can irritate the corals. Sometimes you have to start at a low dosage. Did you rinse both the GFO and GAC well before bringing the reactor online?

John Zillmer
02/19/2010, 09:33 PM
I'm a bit of an overdoser, and so I had to give up using GFO and go back to aluminum hydroxide media (which I think works just fine). Too much GFO, IME, causes bleaching, recession and death in LPS.

luther1200
02/19/2010, 10:04 PM
Usually the SPS are more prone to it. But the aluminum based PO4 media is much, much more risky than the GFO. Many people use GFO and have LPS including me, I don't know were you read that it kills, or causes bleaching in LPS. But when first used its like anything you have to acclimate corals to it. The aluminum based stuff probably doesn't have this affect because it isn't working nearly as well as the GFO and not stripping much PO4 from the water. I would use GFO if your going to use anything, IMO. The aluminum can be very bad if overdosed. Once you get your PO4 levels lower it practically impossible to overdose GFO. Its only when first used in a tank with a lot of PO4 that its an issue. And its not the GFO itself, its the rapid change in PO4 levels that stresses the coral.

John Zillmer
02/19/2010, 10:12 PM
Many people use GFO and have LPS including me, I don't know were you read that it kills, or causes bleaching in LPS.

I didn't read it. IME= in my experience:)

The aluminum based stuff probably doesn't have this affect because it isn't working nearly as well as the GFO and not stripping much PO4 from the water. I would use GFO if your going to use anything, IMO. The aluminum can be very bad if overdosed. Once you get your PO4 levels lower it practically impossible to overdose GFO. Its only when first used in a tank with a lot of PO4 that its an issue. And its not the GFO itself, its the rapid change in PO4 levels that stresses the coral.

I believe the claims about the relative inefficiency of aluminum media, and the claim about the rapid reduction of PO4 being the likely stressor.

In what way can the aluminum be bad if overdosed? I have heard of people experiencing negative reactions in various soft corals; is this what you are referring to? I'm just curious about any untoward effects I ought to watch for.

bertoni
02/19/2010, 11:05 PM
http://www.advancedaquarist.com/issues/july2003/chem.htm

That article discusses aluminum binders. I'm not sure that aluminum binders are less efficient, but the removal rate can be controlled via the flow and the quantity of GFO in the reactor.

C_THRU_U
02/20/2010, 12:05 AM
You might have added to much GFO. If the PO4 is stripped to fast it can irritate the corals. Sometimes you have to start at a low dosage. Did you rinse both the GFO and GAC well before bringing the reactor online?


I only added about 3/4 of a cup and didn't think my PO4 was even high enough to do anything. But must have. I have a refugium with cheato running with a deep sand bed and last time I checked my PO4 was undetectable.

Would this also cause my corals to become light sensative? Some of my other corals are acting like I just put new bulbs in or something.

Randy Holmes-Farley
02/20/2010, 08:28 AM
If this was the first time you used GAC, you may also have reduced UV and blue light absorbing compounds considerably, allowing more light to the corals which can also bother them. Starting slow on GAC is often recommended for that reason.

tmz
02/20/2010, 09:05 AM
LPs often come from more turbid waters with higher nutrient content. Increases in lighting resulting from enhanced water clarity can stress them . Dust from the gfo if not rinsed well may also irritate them as will a very rapid depletion of PO4. Aluminum leached from aluminum absorbers are a significant negative, in my opinion.

C_THRU_U
02/20/2010, 10:27 AM
Ok- I turned off the GFO and Carbon and decreased the lighting by putting the glass covers on (it was an open top). What else can I do? should I not run my MH today and only PC. Is there anything to add to the water? This is a shame because I had a brain that was given to me because it wasn't doing good and I was nursing it back. I don't know if it will make it. I havn't lost any corals in a really long time and I don't want to start. :furious:

C_THRU_U
02/20/2010, 10:31 AM
If this was the first time you used GAC, you may also have reduced UV and blue light absorbing compounds considerably, allowing more light to the corals which can also bother them. Starting slow on GAC is often recommended for that reason.


I have always had a bag of carbon sitting in my sump return. This just goes to show how well this reactor works (or how poor the bag sitting in the sump works):confused:

tmz
02/20/2010, 11:26 AM
You could cut back the photo period for a few days. Maybe feed a little.

The GAC carbon takes out some but not all organic materials which hold phosphate and nitrate. I would keep using it since keeping organics under control is important too.
It does not take out inorganic phosphate PO4 as gfo does.

Randy Holmes-Farley
02/20/2010, 12:55 PM
FWIW, it's hard to know which, if any, of the new materials and what they can do is the actual cause of the trouble.

C_THRU_U
02/20/2010, 06:42 PM
Well, I took corrective actions by stopping the GFO and Carbon Thursday evening and have shadded by adding the glass top and some screen and there hasn't been any progression as far as I can tell. thats all I can hope for I guess. Next time I will start out with the reactor on for short periods and increase from there. I did notice that the GFO in the reactor seems to be sticking together and if I remember right that is what happens when it is doing its thing?? right?

bertoni
02/20/2010, 08:07 PM
The binding could be due to calcium carbonate precipitation or organic binding. I don't think it's related directly to phosphate adsorption.

lbaldrey
02/21/2010, 05:39 AM
Too much GFO, IME, causes bleaching, recession and death in LPS.

I have to agree cause IME I lost a long time blasto colony in a matter of 2-3 days after packing the reactor with GFO...

tmz
02/21/2010, 09:25 AM
FWIW, I've seen blastos in particular react poorly to rapid nutrient reduction. I'd personally be wary of stopping the gac since I'd be concerned about a buildup of total organic carbon.

stanlalee
02/21/2010, 10:50 AM
I have to agree cause IME I lost a long time blasto colony in a matter of 2-3 days after packing the reactor with GFO...

the sudden change is likely to be the culprit.

I use 150g of GFO (including HC at times) and 50g of seachem matrix carbon replaced every month in a reactor on a 30g/10g sump which is way past any recommended dose and bordering on excessive and dont have any issues with LPS (blasto, acans, candycane, goniastrea/prism). I also carbon dose(biofuel then vodka and now just vinegar) and dont feed alot (3 small fish fed every other day, amino acids and coral accel for additional coral nutrients). my phosphates were decent (.03-.05ish) BEFORE the use of GFO and carbon dosing (red turf didn't care so I started all these to keep it in check which it does).

If you have a phosphate "problem" and suddenly go from 1.0 to 0.01 overnight sps wont even give you a matter of days, they will bleach overnight. I bleached half a monti cap in less than 24hrs under the same circumstances you described. Once phosphates are consistantly low it doesn't seem to matter how much you use. every story of harm I've heard starts with a first time usage