korallin bio denitrator (sulfer reactor)

[steve the plumb]

does anyone use this method to remove nitrates and what are the pros and cons

[da colts]

I JUST ORDERED THE MIDWEST AQUATIC VERSION, IT SHOULD BE IN THIS WEEK. FROM WHAT I HAVE READ THEY WORK GREAT AND HAVE THE EXTRA PLUS OF ADDING CALCIUM TO THE TANK AS THE CORAL MEDIA DISSOLVES FROM THE CO2 BEING RELEASED FROM THE SULFUR BACTERIA. GO READ ABOUT THEM. I CAN'T WAIT UNTIL MINE GETS HERE.

[steve the plumb]

can you give me the link to that store.I would like to look at the model.From what I have read you can turn the korallin into a calcium reactor with some extra parts but I think you can only ues it as a calcium reactor or a nitrate remover not both.I am using a reef doser so calcium isn't a problem but if It does raise calcium I can turn my doser off.

[da colts]

IT'S MIDWESTAQUATIC.COM
YOU CAN ONLY USE THE KORALLIN AS EITHER NOT BOTH

[steve the plumb]

yes thats what I thought.I don't need a calcium reactor but if the midwest model acts as both that a better option

[kabal2]

steve what da colts is saying is, that the low ph of the sulphur media disolve the calcium media you put on top of it, thats why is dose some calcium to the sistem, now i hope i'm making some sense

Gabriel

[steve the plumb]

sulfer melts the media from what I have read but does it slowly.I think the crushed corals acts as a buffer.You will get calcium from it but how much?20 ppm more less I don't know but I have a doser anyways.

[da colts]

actually, c02 is a waste product of the sulfur denitrator, and the c02 slowly dissolves the crushed coral media. the water that returns from the nitrate reactor is low in ph and oxygen and must be returned in a high 02 area of a sump or the main tank typically a skimmer or the return of a wet dri over the bio balls

[steve the plumb]

ok I am probably going to buy the koralin but midwest's reactot looks the same they both seem good.Is there any danger of sulfer leaching into the tank ?Can something go wrong with this reactor.I am wodering what happens when nitrates are gone do you still run the reactor at the same drip rate.I don't have nitrates but I want a unit because I have 2 to 3 inches of crushed coral bed.I have 23 fish and I am worried about what will happen as my bed becomes exausted and the nitrates will start to rise.I am looking at this reactor for future use but I will buy it and installl it in the next few months.I want to solve this problem before it even begins.

[da colts]

when your nitrates drop to 0, you raise the drip rate. i went with the midwest aquatics because rick the owner is quite accessable(sp) by either phone or e-mail, i downloaded the instructions off of his site and they were very clear, and he seems to stand behind his products.

[steve the plumb]

thats good he sounds like an honest dealer wich is hard to find.I am going to look further into this reactor as to I am not sure of long term use.Will it clog?I know you have to drip it into an aireated area but what negative effects can happen if reactor clogs or breaks down.When nitrates are gone I have heard it can produce nitrites(forget how this can happen) I am looking at the plus and minus since I have a reef tank filled with corals.

[da colts]

cool, reading is always a good thing but i think in the end you will probably buy 1,. i can't until mine arrives tomorrow.
take care
Danny

[fishykid9212]

Wait before you order it, I have a better way of lowering nitrates, adding sugar to the water feeds anerobic bacteria that break down nitrate, as long as you have a skimmer it will skim out the bacteris. This truly works and I got my nitrates from 80ppm to 0 in 2 weeks without a water change. You may have heard of adding vodka instead but they di the same thing. Any questiobns please ask :)

[coralnut99]

Fishykid, your mailbox is full.

I didn't want to hijack this thread, but could you please supply some details of your "sweetening" regimen. How much, how often, what make/size skimmer you run, etc. I'd bet others would be interested too.

Thanks!

[fishykid9212]

yeah I dont want to hijack it either but seriousely though, I was going to build one of those coil denitraters, then I was searching and found that people ad vodka to the water to lower nitrates but it also works with sugar. Sugar is a lot easier and plus its cheaper. Its better than going off and spending all that money for a denitrator.

I have an ASM G-3 skimmer but this trick can be done with really any skimmer a skimmer is a must for this, or the process won't work,
I have a 92G tank and I put a teaspoon in evry few days until its at 0. But if you have very high nitrates I would put a quarter of a teaspoon for every 25G .
The thing is if you put a higher dose of sugar in your water will become cloudy for a day or two. I put a heaping teaspoon in my 92G, three days in a row and poof my nitrates were at 0. After there ate zero I would put a small pinch in daily to keep up with it and its a small ammount there fore your water won't get cloudy. I hope this helps.
My mailbox is empty and any questions please ask :) heres my thread it says I lowered it from 20PPM but I think it was around 80ppms I didn't know because it was oof the chart ;) I also haven't lost any fish doing this and I haven't done a water change in a long time :)

[fishykid9212]

OK sorry for those of you that are trying to PM me, I just cleaned it out again :)

[Alfinus]

I use a denitrifier and I have found they are hard to kept regulated, to much drip rate and they produce nitrites which just lead to more nitrates, too little drip rate and they produces too much sulfates. So I broke down and bought an orp controller and used that to regulate the flow. I just added a very small pump and inserted the probe into the denitrifier. Add a valve between the pump and denitrifier to turn dowwn the flow some. The anerobic bacteria prefer an orp between -50 to -250, I have mine set to turn the pump on at -230, once the pump comes on it takes a few secs for the new water to mix and to start to raise the orp. Once it raises past -230 the pump shuts off and the new water continues to raise the orp to around -200 where it settles off. Then the orp will drop again as the bacteria go to town working on the nitrates, and the cycle starts again. My unit is very mature system, so it cycles once every 3 minutes. I would suggest to get the controller, self regulating and makes the unit work ten times better. Just every mth or so clean the outgoing tubing for bacteria buildup.

[steve the plumb]

yes I have heard they require to much tinkering.My friend read a thread were someone lost half of there corals due to a bead of sulfer flowing past the reactor into the tank.Most of the guys corals died.From what I have been reading the best methos is to have a remote sand bed.You can do it in a bucket or a bin.Have a good amount of san 50 pound per 100 galllons of water with a good flow going threw it.Its best to keep the water free of fodd and detrius.You can have the water at 2 to 3 inches above the sand.This method is suppossed to work and if anything goes wrong you can dispose the bucket.Its a cheap and easy method.Vodka has many impurities in it and sugar has other by products in it.You can use them but you have to be carefull.Go to reef chemistry forum and read up on it.Thanks for the help I won't be buying the sulfer reactor there are to many problems with that method.

[Ereefic]

Steve, can you please post the thread for us about the guy and the sulfer bead?

[da colts]

search charles delbeek's article on sulfur denitrators and you may change your mind about them.

[steve the plumb]

my friend found it I think it might be on another forum.The marine depot forum.He was on that forum and has asked questions about it so far he hasn't gotten to many responces.I am not sure if the thred is on this web site or the marine depot site.I know Randy isn't crazy about them.My friend is waiting for a responce from Steven Pro and Eric Borneman.Borenman has said the remote dsb is one of the best an safest methods to control nitrates.My friend is setting up a dsb bucket this weekend.I don't have the space to do it.You can ask Randy about the sulfer Reactors if you like.I am to worried about something going wrong with this method.From what my friend has read(he has been spending many hours on the net) most experts don't reccomend this method.It seems to work but to many negatives and to many things to go out of wack.I won't rush into for now.I have spen to much money on my system to risk it.I don't have a problem but I am thinking for long term because it will eventualy happen.Thanks for the help.

[bureau13]

Its funny, when I read this I thought you were anti-sulphur reactor, but if you're talking about this Delbeek article (http://www.aquariumfish.com/aquariumfish/detail.aspx?aid=17592&cid=3793&search=) then I guess not!

jds

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7565239#post7565239 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by da colts
search charles delbeek's article on sulfur denitrators and you may change your mind about them.

[da colts]

no, i am for them, i have used a coiled nitrate for about 10 years with great results, but with everything that is in my tank now, it's having a hard time keeping up, so i bought a sulfur nitrate reactor.

[steve the plumb]

well let us know how it turns out.I have the time at night to fiddle with a reactor but it depends on how busy I am with work.My job does not have staedy hours so thats the problem I sumtimes havr to neglect the tank and I am worried something can go wrong in that time frame.If I knew it was a hassle free thing(set it forget it) I would be more inclined to buy it.I will read the article.

[steve the plumb]

I read the article its good but he doesn't seem to find any problems with the reactor.He states that it doesn't require adjustments wich I have heard otherwise.The guy who lost half of his tank was using a aqua medic reactor I think he is German and lives in Germany.I still am scepticle.I am not saying its a bad idea to use this method but like Alfinus I would use a controler with it to make it more full proof.Thanks colts for your help.I will like to see how it comes along.

[da colts]

i believe the aquamedic version uses deni balls. i think it's a different kind of nitrate reactor. correct me i f i am wrong. the biggest problem with keeping them dripping seems to be air in the incoming line, if the air is bled out it should keep dripping.
i will keep you guys posted with reg updates. my trates are at about 30ppm which is not too bad but i want them as close to 0 as possible.

[64Ivy]

I don't know where this 'constantly fiddling with it' rumor comes from but in my experience (I've had the Korrallin unit for nearly a year now), you simply follow the instructions with regard to set-up, maybe get yourself an Aqualifter-type pump to maintain your drip rate, replace Korrallin fittings with John Guests, and you're good to go. The only fiddling I've done is replentishing my aragonite every 3-4 months. Nitrates virtually non detectible (down from a chronic 15-25 ppm) from 6 weeks after set-up until today. Obviously, I couldn't be happier.

[da colts]

thank you ivy, i am going to run a t off of my main pump to the in flow of my nitrate reactor(this will now be known as nr as i am tired of typing nitrate reactor)so that will maintain my drip rate. i don't think the gravity feed method has enough umph to maintain a drip rate, so thats why an aqua lifter or my method of a t will do the job nicely.

[Ereefic]

I used the aqualifter on mine, but it seemed to be sporadic at keeping a good drip. I then started gravity feeding from about 1" above and it's working fine now.

[da colts]

hey ereefic, don't you have the midwest aquatic version?

[Ereefic]

Yes

[da colts]

COOL, I JUST GOT MINE LAST NIGHT AND I CAN'T WAIT TO SET IT UP. IS YOUR WORKING WELL FOR YOU? RICK SEEMS LIKE A VERY NICE GUY AND VERY APPROCHABLE(SP) RICK SAID THAT MY METHOD OF A T SHOULD WORK WELL BUT HE SENT ME A AQUA LIFTER JUST IN CASE.

[Ereefic]

I started posting on page 2 of this thread, check that out. Also, on midwestaquatics site, there is a thread on there message board as well.

It is turning the corner now, but has taken along time to get to this point.

http://reefcentral.com/forums/showthread.php?s=&threadid=859179

[steve the plumb]

I know the aquamedic uses the deni balls.If I am not mistaken thats the brand the guy had.I don't know if he had another model but he hadf a sulfer nr.Ivy 64 sounds like you are happy with it I am glad to hear that.I am always hearing more negative than positive.I am thinking more and more that it might not be a bad idea to get one.I like the fact that it doesn't take up to much space.Where do you get the fittings from Ivy 64?Thanks

[da colts]

LOWES SELLS JOHN GUEST FITTINGS, THE MIDWEST AQUATIC ONE ALREADY HAS JOHN GUEST FITTINGS

[Ereefic]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7572510#post7572510 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by steve the plumb
I am always hearing more negative than positive.

Where are you hearing this and what have you heard? Can you provide some links? I must not have seen these anywhere, because everything i've been reading about them have been positive.

[steve the plumb]

my friend has been on the net researching it.He is on the marine depot forum aswell.If you ask Randy on the reef chemistry forum he is not a big fan of them.You can aslo ask borenman or calfo.Most of the things you do read are more problems can occur such as to much acidity,low ph,sulfer leaching into the tank,haveing to adjust drip rate,reactor clogging.These are all things my friend has read.He also has read some posts(on marine depot forums)My friend works in a lab so he isn't some dumb guy who has no clue about the hobby.He is looking at the good vs the bad of using this type of reactor.I am not saying I wouldn't like to have one but I am saying It would be a concern to me.Its not a plug and play type of device.Plus it sounds like you should buy a orp monitor if you plan on using this type of system.I will try and get my friend to log on so maybe he can give you some links.I don't know of many people using this type of reactor.Like anything people have differant results with the same products.What happens when the nitrates go to zero do you raise the drip rate?What happens if I go away is this device easy to use(would have to show someone what to do)I try not to go away for this reason I am scared something might go wrong.This is not an idiot proof method.

[NexDog]

I'm thinking about getting the Korallin unit from MarineDepot. What kind of John Guest fittings should I also order:

http://www.marinedepot.com/aquarium_reverse-osmosis-deionization_jg_fittings.asp#tube

[Ereefic]

NexDog, save some money and get it from www.midwestaquatic.com

It's the same as the korallin unit and you won't be dissapointed with the customer service, if you'll need it.

[da colts]

I AGREE, MINE CAME IN ABOUT 4 DAYS AND RICK IS A PLEASURE TO DEAL WITH

[NexDog]

Cool, might do just that. Someone said they are already fitted with the John Guest stuff that's an extra thing not to worry about. Looking here:

http://www.midwestaquatic.com/products.htm#Sulfur%20DeNITRIFIER

Do they come with media and everything ready to go? I have a spare aqua lifter to power it.

[andrewsk]

Can someone sum this up a bit for me?

I was planning on having Cheato in a fuge as well as 2 Deep Sand Beds in unlit buckets for Nitrate removal.

Does this compliment, or replace these?

What would be the advantage of going with the Sulfer Reactor over my plans above?

Thanks!

[Ereefic]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7572900#post7572900 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by NexDog
Cool, might do just that. Someone said they are already fitted with the John Guest stuff that's an extra thing not to worry about. Looking here:

http://www.midwestaquatic.com/products.htm#Sulfur%20DeNITRIFIER

Do they come with media and everything ready to go? I have a spare aqua lifter to power it.

Yes, it comes with plenty of sulfer and calcium media.

What I really liked about them is the fact that they have a message board so if you have questions, you can ask them there.

[E-A-G-L-E-S]

allows for w.c. laziness i'm thinking?

[da colts]

DELBEEK SAYS THAT A NR CAN COMPLIMENT A DSB OR A REFUGE,NEXDOG, YES IT COMES WITH EVERYTHING READY TO GO, TOOK ME ABOUT 15 MINUTES TO PUT IT TOGETHER, VERY EASY.

[Ereefic]

<a href=showthread.php?s=&postid=7572928#post7572928 target=_blank>Originally posted</a> by E-A-G-L-E-S
allows for w.c. laziness i'm thinking?

I think water changes are still a good idea, regardless. You still need to replenish things with water changes. I don't think it's about laziness at all.

[E-A-G-L-E-S]

then what? i don't understand why nitrates can't be controlled with a properly set-up skimmer, DSB, a good feeding schedule, and water changes? I overfeed a little and have for over a year, yet nitrates haven't been above "0" for over a year(yes i test using salifert along with Ca., Alk., and Mag. bi-weekly & my A.C. monitors and controls PH)

seems like a waste of $ to me - jmo

[Ereefic]

Congrats to you EAGLES for maintaining 0 nitrates. Unfortunately, not everyone is able to do that like you, for whatever reason.

I can hardly see where it's a waste of money if it get's rid of your nitrates. It may be a waste of money to you, but not someone else.

[da colts]

AMEN EREEFIC, GRANTED, MAYBE A DSB OR A REFUGE COULD KEEP TRATES DOWN....HOWEVER, MY TANKS HAS BEEN SET UP FOR ABOUT 12 YEARS AND IT'S OLD SCHOOL(WET DRI, HAIR CURLERS INSTEAD OF BIO BALLS ETC) IT'S JUST EASIER TO USE THE NR THAN HAVE TO SET UP ANOTHER TANK FOR A DSB OR A REFUGE NOT EVE COUNTING THE SPACE NEEDED. AS I HAVE SAID BEFORE, I HAVE USED A COILED NR FOR ABOUT 10 YEARS AND IT HAS KEPT THE TRATES AT 0 FOR THAT TIME, HOWEVER IT IS A SMALLER UNIT, AND IT JUST CAN'T KEEP UP WITH ALL OF THE EXTRA STUFF I HAVE NOW(AND IT'S A LOT, PICS AVAILABLE ON REQUEST)EVEN WITH ALL I HAVE NOW THE TRATES STILL ARE ONLY ABOUT 30, AND I DO 25 GALS A WEEK IN A 125 TANK.

[E-A-G-L-E-S]

didn't think about situations where it would be needed, sorry.

[steve the plumb]

thats the problem eagles your tank is still new.DSB is great the only problem is after 6 to 7 years it will become exausted and will no longer be able to hold the nitrates .They will have to go somewhere? I have spoken to reefers who have had disasters happen to there tanks.My lfs owner and his partner both had tanks with dsb after 6 years the system crashed.There tanks were going out of wack with problems that they had no fix for.I have no nitrates aswell but I know sooner or later my crushed coral bed will give in and I will be in some deep trouble.Colts the more I talk to you the more you want me getting one of these units.I to feed alot and have a heavy bioload but the calerpa in my sump is helping me out.With a larger tank there is mor room for error.I have 25 sps plus lps and leathers.The tank is starting to fill up.