Carbon revisited.

Just read an article on different brands ability to remove gelbstoff( yellowing acids) so I thought I would share.
What brand do you use?
Just a couple things I noted:
1. Pellets don't absorb as well as irregular rough shaped carbon.
2. Expensive carbons were among the poorest performers in the study.(mostly pellets).

3. SeaChem was one of the best performers but super expensive.
4. Marineland.. one of the best and a good price(that's what I've been using).

Enjoy:
Aquarium Frontiers On-Line: Feature

 

One thing I wish they had on there was bulkreefsupply carbon.. cuz it's cheap!
But it's also pellets.

 

I think the biggest factor is the pore size of the carbon. You want a carbon with large and small pores to absorb all different types of compounds. The best carbons have a variety of different size pores. Good post. I use BRS carbon too and it would have been nice to include that in the study.

 

BRS works out to be .32 cents per oz. (for half gallon)
The Calgon which is one of the best performers is less than half that and the Marineland.. Problem is I can't find it. ..looks like they're mostly industrial suppliers.

 

I use ROX .8. Googled once and there is a ton of info on GAC. I would like to see how ROX .8 holds up since BRS considers it so superior.

BRS has some good article on GAC. Don't know if the yposted them for general info or because they are biased.

Activated-Carbon-Articles

Thanks for your help w/ the PO4 AV8.

OH ya, and your avitar makes me very uncomfortable.

 

While this is an old study, many of the things reported on still hold true. Most, but not all, pelletized carbons are vapor phase Vs. liquid phase. In other words, they were never meant to remain submerged.

If used in a filter sock passively Vs. actively in a reactor, it's about as good as you can get. The flow characteristics make it perform well because the water can flow through it vs around it. It's an excellent carbon in a reactor as well but IMO you might as well save some money if using a reactor and get granulated carbon.

Black Diamond is an awesome carbon for the price. One of my favorites.
Enjoy:
Aquarium Frontiers On-Line: Feature
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Also, the lignite carbons are excellent and are more efficient than bituminous coal carbon. However, Lignite is highly friable. That's a fancy way of saying it can break apart easier so if your carbon is in a real high flow area, that might not be the best choice for you.

American Norit ROX 0.8 is EXCELLENT. Probably the best IMO. Even though it is pelletized like the worthless offerings from Kent and others, it is indeed a liquid phase carbon.

 

I was trying to find that Calgon brand on the internet since it's good and super cheap but I think it's mainly an industrial seller.

 

Yeah, we bought it in 55 gallon drums