# Filtering Question: Should I take out the activated carbon?



## asincero (Mar 25, 2006)

I seem to recall reading somewhere that for a planted tank, you shouldn't use activated carbon in your filter. The reason being is that it'll suck out all the nutrients from the water, making my addition of fertilizers to the water pointless. Is there any truth to this?

I've noticed that some of the leaves of my amazon swords are turning a little yellow. I seem to recall this being indicative of iron deficiency. Since I've been supplementing with cheleated iron almost every day and have fertilizer tabs in the substrate, I find it strange that my plants would be having an iron deficiency. Unless of course the iron is being removed by the filter.


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## TetraFreak (Mar 15, 2006)

The carbon is needed for chemical filtration to assist your fish. To remove harmfull things and remove medications from water after treatment.

However...
The usefullness of the carbon in filter cartridges has basically an "In Water Life" of about 2 weeks.

If you don't want/need the chemical filtration, then change the media type you use. Perhaps a sponge wrapped in Filter Floss, which will give you more BioFiltration...which will help tank stay stable & make fiskies happy, will work best for you.

Hope this helps!


PEACE!

-TF


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## Bert H (Mar 2, 2004)

It isn't recommended you use carbon in planted tanks. TF is right about the 'shelf life', so to speak, of carbon, but you shouldn't need it. If you need more biological filtration use ceramic rings or some such product. 

Regarding your yellowing leaves, what else are you using to fertilize your tank? What are your parameters? It would help to know some info on the tank to help you out.


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## 247Plants (Mar 23, 2006)

Is there something else that I can use besides water clarifier to clear my water like carbon does?


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## asincero (Mar 25, 2006)

Hmmm .. thats very interesting. If I really don't need the carbon, and if in fact the carbon is hurting my planted tank, then I'd be more than happy to replace the carbon in my canister filter with more ceramic rings. Because that means the only thing I'm replacing each month in the filter is the white "polishing pad" that goes at the very top of the filter media stack. I just rinse out the other stuff with aquarium water when I do the monthly maintenance. Sweet.

As for my current water parameters, I'm currently at work so I can't give up-to-date info. But last I checked (about 4 days ago), it was 0 ammonia, 0 nitrites, pH at about 6.8 to 7.0. I didn't check nitrates though. Water temperature is about 78 degrees F.

Like I mentioned previously, I supplement with cheleated iron and also with Flourish Excel daily. I have fertilizer tabs in the substrate. I have two Hagen CO2 ladders pumping CO2 into the tank (it is a 36g). I also use Flourish twice a week. And I use 72 watts of CF lighting 14 hours a day.


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## trenac (Jul 16, 2004)

You could use filter floss in place of the charcoal, which will remove finer particles from the water.

You will need to know your nitrate (N03) and phosphates (P04) readings when keeping a planted tank. Keeping these two nutrients in balance are important in keeping algae away and keeping the plant growth strong. 

10-12 hours daily is enough time for your lights to be on. In the long run 14 hours will cause algae issues.


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## asincero (Mar 25, 2006)

trenac said:


> You could use filter floss in place of the charcoal, which will remove finer particles from the water.
> 
> You will need to know your nitrate (N03) and phosphates (P04) readings when keeping a planted tank. Keeping these two nutrients in balance are important in keeping algae away and keeping the plant growth strong.
> 
> 10-12 hours daily is enough time for your lights to be on. In the long run 14 hours will cause algae issues.


I'll have to get a test that does phosphates then. Mine only does ammonia, nitrites, nitrates, and pH. What levels of nitrate and phosphates should I be aiming for?

As for the lighting duration ... I read amazon swords need a lot of light time. However, I did also read that keeping them on that long can lead to algae issues. To combat this, a plant book I read suggested that instead of having it on for 14 hours straight, keep it on 10 hours straight, then a few hours off, then another 4 hours on, then the rest of the day off.

Does it work? Well, its not like my tank is being overrun with algae. But I do, however, have some algae growing in the rocks and the glass near the bottom of the tank. It doesn't look too bad though. Kind of makes the environment look more natural, IMO. Also, one of my mollies just squirted out a number of babies. I'm guessing the algae can serve as baby food until they grow big enough to eat flakes.


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## Bert H (Mar 2, 2004)

> To combat this, a plant book I read suggested that instead of having it on for 14 hours straight, keep it on 10 hours straight, then a few hours off, then another 4 hours on, then the rest of the day off.


I've heard of 'noonday burst' and 'mid-day siestas', but never heard of on for 10 hours, off for a few then on again. I would strongly recommend you not doing that. If you have any stem plants, they typically tell you when they have had enough light by their leaves 'closing up'. On my Rotala rotundafolia and L. aromatica I see this at about 9 hours, my photoperiod is 10 hours total. If you turn off the light after 10 hours and turn it back on again several hours later for 4 hours, it seems to me, you will be sending really screwy messages to your plant's photosynthetic systems. 10-12 hours is all you need, believe us.


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## SkinniMini (Mar 26, 2006)

I was wondering about the carbon issue, too...I have an Aquaclear filter that hangs on the back-could the "dead" carbon just be left in there to keep the bacteria going? Or should I go ahead & do the floss thing?


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## trenac (Jul 16, 2004)

SkinniMini said:


> I was wondering about the carbon issue, too...I have an Aquaclear filter that hangs on the back-could the "dead" carbon just be left in there to keep the bacteria going? Or should I go ahead & do the floss thing?


I would remove the carbon and replace it with the filter floss, all the good bacteria you need is in the gravel and hard surfaces of the tank.


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## Bombay (Mar 6, 2006)

Here is a few snipets about carbon. Hope you find them useful. In terms of usage in a planted tank, I would with the opinions of those on the board...at least until you have reason to go against it.

What does Granular Activated Carbon remove?

Asbestos, Chloradane, Chlorine, Chlorination by-products/Trihalomethanes (TTHMs), Mercury, PCB, Toxaphene, Volatile Organic Compounds (VOCs), Odor, Sediments, Turbidity

http://www.aquaceramica.com/FilterIn...#WhatGACremove

Q. Will the carbon filter remove all contaminants? 
A. No. Activated carbon readily adsorbs (causes to stick to its surface) organic carbon-based compounds, but it does not have an equivalent removal capacity for inorganic compounds such as iron, lime scale, nitrates, hardness minerals (such as calcium and magnesium), or soluble heavy metals like chromium or cadmium.

http://www.espring.com/English/footer/FAQ.aspx?pgid=22#8102

Perhaps the article (of those here) that best pertains to our concerns comes from Dr. Havonec of Marineland. He disputes some of the 'myths' such as the carbon (once full) leaks out the pollutants back into the aq...and that carbon can be restored by boiling or baking in the oven.

http://www.marineland.com/articles/16ActivatedCarb.asp


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## jeff5614 (Feb 15, 2006)

If you're in need or want of chemical filtration you might give Purigen a try. From the description it seems to be better than carbon and lasts longer.

http://www.seachem.com/products/product_pages/Purigen.html


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## awrieger (May 20, 2005)

Bombay said:


> A. No. Activated carbon readily adsorbs (causes to stick to its surface) organic carbon-based compounds..


Which means it should also neutralize Flourish Excel, whose vital ingredient is organic carbon.

Can anyone confirm if this could in fact be true?


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## carpguy (Feb 3, 2006)

Bombay said:


> Activated carbon readily adsorbs (causes to stick to its surface) organic carbon-based compounds, but it does not have an equivalent removal capacity for inorganic compounds such as iron, lime scale, nitrates, hardness minerals (such as calcium and magnesium), or soluble heavy metals like chromium or cadmium.


I couldn't get the espring link to work but I found this bit over at the Krib suggesting that Carbon does in fact take out iron. Dr. Tim's article likewise mentions carbon removing iron and other metals. The SkepticalAquarist offers this: "Part of the confusion may come from not separately considering chelated metals and free metal ions. Activated carbon and other adsorptive media strongly attract both natural and artificial chelating molecules, together with the metal ions associated with them."


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## Bombay (Mar 6, 2006)

jeff5614 said:


> If you're in need or want of chemical filtration you might give Purigen a try. From the description it seems to be better than carbon and lasts longer.
> 
> http://www.seachem.com/products/product_pages/Purigen.html


Purigen indicates it removes nitrates. Don't we want nitrates in a planted tank? If so, this would not be a good product to use on a regular basis.


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## Bombay (Mar 6, 2006)

http://www.marineland.com/science/articles/17revisactcarb.asp

Here is another good article by Timothy A. Hovanec, Ph.D.

BTW - the espring link above has been corrected.


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## SkinniMini (Mar 26, 2006)

Sorry to get away from the subject of the last few posts, but last week I switched my old carbon out with floss, & it seems to work well! It's gradually helping me with my sediment problem, & my water quality is still good. It's definitely not hurting, & at less than 3.00 for a big bag of it which will go a long way, I'll continue to use it.
Thanks for the idea!


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## Lord Nibbler (Dec 22, 2005)

Carbon does indeed remove cheleated iron. Whenever I use it, my swords quickly turn yellow. I'm not sure if it removes Excel carbon though.

I mostly don't use carbon anymore. I grew up having just fish and no plants, the beginner setup where you are "supposed" to have carbon. I've mostly stopped using it since I started growing plants. Once in awhile I might put in a carbon filter for a few days, it might get some of the complexed metals and organics that I don't quite get rid of with water changes (plus I have a few left over and they are just sitting there). Of course I don't add fertilizer when I have the carbon in, thats just wasted money.


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