planted filter media

[blizowman1]

i dont gravel vac cause the plants use the nutrients. in my aquaclear 70 i run a sponge carbon biomax then pack the top full of poly-fil ive got bad tannins but am confused about wether or not what i should and shouldnt have in my fish tank ive heard the carbon helps but doesnt help i just want to run the best setup i can.i am about to start dosing ferts and i was thinking about putting a sponge in to equal two sponges a biomax and some polyfil so i can take it out and replace whenever. but should i really take the carbon out ive been told by many people to keep it but on here noone really uses it. i want the best water clearity and plant health i can get what should i do is there any real articles on the subject of carbon

 

[Lowryder]

Running carbon will help with pollution but will also pull out your ferts. There really isn't much you can do about tannins but pwc's and time. Tannins aren't bad, I prefer them in my cichlid tank.

 

[aqua_chem]

Running carbon will help with pollution but will also pull out your ferts.

Not really....

 

[Link119]

Ferts are organic chemicals, carbon removes organics.

 

[aqua_chem]

What ferts do you think are organic?

 

[Link119]

At least i thought they were... I never really cared about what was in them, just someone posted that they are...
So there are no organics in ferts, therefore carbon is safe to have, but not really necessary.

 

[Patrice]

All you really need his Sponges and biomax. Your plants are doing all the rest. Carbon is a waste of money. I wish i could explain it to you, but there bin extensive debate that prove its a gimic, just like they bacteria bottles aquarium starter gimic.

 

[maxwellag]

There is a way to solve this tannin problem in only a few hours. It's called a dishwasher.
You could also boil it and replace the water every few minutes until it is clear.

 

[Lowryder]

What ferts do you think are organic?

Excel is organic carbon.

 

[aqua_chem]

Excel is not considered a fertilizer any more than CO2 is considered a fertilizer, nor will it be adsorbed onto activated carbon.