Is carbon really useless?

[Ian086]

Please do! I'd like to try it!

The name of that stuff is called Sodium Thiosulfate - credit to jlk. She informed me about it... They are like small crystals, you dissolve in water and then this is the liquid used to de-chlorinate. Nearly all branded de-chlorinaters use this ingredient for their product. I haven't used it yet but will be soon when my Purigen needs to recharged... Look it up, very cheap(Ebay, Amazon). It de-chlorinates the water but DOES NOT remove heavy metals. After bleaching(re-charging), use tank water to mix with the de-chlorinater(Sodium Thiosulfate) and NOT water from the tap. So when you need to put the Purigen in de-chlorinater after bleaching you can use this stuff instead of Prime as the water you have used has been already treated for metals. Sorry if that's a bit confusing to others but Phishfriend, you should know what i mean??
PS... I still use Prime for my PWC's, i will only use this to save my Prime(very expensive over here!!)

**Again credit to jlk**

 

[phishfriend]

That has always been my fear, the recharge w bleach!! Seems wrong so im interested in that chem name too!

Lol, I know the first time I did it. I must have rinsed it for 30mins! Now I just rinse it three to 4 times. Then soak in prime and water over night. Drain off the water. Make sure It doesn't smell like bleach and its good to go!

 

[dmolavi]

The name of that stuff is called Sodium Thiosulfate - credit to jlk. She informed me about it... They are like small crystals, you dissolve in water and then this is the liquid used to de-chlorinate. Nearly all branded de-chlorinaters use this ingredient for their product. I haven't used it yet but will be soon when my Purigen needs to recharged... Look it up, very cheap(Ebay, Amazon). It de-chlorinates the water but DOES NOT remove heavy metals. After bleaching(re-charging), use tank water to mix with the de-chlorinater(Sodium Thiosulfate) and NOT water from the tap. So when you need to put the Purigen in de-chlorinater after bleaching you can use this stuff instead of Prime as the water you have used has been already treated for metals. Sorry if that's a bit confusing to others but Phishfriend, you should know what i mean??
PS... I still use Prime for my PWC's, i will only use this to save my Prime(very expensive over here!!)

**Again credit to jlk**

Just make sure that the Na2S2O3 you buy does *not* contain amines, otherwise, it will kill your Purigen on the spot. Google has a list of lots of cheap retailers of Na2S2O3: https://www.google.com/search?q=sodium+thiosulfate

 

[Ian086]

Just make sure that the Na2S2O3 you buy does *not* contain amines, otherwise, it will kill your Purigen on the spot. Google has a list of lots of cheap retailers of Na2S2O3: https://www.google.com/search?q=sodium+thiosulfate

 

[dmolavi]

Better yet, you can always go to your LFS (or a local reefer that can give you a gallon) and get RODI water to do the regeneration in, that way you know it doesn't have any heavy metals, etc to foul your process.

 

[Ian086]

Better yet, you can always go to your LFS (or a local reefer that can give you a gallon) and get RODI water to do the regeneration in, that way you know it doesn't have any heavy metals, etc to foul your process.

Why bother, when you have it in your own tank to use????

 

[dmolavi]

I prefer to rinse/dechlorinate in clean water. I suppose tank water would work, but I'm picky...I want the stuff as pristine as possible when I put it back in the filter.

 

[calfishguy]

I prefer to rinse/dechlorinate in clean water. I suppose tank water would work, but I'm picky...I want the stuff as pristine as possible when I put it back in the filter.

Here's an interesting article.

http://www.aquariumslife.com/saltwater-101/activated-carbon-in-aquarium/

 

[aqua_chem]

Why are you guys so worried about heavy metals?

 

[Ian086]

Why are you guys so worried about heavy metals?

I'm not great with the chem side of things, i just followed what i was always told. What's your opinion on Sodium Thiosulfate and could it be used as the sole de-chlorinater??

 

[dmolavi]

It appears to function well enough as a dechlorinator: Sodium thiosulfate - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

However, that makes no mention of removing any chloramines in the water, so it is possible that if your municipality uses them in the water supply, an additional treatment may be needed (I know that for the elimination of bleach during Purigen regeneration, this isn't needed, but it should be noted in the event people are thinking of using it in place of Prime or some other dechlorinator for routine WC).

 

[BBradbury]

Chemical Filtration / Medium

I heard that fish tanks really don't need it ,is it true and why?

Hello Aqua...

Yes. This is really true. The charcoal (carbon) in chemical media is designed to attract chlorine, ammonia, phosphate, dyes and medications that dissolve in the tank water. But, if you do large, weekly water changes, this does the same thing.

Everything that goes into the tank will eventually dissolve in the water. So, by removing and replacing large amounts of tank water, you remove most of the dissolved toxins. If you do the large water changes weekly, then the water is always safe for the fish, because there's no time for toxins to build up in the water before the next large change.

Pretty simple.

B

 

[aqua_chem]

We use the term "dechlorinator" as kind of a catch all unfortunately. Most modern dechlorinators are multifunctional - they act as dechlorinators, ammonia detoxifies, and heavy metal chelators. Sodium thiosulfate acts as a dechlorinator. This is actually less than ideal, as most municipal water is treated with chloramines, no chlorine. Sodium thiosulfate will dechlorinator the chloramines, leaving ammonia, which is bad, but manageable under most circumstances. I'm not sure of the effects on heavy metal, and don't really have the time to look into it right now.

I was more curious about why you were worried about washing prime in untreated water. Seems like it wouldn't be a thing.

Edit: Clearly I need to type faster.

 

[Aqua_Omega]

Hello Aqua...

Yes. This is really true. The charcoal (carbon) in chemical media is designed to attract chlorine, ammonia, phosphate, dyes and medications that dissolve in the tank water. But, if you do large, weekly water changes, this does the same thing.

Everything that goes into the tank will eventually dissolve in the water. So,%2

 

[dmolavi]

I was more curious about why you were worried about washing prime in untreated water. Seems like it wouldn't be a thing.

s/prime/purigen

The Purigen directions state explicitly that following a bleach treatment, to soak the media in a concentrated dechlorinator "bath". Simply washing in untreated, or tank, water, won't remove the embedded chlorine in the Purigen beads.

 

[aqua_chem]

I understand that. It's the heavy metal part that I'm confused about.

Better yet, you can always go to your LFS (or a local reefer that can give you a gallon) and get RODI water to do the regeneration in, that way you know it doesn't have any heavy metals, etc to foul your process.

And yes, Purigen, not Prime.

 

[dmolavi]

I understand that. It's the heavy metal part that I'm confused about.

Sorry, bad example..should have stated chloramines. (Or non-SeaChem brand dechlorinator introduced amines).

 

[Aqua_Omega]

Hello Aqua...

Yes. This is really true. The charcoal (carbon) in chemical media is designed to attract chlorine, ammonia, phosphate, dyes and medications that dissolve in the tank water. But, if you do large, weekly water changes, this does the same thing.

Everything that goes into the tank will eventually dissolve in the water. So, by removing and replacing large amounts of tank water, you remove most of the dissolved toxins. If you do the large water changes weekly, then the water is always safe for the fish, because there's no time for toxins to build up in the water before the next large change.

Pretty simple.

B

Thank u .....EXMTREAMLY simple but precise

 

[Ian086]

I understand that. It's the heavy metal part that I'm confused about.



And yes, Purigen, not Prime.

I think something has got lost in translation!!. I was stating that because Prime is so expensive for me to buy $30 for a 250ml bottle( i have to import from the US). I merely wanted to use Sodium Thiosulfate to de-chlorinate the Purigen after i take it out of the bleach. I don't intend to use it in my PWC's, just because it's expensive, i wanted to find an alternative to using Prime on my Purigen after bleaching. I was having to use a lot when de-chlorinating after the bleach....

 

[dmolavi]

I think something has got lost in translation!!. I was stating that because Prime is so expensive for me to buy $30 for a 250ml bottle( i have to import from the US). I merely wanted to use Sodium Thiosulfate to de-chlorinate the Purigen after i take it out of the bleach. I don't intend to use it in my PWC's, just because it's expensive, i wanted to find an alternative to using Prime on my Purigen after bleaching. I was having to use a lot when de-chlorinating after the bleach....

Not at all...I was just pointing out that people shouldn't rely on bulk sodium thiosulfate to treat tap water for use in the tank, as it doesn't remove everything that the commercial dechlorinators remove.