GFO (PhosBan) - Just How Good Is It?

[Aquarist007]

Originally posted by JokerGirl
Started running the GFO around June - was heavily infested with a mean brown hair algae



Here is my tank tonight



It's been a very lengthy process and required going through the tank weekly pulling any dying algae off. I also lost my acro and goniopora pendulus in the process.

what's interesting to notice here also--is the improvement in colour of the corals. Some reefers don't realize the browning affect phosphates have on the corals.

[JokerGirl]

Thats true, but I'm also using different bulbs than in the first photo. The first one I was running AB 10k bulbs, and in the 2nd one I'm running Radium 12Ks.

But I agree, I have noticed the colour of my corals improving over the last several months.

[techreef]

I admit that I haven't read some of the middle pages of this thread, as my daughter was born a month after this thread started, so I appologize if this Q was asked in the middle. I've got a TLF reactor w/ the GFO from twopartsolutions.com, and i'm running into an annoying occurence. about 3 days after I change out the media, i open my stand doors to find the entire dose of media, along with the lower foam "sponge" material, up against the top plate inside the reactor. I've got the ball valve throttled back to like 30-40% flow through the reactor, and I even tried Melev's suggestion of occassionally sending a burst of 100% flow through the media to prevent caking, but I've had this upflow of all the media happen to me twice now. Does anyone else have this problem? Should I try glueing the foam disk down to the red filter plate at the bottom of the reactor?

[Aquarist007]

Originally posted by techreef
I admit that I haven't read some of the middle pages of this thread, as my daughter was born a month after this thread started, so I appologize if this Q was asked in the middle. I've got a TLF reactor w/ the GFO from twopartsolutions.com, and i'm running into an annoying occurence. about 3 days after I change out the media, i open my stand doors to find the entire dose of media, along with the lower foam "sponge" material, up against the top plate inside the reactor. I've got the ball valve throttled back to like 30-40% flow through the reactor, and I even tried Melev's suggestion of occassionally sending a burst of 100% flow through the media to prevent caking, but I've had this upflow of all the media happen to me twice now. Does anyone else have this problem? Should I try glueing the foam disk down to the red filter plate at the bottom of the reactor?

someone else had this problem on another thread--I believe they had their intake and return lines crossed

[miwoodar]

If you're controlling it with a ball valve - they aren't very precise. Consider a gate valve or a large needle valve. It's well worth the investment if you're having problems dialing in the proper flow. I can find gate valves at my local mom and pop hardware stores for ~$10 but have never seen them at Lowes or Home Depot.

[techreef]

happy to say that that (intake and return lines crossed) isn't my situation! can't say that i'm an expert plumber at this point, but I'm okay!

seriously, my intake is coming into the reactor (center hole), flowing down the central tube and then out the bottom and up through the media, after which it flows through the top sponge and out the return line (hole in cap near edge of cap). the water flow seems to be pushing my lower sponge up the reactor body, somehow pushing 1C of GFO media w/ it.

[techreef]

does anyone have a video of "proper" flow rates for a phosban reactor? I've read verbal discriptions of this over and over, and really, have kept my flow all the way from where I barely saw the grains move at the top layer of the media, to flow that bubbled the top 1/4" of media rather vigorously. This latest problem is starting to irk me, as my cyano is going away, but now my reactor has been unplugged for 2 days as I try and figure this situation out.

[crab0000]

Mine did that. I just put another foam on top of the red plate at the top and let it go. I haven't had any problems yet.

[Aquarist007]

Originally posted by techreef
does anyone have a video of "proper" flow rates for a phosban reactor? I've read verbal discriptions of this over and over, and really, have kept my flow all the way from where I barely saw the grains move at the top layer of the media, to flow that bubbled the top 1/4" of media rather vigorously. This latest problem is starting to irk me, as my cyano is going away, but now my reactor has been unplugged for 2 days as I try and figure this situation out.

take it apart and clean it out--there could be something underneath it causing the filter to heavy.
are you using the flow valves that came with the unit--if so I am thinking faulty valve

[Aquarist007]

Originally posted by techreef
does anyone have a video of "proper" flow rates for a phosban reactor? I've read verbal discriptions of this over and over, and really, have kept my flow all the way from where I barely saw the grains move at the top layer of the media, to flow that bubbled the top 1/4" of media rather vigorously. This latest problem is starting to irk me, as my cyano is going away, but now my reactor has been unplugged for 2 days as I try and figure this situation out.

I don't have a video but here's a pic. Notice that it doesn't seem to matter where you place the filter

[jdieck]

Originally posted by techreef
happy to say that that (intake and return lines crossed) isn't my situation! can't say that i'm an expert plumber at this point, but I'm okay!

seriously, my intake is coming into the reactor (center hole), flowing down the central tube and then out the bottom and up through the media, after which it flows through the top sponge and out the return line (hole in cap near edge of cap). the water flow seems to be pushing my lower sponge up the reactor body, somehow pushing 1C of GFO media w/ it.

The foam pad might be too loose and too thin. (Yes, they should know better at TLF) In any case the solution is to get a piece of foam filtering media from the LFS and cut an oversize pad so it fits tighter at the bottom of the reactor.

[Aquarist007]

Originally posted by jdieck
The foam pad might be too loose and too thin. (Yes, they should know better at TLF) In any case the solution is to get a piece of foam filtering media from the LFS and cut an oversize pad so it fits tighter at the bottom of the reactor.

yeah--the blue stuff--but I still think while there is the opportunity, to clean it out good.
I would also pull the intake hose off and see how much water is actually being pumped through the valve

[ROR]

Originally posted by techreef
seriously, my intake is coming into the reactor (center hole), flowing down the central tube and then out the bottom and up through the media, after which it flows through the top sponge and out the return line (hole in cap near edge of cap). the water flow seems to be pushing my lower sponge up the reactor body, somehow pushing 1C of GFO media w/ it.

A couple of small zip straps will hold your foam to the lower plate. Just make sure to put them on loose.

[Mavrk]

Originally posted by techreef
I admit that I haven't read some of the middle pages of this thread, as my daughter was born a month after this thread started, so I appologize if this Q was asked in the middle. I've got a TLF reactor w/ the GFO from twopartsolutions.com, and i'm running into an annoying occurence. about 3 days after I change out the media, i open my stand doors to find the entire dose of media, along with the lower foam "sponge" material, up against the top plate inside the reactor. I've got the ball valve throttled back to like 30-40% flow through the reactor, and I even tried Melev's suggestion of occassionally sending a burst of 100% flow through the media to prevent caking, but I've had this upflow of all the media happen to me twice now. Does anyone else have this problem? Should I try glueing the foam disk down to the red filter plate at the bottom of the reactor?

Mine did this the first time I ran my reactor. The cause was the foam was clogging up with debri. This restricted the flow through the sponge, so it pushed it up. For some reason, this has not happened to me since that first time.

[gsechen]

anyone have problems with their reactor with water spilling out from the top of the cap to the center tube in the reactor? Mine has been doing this and I am wondering if that is bad. It still goes through the center tube but spills out a lot from the top as the cap fits the center tube... any help would be appreciated. thanks

[melev]

It sounds like you have too much water pressure perhaps. Do you control the water going into the reactor, or do you have a valve after it? It shouldn't be more than 90gph max.

Alternately, perhaps the center tube is just a tad too short.

[sabbath]

Here is a couple found on youtub. Mine is somewhere in between the 2.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GVbw1yCGTbg
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Jb_cw7pm8Fw

[gsechen]

Originally posted by melev
It sounds like you have too much water pressure perhaps. Do you control the water going into the reactor, or do you have a valve after it? It shouldn't be more than 90gph max.

Alternately, perhaps the center tube is just a tad too short.

well I got a mini jet 606 put on its lowest pressure level, and got the valve after that too. When I open the valve all the way, lots of water leaks out. When I first got it, it didn't do this..oh well at least its still churning the phosban

[melev]

I guess I don't know where it is leaking out from specifically. The area that I thought you'd referred to is inside under the lid, and I don't know how you could see water coming out. If you are talking about the outside of the reactor, perhaps a picture would help.

Only restrict the water going into the reactor to avoid pressurizing it.

[jdieck]

Originally posted by gsechen
anyone have problems with their reactor with water spilling out from the top of the cap to the center tube in the reactor? Mine has been doing this and I am wondering if that is bad. It still goes through the center tube but spills out a lot from the top as the cap fits the center tube... any help would be appreciated. thanks

If you are referring to the joint between the cap and the internal center tube and not leaking to the outside, I had to install a small rubber ring at the bottom of the opening in the cap from the inside so the top of the vertical tube sealed against it. Without it the leak was so large that it shortcut the flow from the inlet to the outlet and almost nothing got to the bottom via the tube.

[gsechen]

Originally posted by jdieck
If you are referring to the joint between the cap and the internal center tube and not leaking to the outside, I had to install a small rubber ring at the bottom of the opening in the cap from the inside so the top of the vertical tube sealed against it. Without it the leak was so large that it shortcut the flow from the inlet to the outlet and almost nothing got to the bottom via the tube.

yeah exactly, thanks melev for trying to help me out but I think this is what I need to do. For me, the leak isn't large enough that it shortcuts the flow but its not even supposed to leak in the first place.

thanks

[LobsterOfJustice]

Does anyone have the thread where JetCat tested the PO4 of water used to defrost frozen food?

[sabbath]

Originally posted by techreef
does anyone have a video of "proper" flow rates for a phosban reactor? I've read verbal discriptions of this over and over, and really, have kept my flow all the way from where I barely saw the grains move at the top layer of the media, to flow that bubbled the top 1/4" of media rather vigorously. This latest problem is starting to irk me, as my cyano is going away, but now my reactor has been unplugged for 2 days as I try and figure this situation out.

Oops, My browser opened to this one a few posts back, and I did not recognize it and answered it.
I will just slide back under my rock now.

[jadeguppy]

Has anyone tried running both reactors off one pump? ex: tie the first reactor's return line to the second reactor's intake?

[sabbath]

Originally posted by jadeguppy
Has anyone tried running both reactors off one pump? ex: tie the first reactor's return line to the second reactor's intake?

I have seen it done. It works fine. You can tee it or put them in series, with the GFO 1st in the line. Then still set the flow looking at the GFO. That one is more important for flow.