Experience with DE?

[tcyiu]

I just bought 25lbs of DE (diatomaceous earth) from a pool supply place. I charged up my Magnum 350 and let it rip. 3 hours later, the water was still slightly murky. I added more DE so that the Magnum micron filter cartridge is now completely covered with a smooth snowy coat (i.e. no ridges/folds can be seen). An hour later, the water is still slightly cloudy.

My only other experience is with the synthetic fiber replacement for DE (that I posted before). That stuff is pricey, but really polishes the water very well.

So my question is: Is this DE dust (broken particles) passing through? i.e. can I expect there to always be some particulate matter in the water when I use DE? Can you please share your experience with DE?

Thanks in advance.

Tim

[Wahter]

I just bought 25lbs of DE (diatomaceous earth) from a pool supply place. I charged up my Magnum 350 and let it rip. 3 hours later, the water was still slightly murky. I added more DE so that the Magnum micron filter cartridge is now completely covered with a smooth snowy coat (i.e. no ridges/folds can be seen). An hour later, the water is still slightly cloudy.

My only other experience is with the synthetic fiber replacement for DE (that I posted before). That stuff is pricey, but really polishes the water very well.

So my question is: Is this DE dust (broken particles) passing through? i.e. can I expect there to always be some particulate matter in the water when I use DE? Can you please share your experience with DE?

Thanks in advance.

Tim

Tim,

A friend of mine gave me her older (but still functional) Whisper diatom filter. I hooked it up to a couple of tanks that had green water algae and it cleared them up after running it for about an hour's time. A friend of mine has the System 1 diatom filter and I've seen him use it in a planted tank (after he's removed some plants and had a lot of mulm floating around) - it worked for him too.

I do have one tank which the water has a green tint and the diatom filter can't seem to clear that up - the water looks sort of like I'm treating the tank with malachite green. I've not tried my UV sterilizer in that tank yet.

Hope that helps,


Walter

[RickMay1]

I use a System 1 (worth its weight in gold) with DE I get from a Pool supply, I haven’t had may problems like what your describing. Are you sure all the little foam gaskets are in place? I wouldn’t rule out that DE could pass through the membrane but it doesn’t seem likely,

[Mr. Limpet]

Tim,

I have used a Vortex XL for years. I was buying the DE from Rite-aid, when they had a pool department. The Brand was Chem- Aqua if my memory serves me right. When they stopped carrying pool supplies,
I picked up a 25 pound box from Home Depot. I do not remember the brand. What was clear, was that the new stuff did not work at all.
I had an outdoor free standing pool that would go green after a week or so. The Chem-Aqua brand cleaned it up in a few hours. The new brand, you could take the output of the filter and fill a bucket with
it, and the water was still green coming out of the filter. I finally ordered a box of DE from Vortex, but that is way too expensive to use on a regular basis.
So the bottom line is not all DE is the same.

Good Luck,

Paul.

[DiscusKeeper]

Tim,

I agree with Rick, It sounds like the DE is getting past the foam sealing rings at the top and bottom of the pleated filter. I use my 350 with DE from the pool supply all the time without an issue.

Mark



I use a System 1 (worth its weight in gold) Are you sure all the little foam gaskets are in place?

[RockHound]

DE particles can be tiny, down to 0.02 micron & smaller.

If your filter membrain is 5, 8 or 10 micron.

Anythng smaller will pass through it.
Not to mention, intermediate sizes clogging it.

DE is also very abrasive.
If your tank water is milky colored, from DE.
It will damage the gills & gill function of fish.

Pool filter DE is not natural amorphous diatomaceous earth.
It is treated with heat, causing the formerly amorphous silicon dioxide to assume crystalline form, from 60% to 70% free silica!
Look up the MSDS sheet on your DE pool filter product.
(not nice stuff to breath in, causes lung cancer)

If I were to use any DE, it would be the natural amorphous type.
As in the link below:
http://www.groworganic.com/item_PMB105_Diatomaceous_Earth_50_Lb_Bag.html

[Graham]

Actually it really doesn't matter what type you use as neither should be coming into direct contact with the fish.

If the seals are leakings then they need to be fixed. If the bag is ripped then it needs to be replaced................

Years ago Vortex recommended filling a bottle with the DE charge and water/capping and then submerging it into the tank, opening and allowing the filters intake to take the charge in to coat the micron bag....any DE that escaped would be picked up in short order without any harm ever done to the fish...they still recommend that ??

[tcyiu]

Thanks everyone.

Someone introduced me to a synthetic DE replacement called FiberClear (http://www.lesliespool.com/browse/Home/Filters-and-Filter-Media/Filter-Media/Fiber-Clear-3-lbs/D/30100/P/1:100:6000:600030/I/14336). Apparently, it's biodegradeable and non-carcinogenic.

I bought a small bag to try. The FiberClear did an awesome job with the water. I have this horrible bacterial bloom problem that I am fighting. The FiberClear was able to remove the bacteria every time.

I had used it with both my older Magnum 350 which had DIY sponge gaskets, and my newer Magnum 350 which had the factory gaskets. It worked in both cases, so I don't think that the gaskets are at fault.

But as you can see from the link, the stuff is kinda pricey (similar price between 3lbs of FiberClear versus 25 lbs of DE). So I decided to buy the 25lb natural DE from the pool place. The results were not as good. Hence my post.

Maybe Paul and Rockhound are right. It would seem to me that the DE granules could break into smaller bits. And perhaps the bits are sneaking by. Worse yet, DE does seem to clog the micron filter. DE seems to really reduce the water flow.

Sigh. Pennywise, pound foolish. Anyone wanna buy 25lbs of lightly used DE???

Tim

[RockHound]

LOL, keep it dry.
Few years back.
I set a 25lb bag next to the garage.
Then, forgot to bring it in.
It rained hard that night.
It turned into a 25 lb bag of toothpaste. :(

[susantroy1]

I just picked up the Vortex XL and what a huge transformation! water so clear The discus love it!! Not that I had bad... but even Wcs every 4th day did'nt produce these results!! Simply amazing... I have a 55 fully planted so I always had a slightly tainted water colum. I'm also running the fluval 305 and a aquaclear pwr filter. I'll be dumping the aquaclear shortly... I think if I understand DE. Pool grade is heat treated to get it to solidify into bigger particals than the fda approved or raw DE. If you use a food grade or raw DE in the filters it would seem correct that these Diatoms would be too fine for the filter membrain in question hense allowing these smaller diatoms to pass through. I've got a 25lb box of pool grade in the garage for the vortex. and I've ordered 50 lb of FDA grade for an organic pesticide for around the house. Also its a great health benifit for us as a natural detoxin taken 1-2 tlbs daily. Supposed to lower one's colesteral and aid in calcium uptake read up on the FDA grade DE. ol timers have known about this for years..


Troy