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Thread: How I manage water quality....

  1. #16
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    Default Re: How I manage water quality....

    Amazing filteration set-up Chad, I understood what you on about my friend

    I'm doing a plant tank soon with similar design filteration which I can't wait for.

    All the best!
    Ahmed

  2. #17
    Registered Member Chad Hughes's Avatar
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    Default Re: How I manage water quality....

    Quote Originally Posted by Armandi_Fishcarer View Post
    Amazing filteration set-up Chad, I understood what you on about my friend

    I'm doing a plant tank soon with similar design filteration which I can't wait for.

    All the best!
    Ahmed
    Thank you Ahmed! I've kept planted tanks for many years. Obviously the asthetics are amazing, but what it does for water quality is amazing as well. I look forward to seeing your new planted tank! Keep us posted!

    Best wishes!
    Chad Hughes

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  3. #18
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    Default Re: How I manage water quality....

    Boy, I think that's the first time I've seen/heard of a hobbyist using ozone in FW, kudos to getting it working. I'm wondering why, though, the carbon is post CO2 and not post skimmer. I suppose it probably doesn't make much of a difference being that the wet/dry is functioning as a wet/dry and not a refugium. With this type of set-up, plus it being a planted tank, I'd say your WC schedule is more than generous. Reefers with this type of set-up, where accumulated pollutants are FAR more deleterious than in a planted discus tank, even SPS keepers, can get away with changes of 10% monthly or even less, and that's long term.

  4. #19
    Registered Member Chad Hughes's Avatar
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    Default Re: How I manage water quality....

    Quote Originally Posted by KDodds View Post
    Boy, I think that's the first time I've seen/heard of a hobbyist using ozone in FW, kudos to getting it working. I'm wondering why, though, the carbon is post CO2 and not post skimmer. I suppose it probably doesn't make much of a difference being that the wet/dry is functioning as a wet/dry and not a refugium. With this type of set-up, plus it being a planted tank, I'd say your WC schedule is more than generous. Reefers with this type of set-up, where accumulated pollutants are FAR more deleterious than in a planted discus tank, even SPS keepers, can get away with changes of 10% monthly or even less, and that's long term.
    KDodds,

    Thank you for the Kudos! There is very little written about the use of ozone in the freshwater tank. I feel that most don't even have a second thought about using it since it's so easy to change freshwater. Salt water is a whole different story.

    To clear up any confusion, the carbon is the last stage of the filter. Basically it goes like this....

    The water is delivered to the sump where the skimmer picks up the water and cotacts it with ozone. That water goes back in to the sump where the return pump picks it up. I've drilled a hole in the intake tube of the return pump to fit the CO2 tube. The CO2 is drawn in to the pump when it's dispensed. On it's way back to the tank, the water passes through the carbon reactor. The carbon reactor holds about 1lb of carbon.

    I'm sort of using this contest as a platform to exploit these methods of filtration and plant keeping to promote water savings and let everyone know that there's more than one way to raise discus. It will be exciting to see how the different methods prove effective.

    Best wishes!
    Chad Hughes

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  5. #20
    Registered Member calihawker's Avatar
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    Default Re: How I manage water quality....

    I'm sort of using this contest as a platform to exploit these methods of filtration and plant keeping to promote water savings and let everyone know that there's more than one way to raise discus. It will be exciting to see how the different methods prove effective.
    Very cool Chad. I'm watching closely and may employ these techniques on my display tank. I still have my sump, protein skimmer and ozone generator.

    My only concern, with all the agitation, is the amount of C02 being gassed off in the process. I already go through a substantial amount.

  6. #21
    Registered Member Chad Hughes's Avatar
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    Default Re: How I manage water quality....

    Quote Originally Posted by calihawker View Post
    Very cool Chad. I'm watching closely and may employ these techniques on my display tank. I still have my sump, protein skimmer and ozone generator.

    My only concern, with all the agitation, is the amount of C02 being gassed off in the process. I already go through a substantial amount.
    Steve,

    I go through about 10lbs of CO2 every 4 to 6 months. It costs me about $40 a year to keep the CO2 flowing. I had a concern about it early on too, but over the years it really hasn't been too much of a problem.

    Take care!
    Chad Hughes

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  7. #22
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    Default Re: How I manage water quality....

    Quote Originally Posted by avionics30 View Post

    First, the water enters a protein skimmer. Now, protein skimmers don't really do much for a freshwater tank, but the manner it which it whips water around makes it a great ozone reactor plus it has a built in venturi. The water enters the protein skimmer and is injected with ozone. The ozone increases the ORP (oxidation-reduction potential) of the water and increases it's ability to break down dissolved organics.


    Before the water makes it back to the tank, it passes through a carbon reactor. Since I am using ozone, it's important to pass the ozone treated water through carbon before sending it back to the tank. Ozone can be as harmful to fish as it is to dissolved organics! I am not a big beliver in the use of carbon for standard filtration. With ozone, it is a must! The water goes back in to the tank and the process continues.

    With Ozone reactor you could probably go a month or more without water changes.
    The ozone destroys all organic compounds it touches


    Excellent artcl on Ozone
    http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-03/rhf/index.php
    http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-04/rhf/index.php
    Last edited by rbarn; 06-14-2009 at 06:13 PM.
    800hp Mustang, V-tail Bonanza, Fly Fishing, Golf, Discus
    Got too many damn hobbies. .............

  8. #23
    Registered Member blue acara's Avatar
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    Default Re: How I manage water quality....

    Great to see people raising the discus in different ways. It will be interesting to see your results compared to the big daily water change discus. I like your setup and use of ozone, best of luck with it.

  9. #24
    Registered Member Chad Hughes's Avatar
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    Default Re: How I manage water quality....

    Quote Originally Posted by rbarn View Post
    With Ozone reactor you could probably go a month or more without water changes.
    The ozone destroys all organic compounds it touches


    Excellent artcl on Ozone
    http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-03/rhf/index.php
    http://reefkeeping.com/issues/2006-04/rhf/index.php
    This is true. In fact, I read the articles that you linked before attempting to use ozone. It's working well so far! I still do the once a week change though.

    Best wishes!

    Quote Originally Posted by blue acara View Post
    Great to see people raising the discus in different ways. It will be interesting to see your results compared to the big daily water change discus. I like your setup and use of ozone, best of luck with it.
    Thank you very much! I'm excited to see the results myself. So far so good!

    Best wishes!
    Chad Hughes

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  10. #25
    Registered Member Mr Wild's Avatar
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    Default Re: How I manage water quality....

    Well I reas the articles too as I have never been a reefer they were a bit over my head I am afraid, but I continue to learn! LOL
    Cheers Kath

  11. #26
    Registered Member Chad Hughes's Avatar
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    Default Re: How I manage water quality....



    That's what it's all about Kath! I wasn't born smart (I guess that's an opinion) LOL! I had to learn.

    Best wishes
    Chad Hughes

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  12. #27
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    Default Re: How I manage water quality....

    Chad

    I was wondering if the use of ozone can be compared to the use of UV-filtration. UV kills all the bacteria in the water and you don't have to pass through carbon after the UV-filtration. Am I wrong in this?
    Also I would like to know what you mean with an overflow to your sump. Do you have a picture of this? I have a big tank that I would like to put on a sump, but there are no holes in the bottom of this tank and it is already filled with plants and discus, so I can't start drilling.

    Mary

  13. #28
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    Default Re: How I manage water quality....

    Chad is probably all tucked in bed, so I'll see if I can help answer.

    The Ozone reactor is for breaking organics down, mainly TDS. Bacteria is killed via the UV steralizer, two seperate things. I don't beleive O3 can kill bacteria(just guessing here).

    The overflow can be achieved in two ways(at least). One is to drill to allow pumped water to flow down into the sump, and the other is to have a box, hanging off the tank drilled, and have that flow down into the sump. You would need an additional "U" flipped upside down in order to achieve that, and would require "priming" each time your water level falls below the tube.

    Hope this helps.

  14. #29
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    Default Re: How I manage water quality....

    Chad,

    My city water's report for 2008 is out, and it's even lower than the year before. Now my GH is 19ppm and TDS is at 48. KH is something like 12ppm.

    http://nyc.gov/html/dep/pdf/wsstate07.pdf

    How's that for managing water quality?!

  15. #30
    Registered Member Chad Hughes's Avatar
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    Default Re: How I manage water quality....

    Quote Originally Posted by Marywouters View Post
    Chad

    I was wondering if the use of ozone can be compared to the use of UV-filtration. UV kills all the bacteria in the water and you don't have to pass through carbon after the UV-filtration. Am I wrong in this?
    Also I would like to know what you mean with an overflow to your sump. Do you have a picture of this? I have a big tank that I would like to put on a sump, but there are no holes in the bottom of this tank and it is already filled with plants and discus, so I can't start drilling.

    Mary
    Hello Mary!

    UV and ozone work in similar manners however ozone works towards breaking down organics in the water. Many organics in the aquarium are not readily metabolized by bacteria. Ozone has the ability to make many organic materials more readily absorbed and metabolized by bacteria. Ozone triggers a bacterial attack that can reduce the load of circulating organic materials. This reduction in organic materials also applies to circulating toxins released by the aquarium inhabitants.

    Ozone can kill many pathogens. Viruses are more susceptible than bacteria to ozone, and they may be effectively inactivated by typical use. UV does a better job with bacteria. Ozone produces a variety of highly oxidized halogens such as BrOH and BrO3-. If the ozone produced oxidants are not largely removed with activated carbon, they may enter the aquarium and be hazards to the most sensitive organisms in the aquarium. This is why I have a large GAC reactor in line with the return hose.

    Ozone alters the aquarium's redox balance, raising the ORP. Ozone also oxidizes ammonia to nitrate.

    Post #2, picture #4 shows my overflow box. The overflow box allows you to provide a means of delivering water from the tank to the sump without drilling the tank. It works great for display tans, but I would plumb racks of tanks. Basically the system works like this....

    There are two acrylic boxes. One on the inside of the tank and one outside. They are joined by a "U" tube that stradles the back of the tank between the two boxes. The box in the tank has notches cut out about every half inch to allow water to trickle in to the box. The box in the back is longer than the box in the front and is fitted with a 1" diameter piece of PVC that connects the hose to the sump. This piece of pipe stands about 3" tall inside the back box and has a prefilter sponge over it. Once the back box is filled with water up to the top of the stand pipe and the fron box is filled with water up to the notches, you can start the "U" tube siphon.

    With each end of the "U" tube submersed in the water that you just added to the boxes, starting the "U" tube siphon is as simple as inserting a piece of air line tubing in to the (now upside down) "U" and forcing it all the way to the top of the upside down "U". All you have to do is suck air through the airline. This will draw out the air that is captured in the tube and you'll see the "U" tube fill with the water from the boxes. Once you begin to pull water through the air line, quickly cap the air line and remove it from the tube. You now have a permanent siphon that will not break unless you pull the entire "U" tube out of the two boxes, breaking the siphon.

    The system basically always tries to keep equilibrium between the two boxes. As the tank fills with water pumped in to the tank from the sump, the fron box fills. As the front box fills with water, the "U" tube draws the water from the front box to the back box and the water overflows in to the stand pipe in the back box, returning to the sump. The return pump in the sump keeps the system turning over.

    These boxes have ratings. Mine is rated for about 75 gallons and has a single "U" tube other are rated much higher and have 2 "U" tubes for great turnover (bigger sump and pump).

    It's pretty slick! Did I confuse you? LOL!

    Best wishes!
    Chad Hughes

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